Document text
Budget hitch: teens or tots Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Volunteer SMART reader Jerry Manuel and first-grader Autumn Edlefson settle into bean bag chairs at Wilson Elementary School to share a book. The SMART reading program, which draws most of its help from volunteers, could lose $20,000 over the next biennium as the governor�s budget seeks to direct funds to early childhood intervention. Director Cameron McCandless said the bottom line is that she�ll have to work harder to attain private grants. Social service advocates say children�s plan unfair to some By Jonel Aleccia A quiet � and sometimes not so quiet � desperation is building among Jackson County social service advocates, who stand to lose perhaps $1 million in a state budget battle that shifts funds from older to younger kids and, they fear, unfairly penalizes local innovation and collaboration. "My concern is that we�re not going to get anything out of the governor�s Children�s Plan," said Hank Collins, county health director. "They�re going to take money away from us to roll out Healthy Start services elsewhere and we won�t get anything." Where the cuts would be Dozens of Jackson County programs that serve older children are targeted for cuts under Gov. John Kitzhaber�s proposed budget. Below is a list of several programs slated for full or partial reduction in funds from the Jackson County Commission on Children and Families. All told, commission cuts total nearly $500,000 over the next biennium. Kids Unlimited, Rogue River 17,000 Livewire (formerly Teen Line) 10,126 Student asset building 9,000 Community Outreach/Phoenix Elementary 17,000 Community Outreach/Talent Middle School 20,000 Juvenile sex offender treatment program 40,000 Special Friends 4,000 Reduce Adolescent Pregnancy Project/community outreach 10,540 Youth substance abuse treatment 40,000 Youth diagnostic shelter 40,000 Personal Safety Program 40,000 Ranger Program 17,000 SMART Program 20,000 Teen Theater 20,000 The Grove Family Resource Center 12,000 Family Focus parent education 70,000 Lawmakers in Salem are considering Gov. John Kitzhaber�s budget, which includes some $66 million for the Children�s Plan, a program that would provide screening and services to all first-born children in Oregon. It targets new and existing money toward early intervention, using a model that shows that every dollar invested in the first years of a child�s life saves $4.25 later in more costly services. But in Jackson County, where a thriving Healthy Start program already reaches families early and where social service agencies have been lauded as models of innovation and collaboration, new funds would not be forthcoming, the budget shows. In fact, the governor�s budget would cut perhaps $1 million over the next biennium in funding for other local services that now serve older kids. Gone would be about $480,000 for four school-based health centers, about $500,000 in funds for programs of the Jackson County Commission on Children and Families and perhaps another $200,000 for parenting classes, a boys� home and a youth shelter run by Community Works. "I haven�t totaled it up because I�ve been in denial," said Arnie Green, executive director of Community Works, a Medford social service agency. "It�s the most devastating scenario we�ve ever gone through." Green admits he "went off" in a public meeting late last year, when he was presented abruptly with the governor�s plan. "I just got really angry. I was rude and I should apologize," said Green, who says he felt blindsided by the lack of consultation with social service providers. Early intervention with at-risk children and their families is a vital priority, said Green. But, he argues, the governor�s initiative "robs Peter to pay Paul" and prioritizes the needs of one age group over another. His view is widely shared by local social service workers and advocates who say Kitzhaber�s focus on children ages 0 to 8 abandons legions of youngsters 8 to 13 � and older. "We support increases for younger children, but we don�t support cuts in services for older kids," said Carin Niebuhr, of the Jackson County Commission on Children and Families. "We would not support making cuts in 10 years� worth of children." If anything, there�s a need for more services, said Jody Bradley, an Ashland Middle School counselor and longtime children�s worker. "We�re in crisis with a lot of kids a lot of the time at all age levels," Bradley said. "I can�t even imagine making do with less resources than we have now and we don�t have enough now." But Peg Bowden, who runs the local Healthy Start program, said she believes Kitzhaber is simply attempting to get the rest of the state to follow Jackson County�s lead. "There have been too many people and programs and agencies stumbling over each other to reach the same families," she said. "That�s not the case here, but other counties have not been able to do that." It�s going to be a long legislative session for the advocates. Green already has been lobbying local representatives and Niebuhr anticipates one of the most delicate political negotiations she�s faced in years. "The challenge for me is that I don�t want to destroy the resources in the governor�s program for younger children to keep the resources for older children, only to lose that, too," she said. "It�s a real tap dance at the state level." First-time State Rep. Alan Bates, D-District 52, said he would fight to retain at least some funding for programs for older children. A physician, he said he�s aware of the importance of investing in the early years, but not at the exclusion of services for older kids. "You can�t just write off a generation of kids to age 13," he said. And, he added, Jackson County shouldn�t be financially penalized for already implementing programs that successfully reach at-risk children and families. He said he�ll advocate for equitable funding based on per-capita need. "You can�t reward other people for not having done the job they should have done already," he said. Organizers of programs that could be affected by cuts were philosophical about the prospect. The SMART Program � Start Making A Reader Today � stands to lose $20,000 over the biennium, a significant chunk of local fund-raising efforts. But coordinator Cameron McCandless said she supports the notion of early intervention and she�ll just have to look harder for private funds. "It is an impossible task to fund all the good programs there are for kids," she said. "They need to do what they need to do for the most people." More grants also will have to make up $20,000 in cuts from a Planned Parenthood teen theater troupe that teaches sexuality lessons to younger kids. "We�re really committed; we�re not going to let the program falter," said Maggie Sullivan, education coordinator. "The community values what we do. We�ll have to figure out a way to keep doing it." Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.