The Talon Vol. 3 Issue 1 - Spring 2008 - Coppin State University ...

communityCoppin and Northrop Grumman Map CollaborationBy Dr. E. Lee LassiterA project being developed jointly by CoppinState University and the Northrop GrummanCorporation’s (NYSE: NOC), Electronic SystemsSector will open new doors to development andgrowth for the defense contractor’s employees andadvance the university’s long tradition of communityoutreach.The collaboration, which took two major stepstoward formal implementation recently, was initiatedin July 2007 by Dr. Sadie Gregory, formerCoppin Interim President; Jim Roberts, Coppin’sInterim Vice President for Institutional Advancement(IA), and Northrop Grumman representativesCarl Brooks, Manager of the Advanced MicroelectronicsCenter and Gerald Davis, KnowledgeManager.The project’s goal is to offer the company’sapproximately 8,000 Baltimore area employees theopportunity to participate in Coppin courses andprograms that are uniquely crafted to meet needsemployees have identified. Participation may be oncampus or at sites at Northrop Grumman.“Coppin has a history of extending courseThe Kinship Care Resource Center of Maryland at CSUAssisting Relatives Raising Children of Family MembersBy Caron A. BraceFunded by the State of Maryland Departmentof Human Resources (DHR) Social ServicesAdministration (SSA), The Kinship Care ResourceCenter of Maryland was established in 1999 underCoppin State University’s (CSU) Helene FuldSchool of Nursing and the Department of SocialWork to empower and preserve families.According to the mission of the organization,the Kinship Care Resource Center aims to providestrategies, information, referrals, and support designedto empower and preserve families providingcare for other relative’s children in an effort to keepthem intact.“An increasing number of American grandparentsare finding their later years different from whatthey expected,” said Dr. Earlene Merrill, Directorof the Kinship Care Resource Center and Professorfor the Helene Fuld School of Nursing. “Instead ofa quiet retirement, sweetened by delights of occasionalvisits with grandchildren, many grandparentshave taken on the role of surrogate parents to theirgrandchildren.”Due to varying circumstances, many childrenare being raised by someone other than their biologicalparents. Sometimes, this may be a grandparent,other times an aunt or an uncle. Regardless ofthe caregiver’s relationship to the child, the term“Kinship Care” was coined for this arrangement inwhich relatives raise another relative’s child/children.These caregivers take on the full-time responsibilityof parenting these children by nurturingofferings and programs beyond the campus usingcreative approaches based on an identified need,”said Dr. Charity Welch, Director of Off-CampusInitiatives at Coppin. “We are excited about thispartnership and its potential to expand on whatwe do well,” said Dr. Welch. “It will showcase ourstrength in meeting education interests and needsfor personnel in the private sector.”A Career Exploration Day, open to all NorthropGrumman employees, was held November 14 th ,2007 at the company’s Linthicum campus. Representativesfrom Coppin’s Admissions Office and thecompany’s African American Employee ResourceGroup distributed information, answered employeequestions, and managed a computerized EmployeeEducation Interests Survey.“By offering these courses to Northrop Grummanemployees and providing them with an enrichingexperience, we are hopeful they will share thisexperience with their family members and friendsand that they will also consider matriculating atCoppin State University,” said Roberts, Coppin’sInterim IA Vice President.them, fostering their growth, and providing themwith stable living arrangements.“In the past 20 years, societal conditions haveforced family members to assist with raising thechildren - including grandparents, aunts, uncles,brothers, sisters, and even cousins’ involvement,”said Derrick Henson, MSW, Project Coordinatorof Kinship Care Resource Center of Maryland.According to the Resource Center, this trendhas evolved due to a variety of family conditionsincluding parental deaths, military assignments,parental abandonment, divorce, single parenting,parental imprisonment, drug addiction, physicaland mental illness, unemployment, poverty, andviolence.In an effort to keep these families intact, theKinship Care Resource Center provides variousinformation materials and referrals for obtainingnecessary resources. Additionally, the Center assiststhe families by developing support groups, providingtransportation, advocating for legislation on thelocal, state, and federal levels, promoting recreationaland extracurricular activities, and assistingwith securing legal support.The Center, located in the CSU CommunityHealth Center on North Avenue, serves as thecentral location for the entire State of Maryland.All services provided by the Kinship Care ResourceCenter are free.In June, Coppin was awarded a grant throughthe Barbara Bush Foundation for Family LiteracyThe Grumman Corporation is a $30 billionglobal defense and technology company whoseemployees provide innovative systems, products,and solutions in information and services, electronics,aerospace and shipbuilding to government andcommercial customers worldwide.In previous “partnership” ventures with Coppin,Northrop Grumman has developed projects withthe university’s charter school, Rosemont Elementary/MiddleSchool and the Coppin Academy.Northrop Grumman Corporation is a $30 billionglobal defense and technology company whoseemployees provide innovative systems, products,and solutions in information and services, electronics,aerospace and shipbuilding to government andcommercial customers worldwide.“We look forward to expanding our educationalpartnership with Coppin State University,” saidBrian J. Morra, sector vice president of BusinessDevelopment and Strategic Planning at NorthropGrumman and a member of Coppin’s DevelopmentFoundation Board of Directors.Fourth Annual Maryland Grant Competition.The grant funds the development of the CoppinKinship Family Literacy Program. In partnershipwith the Kinship Care Resource center, this projectworks to increase adult literacy levels and parents’knowledge about children’s literacy developmentamong 35 low-income kinship relatives and their45 children living on Baltimore’s west side.This year the Foundation awarded a total of$499,222 to ten Maryland programs. Rangingin size from $49,572 to $50,000, the ten winninggrant applications were chosen from amonga variety of grant proposals from non-profitorganizations and public institutions. The CoppinRosemont Family Literacy Program is designed toraise children’s literacy skills, enhance caregivers’reading and technology skills, and increase awarenessof family/child health and wellness.Dr. Shawyn Jenkins from the Department ofCurriculum & Instruction at Coppin State Universityprovides trainings for each session. Ms. GwenCobbs and Mr. Joseph Manko, from RosemontElementary School, provide workshops for adults.Two Baltimore City classroom teachers provideactivities for increasing children’s literacy. Dr. YangheeKim also from the Department of Curriculum& Instruction at Coppin State coordinates dailyoperations.For more information about the Kinship CareResource Center of Maryland at Coppin StateUniversity, call (410) 951-4177.12