Family Home Visiting Community Advisory Committee

The Northeast Regional Family Home Visiting Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is a voluntary committee that will provide strategic guidance for the planning, implementation, expansion, and evaluation of the home visiting program(s) across the 7-county region (Carlton, Cook, Lake, Saint Louis Counties, Aikin, Itasca, and Koochiching counties) and 3 tribes (Fond du Lac, Bois Forte, and Leech Lake).

It will establish a community support system for the program(s) and promote program quality and sustainability. The CAC will provide guidance and recommendations on how to sustain the program(s) and how to better serve caregivers and their children across the region.

Mission and Vision

The CAC is committed to building and sustaining community partnerships in Northeast MN that support the creation of strong, self-sufficient family units that nurture parent-child relationships. The vision of the CAC is to successfully support home visiting programs through providing leadership, community involvement, engagement and maximizing available funding.

Meeting Frequency/Duration and Location

The CAC meetings will be held from 1pm - 3pm on the second Thursday in the months of February, May, August, and November through a virtual meeting platform.

Membership

The CAC will be composed of community members representing a diverse group of collaborators including state and local public health, child & family health providers, early childhood centers & ECFE, and community partners in 7 Counties and 3 Tribes.

The CAC will seek to continually engage partners and annually re-evaluate membership with inquiry and addition of new community members.

Attend quarterly meetings and provide guidance regarding strategic goals for sustainability and expansion.

Guiding Principles

The Northeast MN Regional Family Home Visiting Community Advisory Committee is a diverse collaboration of community partners who seek to ensure the success, sustainability, and growth of family home visiting in our communities. The primary roles are to provide guidance and support on decisions affecting the implementation, program growth and sustainability over time in key areas such as:

Enrollment, referrals, and referral assistance
Continuity of care
Expansion and sustainability
Engaging leaders, partners, and ambassadors
Marketing and public relations (i.e., provide feedback on promotional materials)
Advocacy and legislative contact

CAC Member Responsibilities

Act as an ambassador for family home visiting in the community.
Increase public awareness regarding family home visiting.
Promote and discuss community linkages to increase and sustain referrals to the program and community collaboration.
Review program outcomes, continuous quality improvement activities and assist in the development of goals for future program growth and development.
As able and appropriate engage and mobilize community partners to identity and pursue opportunities for financial support and resources to meet the needs of home visiting programs and families.
Potential to be an advocate on behalf of home visiting among elected officials, policymakers, and other political leaders at the local, state and national levels.
Discuss the challenges and barriers clients face with meeting their goals and assist with brainstorming solutions.
Review and make recommendations on potential additional or replacement CAC members.
Support the nurse home visitors with encouragement and resources.

Meetings may include but are not limited to:

Networking and relationship building to build connections and expand partnerships between MDH, Local Public Health, Tribal agencies and community partners.
Peer Support & Collaboration
Education & Resource sharing
Updates from the MDH, FHV agencies, Tribal agencies, counties, and community partners.

Staff:

The CAC will be facilitated by the Regional Child and Family Wellbeing Program Manager in partnership with county staff and CAC Members. Additional responsibilities will be discussed and delegated as needed.