Through the Looking Glass

THE CHILDREN’S COALITION FOR Northeast Louisiana (CCNELA) hosted a community-wide meeting on June 8th seeking input on the challenges faced by children in our community. “Through the Looking Glass, Reflections of a Community that Cares,” hosted by CCNELA, drew a large crowd of diverse individuals and community leaders who contributed their thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of the entire Region 8 area.

The Children’s Coalition is dedicated to creating communities where children and families can thrive. They address the needs of children and youth ages 0-18 in four main areas: Early Care and Education, Healthy Living, Parent Education and Youth Development. Through collaboration with partner agencies and the community, the Children’s Coalition looks to identify and address issues related to youth in our community and educate parents, professionals and policy-makers on what benefits youth. “A child’s well-being has a direct correlation on how well a community is doing,” stated Kristie Bardell, CCNELA Executive Director. Research has proven that if you want to see what your community looks like today and in the future, just start by taking a look at our youth as they are a reflection of our entire community.

“The purpose of the project was to engage local community leaders, organizations and residents to work towards building thriving communities with a focus on where you live, learn, work, play, and pray,” continued Bardell. The meeting was packed with presentations, in addition to roundtable discussion periods, where attendees broke out into groups and discussed the challenges faced by youth in our community today while also learning ways to combat these challenges and the strengths our community offers.

The organization recently conducted an assessment, through a third party consulting firm, of the 12 parishes that make up Region 8 in northeast Louisiana in which the organization serves. Ultimately, from the collection of primary and secondary data, the Children’s Coalition will be able to illustrate the assets, barriers, and opportunities to advancing early childhood wellbeing in our region. Events like today ensure that, together, we can identify paths towards collaboration and innovation to ensure that all families and children across Northeast Louisiana can flourish. For more information on the Children’s Coalition, visit www.childrenscoalition.org. Following the event, the community will receive a completed study showing the findings of the assessment conducted for Region 8, as well as a reporting of the community’s input.