Tuscarawas County Family & Children First
Vision
Mission
Values
The Council
Ohio Family and Children First (OFCF) is a partnership of state and local government, communities and families that enhances the well-being of Ohio’s children and families by building community capacity, coordinating systems and services, and engaging families. OFCF’s vision is for every child and family to thrive and succeed within healthy communities.
Established in 1993, Ohio Family and Children First (OFCF) is defined as the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet with the purpose of streamlining and coordinating government services for children and families. The OFCF Cabinet Council is comprised of the following Ohio Departments: Aging, Developmental Disabilities, Education, Health, Job and Family Services, Medicaid, Mental Health and Addiction Services, Opportunities for Ohioians with Disabilities, Rehabilitation and Correction, Youth Services, and the Office of Budget and Management. Locally, the county commissioners establish the 88 county Family and Children First Councils (FCFC).
Who We Are
The Tuscarawas County Family & Children First Council is an organization of parent representatives and public and private agencies who believe that children and families are our county’s most valuable resource and worth the investment of our time and efforts.
Member agencies provide many types of services to families and children including: health and safety, teenage pregnancy prevention, child abuse prevention, parent education, mental health, child youth services,
combating substance abuse, education to strive for self-sufficiency, and education for living a quality life.
The agencies and parent representatives who belong to TCFCFC have agreed to work toward providing all families and children with the resources to make family life and children’s futures the best they can be.
Our agencies have pledged that services will be available and accessible to all who qualify, provided
effectively and to the highest standards possible, and performed without costly duplication.
Build Community Capacity:
Mobilize child and family serving partners to address the needs of children and families through comprehensive planning to identify, prioritizes, and implement needed services to fill gaps
Coordinate Systems and Services:
Coordinate services and supports for individual families that require family-centered team planning, community involvement, pooled resources, and identification of existing and needed services.
Engage and Empower Families:
Recruit and support families to be active contributing members on council and advocate on behalf of child and family.
Shared Accountability for Ohio Family & Children First’s Vision:
Monitor, evaluate, and communicate progress and successes to assure all children and families thrive and succeed within healthy communities.
Members
Governing Board
Provide policy and governance leadership and oversight of all facets of statutory Family and Children First operations including, but not limited to, the following: annual review of the Administrative Agent Agreement, Memorandum of Understandings, annual review of the Service Coordination mechanism, grant management, approval of annual operating budget, dispute resolution process, all other functions are prescribed in Ohio Revised Code 121.37.
Community CARE Team
Ensures that Council responds to all special projects, services, and grants in support of children and families that includes, but is not limited to, the following:
- Develops response to Ohio Children’s Trust Fund, House Bill 289, Help Me Grow, Animal/Child Abuse Prevention, and other mandated council projects/grants
- Creates committees as necessary to address community needs
- Works in conjunction with the Service Coordination Committee to develop new programs and to strengthen existing programs
- Address specific conditions of the business associate agreements
- Elects two agency members and three family members to serve on the Governing Board
- Responds to Request for Proposals under the direction of the Governing Board
- Works in conjunction with the administrative agent to meet the requirements of state and applicable federal grants and programs
Provides administrative and policy oversight on all facets of service coordination planning and monitoring including, but not limited to the following: eligibility criteria, service planning and case review processes, annual approval of the service plan, management of business associate agreements, service financing, family and advocate involvement, on-going needs assessment, family and peer support mechanisms, routine activity reporting to governing and advisory committees. Makes recommendations to Governing Board and Advisory Board relative to service gaps. Works in conjunction with the administrative agent on contract and service management and financing issues.
Budget Committee
Works in conjunction with the Administrative Agent on all financial and budget related activities of council including, but not limited to, the following:
- Review and approval monthly financial statements
- Grant oversight, preparation of annual operating budget ensuring Council compliance with all applicable accounting and audit requirements per State and Federal regulations.
Early Childhood Coordinating Committee (ECCC)
ECCC shall assist TCFCFC in the design, coordination, and implementation of a comprehensive, coordinated, interdisciplinary, family-centered Help Me Grow system of services for families with an infant or toddler at risk for or with developmental disabilities/delays.
Governing Board

ADAMHS Board of Tuscarawas & Carroll Counties
Natalie Bollon

Buckeye Career Center
Bob Alsept

HARCATUS Head Start
Brooke Yager, Beverly Statler

Help Me Grow/Early Intervention
Brandi Ankrom

New Philadelphia City Schools
Amy Wentworth

New Philadelphia City Health Department
Vickie Ionno, Dana Fischio

City of New Philadelphia Mayor's Office
Jami Bailey

Noah’s Hope Child Advocacy Center
Mandy Willett

Ohio Department of Youth Services
Michael Gardner

Tuscarawas County Commissioners
Kristin Zemis

Tuscarawas County Health Department
Katie Seward

United Way of Tuscarawas County
Robin Waltz

Parent Representative
Christina Fowler

Parent Representative
Jen Flaherty

Parent Representative
Jim Shamel
Community CARE Team

ADAMHS Board of Tuscarawas & Carroll Counties
Veronica Spidell

Big Brothers Big Sisters
Beverly Pearch

CareSource
Jeannie Jones, Shauna Shell

COAD
Lara Schwartz

Compass Rape Crisis
Kayla Stover

East Central Ohio Educational Service Center
Scott Power

Empower Tusc
Jodi Salvo

Friends of the Homeless
Becky Everhart

HARCATUS Head Start
Brooke Yager

HARCATUS Tri-County Community Action Organization
Allison Kerns

Help Me Grow/Early Intervention
Brandi Ankrom

New Life Counseling
Candy Bond

Newsymom
Michaela Thomas (Madison)

Noah’s Hope Child Advocacy Center
Mandy Willett

OhioGuidestone
Pam Trimmer

OhioKAN
Marlene Emerick

OhioRISE
Maryalice Surgenavic

Ohio State University Extension of Tuscarawas County
Christine Kendle

PAC Nami Ohio
Adena Beach

Salvation Army
Andrew Behr

Society For Equal Access
Frances Gundrum

Southeast Healthcare, Inc
Weslee Warner

SpringVale Health Centers
Jim Feicht, Miles Riley

Tuscarawas County Board of Developmental Disabilities
Stephanie Keen

Tuscarawas County Health Department
Sydney Marlatt

Tuscarawas County Job and Family Services
Nichole Peoples

United Way of Tuscarawas County
Robin Waltz

The Village Network
Brittany Nidy

Parent Representative
Christina Fowler

Parent Representative
Jen Flaherty

Parent Representative
Jim Shamel
CARE Team Flyer
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CARE Team Referral
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