Korean American Community Services Wins Grant to Aid Children, Families

PALO ALTO – Korean American Community Services (KACS), located in San Jose, has received a grant for $36,000 from the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health to renew its child abuse prevention program, foundation President and CEO Stephen Peeps announced today.

The program, called Children’s Health Project, provides counseling to encourage positive communication and safe home environments and offers weekly workshops on effective parenting, conflict management, coping skills, and U.S. child protective laws.

KACS is the only agency in Santa Clara County serving Koreans who are monolingual or speak limited English. According to Hwaja Choi, KACS executive director, the lack of social supports for newly arrived Korean immigrants, along with feelings of isolation and limited language skills, are stress factors that can result in children becoming victims of child abuse and neglect. Research points to social isolation as a key factor in the incidence of child abuse and neglect. The weekly meetings and peer support groups alleviate isolation as well as provide education and practice in effective parenting.

KACS is among 32 child and youth nonprofit organizations in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties to receive $2.1 million in the first-ever round of grants from the 4-year-old foundation. The foundation’s two funding areas are protecting children (ages 0-5) from injury with emphasis on preventing child abuse, and promoting emotional, mental and behavioral health in pre-teens (ages 9-13).

"18개월 동안 지역 사회 지도자들과 계획하고 협의하는 동안 샌머테오와 산타클라라 카운티 아동들의 건강 상태에 대해 많은 것을 알게 되었고, 엄청난 도움이 필요하다는 것을 알게 되었습니다."라고 핍스는 말했습니다. "이 지역 아동들은 대부분 건강하게 태어나는데, 건강을 해치거나 위협하는 요인들은 주로 행동과 관련이 있어 예방이 가능합니다. 그래서 저희는 두 가지 관심 분야에서 예방 활동에 집중하기로 했습니다."

예를 들어, 1998년 샌머테오 카운티에서는 5,006건의 아동 학대 및 방치 사례가 보고되었으며, 그중 대부분이 방치였습니다. 산타클라라 카운티에서는 1999년에 19,565건의 아동 학대 및 방치 사례가 보고되었습니다. 10대 초반 아동의 약물 남용, 성적 위험 감수, 자살 충동은 각 카운티가 지속적으로 해결해야 할 과제입니다.

지원받은 32개 프로그램 중 신규 프로그램은 6개에 불과합니다. 핍스는 "가장 필요한 것은 기존 프로그램을 강화하는 것이라는 것을 알게 되었습니다."라고 말했습니다.

Other organizations funded include countywide projects such as Santa Clara Valley’s YMCA Cornerstone Project, which focuses on youth development, as well as smaller rural-based programs. Individual grants range from $36,000 to $300,000 over the course of one, two and three years.

“In a relatively short time, the foundation’s community grantmaking program has gone from a concept to a reality,” said Sharon Keating Beauregard, the foundation’s director of Programs and Grants. “It is rewarding to see resources getting out to the communities to strengthen the health and well-being of children.”

재단의 커뮤니티 지원 프로그램에 대한 자세한 내용과 수혜자 전체 목록을 보려면 재단 웹사이트를 방문하세요. www.lpfch.org또는 (650) 736-0676으로 전화하세요.