Colorado State Hosts Conference on "Strengthening Family Systems Through Community Partnerships"

Note to Editors: If interested in attending the event or interviewing presenters, contact June Greist, University Relations, (970) 491-6432.

Colorado State University will host the 2000 Mary Scott Lecture Series, a conference for community members titled "Strengthening Family Systems Through Community Partnerships," on Feb. 21 this year.

The conference will highlight the importance of community partnerships in creating safety and stability for children, families and all people in the community. Participants will have an opportunity to interact with policy makers, program developers and researchers during the one-day event held at the Lory Student Center on campus.

"This conference will challenge participants to create collaboration within their own communities," said Cheryl Asmus, coordinator of the Family and Youth Institute at Colorado State. "It is a working conference that will engage participants and provide ideas that can be implemented."

The conference will feature nine sessions, including sessions focused on ways community partnerships can help create safe communities, build strong families, deal with juvenile crime and substance abuse, provide access to legal resources, obtain health insurance for kids and prevent violence in schools.

The final session, "Voices of a Community," is a gathering during which panelists will share stories of their own journeys through several unique community programs and initiatives. The conference will conclude with a Community Services Share Fair, an open session where participants can interact individually with representatives of some innovative and easily implemented programs.

This year’s Mary Scott Lecture Series is sponsored by Colorado State’s College of Applied Human Sciences, the Family and Youth Institute at Colorado State, Colorado State University Cooperative Extension, Poudre Health Services District, Poudre School District and Phi Delta Kappa. In addition, the series is supported through an endowment by the late Mary Scott, a Timnath native who established a trust for the college to hold a series of lectures on topics of interest to area residents.

Cost for registration is $25 if registration is postmarked before Feb. 10. After Feb. 10, registration is $35. The final interactive session, "Voices of a Community," and the Community Services Share Fair are free and open to the public.

For more information on registration or a brochure on the series, contact Janell Prussman or Sandy Tracy in the College of Applied Human Sciences at (970) 491-6331.

Following is a schedule for this year’s conference.

Registration, 7:30-8:30 a.m.

Welcome Remarks, 8:30-8:45 a.m.

• Cheryl Asmus, coordinator, Family and Youth Institute.

Session I, 8:45 a.m.-10:15 a.m.

• "Safe Communities: Safe Schools" by Rep. Bob Bacon (D-53), former member of the Poudre School District Board of Education.
• "Larimer County Juvenile Drug Court: A Community Effort" by Dee Colombini, Drug Court coordinator of Larimer County District Court, and a panel of experts.
• "Strengthening Collaboration through Research" by Ann Foster, Marc Winokur and Rebecca Gajda, Research and Development Center for the Advancement of Student Learning at Colorado State.

Session II, 10:30 a.m.-noon

• "Local Legally-Related Efforts to Aid and Assist Families" by Nancy Wallace and Celeste King, attorneys at law.
• "Covering Our Kids: Access to Health Care for Colorado’s Most Vulnerable" by Kimberley Imperiale, Covering Kids State Project coordinator, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
• "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in Colorado: Research and Treatment" by Pam Gillen, director of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Project at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and Karen Riley, Children’s Hospital.

Lunch on your own, noon- 1:15 p.m.

Session III, 1:15-2:45 p.m.

• "Partnerships for Community Safety" by Jacque Miller, Partnerships for Community Safety, Colorado State Cooperative Extension.
• "Strategies for Engaging Community Partnerships" by Marva Hammons, executive director of Colorado Department of Human Services.
• "Strengthening Families" by David MacPhee, professor, Department of Human Development and Family Studies at Colorado State, and Jan Miller-Heyl, Colorado State Cooperative Extension Youth Specialist and state director of DARE to be You.

"Voices of a Community" and Community Services Share Fair, 3-5 p.m.

A gathering moderated by Robert Evans, owner of Rocky Mountain Coffee Connection and recipient of the Stryker-Short Annual Philanthropy award for Colorado, and Mary Cosgrove, Project Self-Sufficiency. The session offers a forum to hear directly from participants in regional community service programs. The Community Services Share Fair provides an opportunity to share ideas with staff members of several unique programs.