Date

12-2018

Document Type

Capstone Project (Open Access)

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

Department

Health, Human Services and Public Policy

Major

Collaborative Health and Human Services

First Advisor

Alvaro Suarez

Second Advisor

Adrienne Saxton

Abstract

The Head Start Program in Monterey County serves children from birth to 5 years of age and their families. In 2015, a senate bill was passed by California stating, parents who volunteer in a public school must be fully immunized against various diseases, including measles, pertussis, influenza and tuberculosis. The new policy rapidly became a barrier to many Head Start parents who desire to volunteer in their child’s classroom, creating additional obstacles for accessibility to receive the required immunizations. The purpose of this capstone is to support parents in overcoming the challenges to volunteering by connecting parents to appropriate clinics serving socio-economically disadvantaged families. A flyer was created for distribution about the requirements and benefits of volunteering. Parent volunteer applications were analyzed to case manage uninsured parents to access health clinics at no cost. The expected outcome was to increase the number of volunteers at Head Start sites. Recommendations to Head Start include providing a teacher and staff workshop about the value and expected use of volunteers. The heart of this capstone is to reinforce parental involvement.

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