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Relatives as
Parents Program |
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In October 1991 the
Foundation funded the University of California-Berkeley to survey the
nature and extent of services for grandparent caregivers in the
United
States.
In 1993, we provided support for the establishment of the
AARP
Grandparent
Information
Center
which
provides resources and information on issues confronted by grandparents who
are raising their grandchildren to grandparents and the professionals who assist them.
The Relatives
as Parents Program (RAPP) was initiated in 1996.
It is designed to encourage and promote the creation or expansion of
services for grandparents and other relatives who have taken on the
responsibility of surrogate parenting due to the absence of the
parents. The
program awards seed grants of $10,000 over a two-year period in two categories:
local agencies and state public agencies.
Currently
RAPP provides extensive services, primarily to relative caregivers caring for
children outside the foster care system, in 44 States and the District of
Columbia. As part of our sponsorship of RAPP we conduct our National
Orientation and Training Conference and provide technical assistance through
site bulletins, a newsletter, and conference calls to facilitate opportunities
for networking and information exchange
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Brookdale Staff
at the 2005 Denver Conference |
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This publication, a collaboration of the National Association of Area
Agencies
on Aging (n4a) and the Brookdale Foundation, is intended to make the
aging
network across the nation aware of important and successful Relatives as
Parents Programs (RAPPs) operated by Area Agencies on Aging. We hope
this
guidebook will encourage the replication of RAPP supportive services to
relative caregivers by the many Area Agencies on Aging that serve older
adults.
Click here to download
Promising Practices in
Encouraging & Supporting Grandparents and Relatives Raising
Children
The RAPP Request for Proposals (RFP) is available on this website every
October.
We urge Area Agencies on Aging to apply and promote the creation and
expansion
of supportive services to relative caregiver families.
The RAPP
Local Initiative enables local agencies to:
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- Provide accessible support groups and other supportive
services to relative caregivers and the children in their
care;
- Encourage cooperation and collaboration among various
service delivery systems (i.e., child care, mental health,
aging, family services, education, legal and health care);
- Ensure the development, expansion and future continuity
of local services; and
- Create replicable models of service.
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| The RAPP Statewide Initiative requires State grantees to:
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- Initiate five new relative support groups in different
parts of the state, under the sponsorship and support of
local agencies;
- Develop a statewide Network of local organizations that
link current programs and interested agencies; provide
guidance and information to local communities; stimulate
the expansion of services to grandparent caregivers and
their families; and
- Establish or expand an inter-system “Task Force” or
committee of public state agencies and statewide
organizations on the issue of relatives as surrogate
parents.
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The RAPP
Regional Initiative asks grantees to: |
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Serve
a broad geographic area and support the development of a
variety of local or regional group activities.
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Assist local organizations to develop and operate services
for relative caregivers and their families
- Establish a broad-based Regional Advisory Committee to bring together representatives from various fields and communities to: facilitate program goals and serve as a focal point of information on programs and policies; stimulate the development of services to caregivers and their families across the region; and link local programs and interested agencies into a regional network to address the issues and service needs of relative caregivers and their families.
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For more information contact
Melinda Perez-Porter,
Director, Relatives As Parents Program,
mpp@brookdalefoundation.org or
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Contact
Information
To
receive notice of future Brookdale funding opportunities and be placed on the RAPP
mailing list, please email
Mary de
la Cruz with your name, address and agency affiliation.
Make the mail subject "RAPP"
If
you have any questions about RAPP, please contact
Melinda
Perez-Porter
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