NORTHLAND AREA FAMILY SERVICE CENTER

Quick Facts:

• Incorporated in 1996 as a 501C3
• We the Northland Community School District and parts of Leech Lake Reservation.
• This is a population of 4,474 people (5.26 persons per square mile)
• In our service area 20% of households make less than $20,000 and 11.9% or 536 people in our community live below the poverty line.

The Northland Family Center was created as a unique way to give rural access to county and educational services, and to meet community needs through innovative programming.

Our programs include:

Home visiting

This is a program for first time parents. A home visitor works with a family when they are pregnant until the child turns three. The program supports healthy and safe families, and works with parents as they deliver healthy babies, bond with their children, and learn about their child’s development. Our home visitor works with parents to plan a healthy future for their family.

PM Power Learners after school program

This program provides tutoring, homework help, enrichment activities in a safe environment with caring adults. Children involved in this program typically improve classroom behavior, homework completion and test scores.

Kids Act after school program

Kids Act is a program for youth in grades 3-10. Youth learn about improvisation, beginning acting techniques, and building positive self-esteem through the arts.

Family Fun Nights

Families with young children attend and celebrate the early childhood experience. Family Fun Nights, offered three times a year, are sponsored by the following organizations: Blandin Foundation, Bi-CAP Head Start, Northland Area Family Service Center, Early Childhood Family Education, Early Childhood Special Education, and Leech Lake Early Childhood.

Bright Red Bookshelves

These bookshelves act as an informal lending library for children’s books. The Bookshelves are located at businesses throughout the Northland community. Families are able to take books and return them at their convenience. This program is patterned after the Itasca Area Project Read Program.

Preschool:

Preschool serves children age three to five in a wonderful, home-like environment. Students experience hands-on activities, making friends, solve problems through cooperative play—all while learning about numbers, letters and words.

Family Support

This is for families who need help filing for social services, making long-distance phone calls, and using the internet, etc. Individualized plans for assistance take into consideration special circumstances and life events.

A Second Chance Thrift Store

The store is located in Remer and was established in 2009 to support children’s programs. We appreciate all the donations that allow us to sell reasonably priced items to our community.

Tossed and Found Boutique

This thrift store was created to support the Longville Food Shelf. The original food shelf was in the basement of the funeral home. The Family Center received a stock donation worth $25,000 and was able to purchase a building for the Food Shelf and the Tossed and Found Boutique. The mortgage of $169,000 was paid off in just under five years with proceeds from Tossed and Found.

Co-located at the Family Center:

Baby Steps Boutique:

This is a unique store that accepts only coupons to purchase new items for children birth to five. Parents can ‘earn’ coupons by attending programs, events and appointments that build healthy, stronger families.

Adult Basic Education/GED Prep

This program is offered on Mondays at the Family Center for two hours with a certified Adult Basic Education teacher.

To see more of what we do please visit:

Our Website: www.northlandfamilycenter.org/

Our Blog: www.northlandfamilycenter.wordpress.com/

Our Facebook: www.facebook.com/NorthlandAreaFamilyServiceCenter