Newsletter for October 12th, 2009
Quote of the Day
When witches go riding,
and black cats are seen,
the moon laughs and whispers,
‘tis near Halloween.
~Author Unknown
Take Five...
It's that time of the semester when exams, papers, and projects are taking over all of your free time. Take five minutes away from the books to relax and laugh with these spooktacular, kid-friendly jokes. Share them with your kids!
What does Mrs. Ghost serve for dessert?
Ice scream
What do fishermen say on Halloween?
'Trick-or-trout!'
Why is Dracula so unpopular?
Because he's a pain in the neck!
What do skeletons say before they begin dining?
Bone appetite!
What runs around a cemetery but doesn't move?
A fence!
Help Center Announcements
Save the Dates:
PASS Group (Parents as Student Support Group)
Pass meets on a weekly basis on Wednesdays from 12-2pm in Appleby Hall, Room 24. The group allows students to get to know other student parents, share the joys and frustrations of academics, learn about others’ experiences with parenting, and enjoy a FREE lunch with your SPHC peers.
PASS discussions are determined primarily by you, the student parents. If you have questions, concerns, or ideas, you can share them openly with your friends at SPHC. By sharing your personal struggles and successes, you are helping others who may be experiencing similar situations. We hope that you can join us on a regular basis. You can come for part, or all of group, whatever your schedule allows. (Little ones are welcome!!!) What is ahead in PASS:
October 14th , 2009: Jan Merrell, Child Care Center Director and Family Educator coming to talk about Child Development. Lunch for group will be ordered out.
October 21st, 2009: Group schedule includes check-in, community building time, open discussion, and a mid-semester project. Lunch menu to be determined.
Note: Please know that the SPHC staff does not want student parents to skip class in order to attend the weekly group meetings. Academics are considered student parent’s priority at the U. If there is a specific topic you are interested in and you are unable to attend group, please inform a staff member and we will be happy to provide information to you afterwards.
If you have suggestions for a specific topic or program, contact Jerri Clark Wagner, or Elise Niedermeier at sphc@umn.edu.
Please remember that the center is closed during group on Wednesdays from 12-2 for all other computer use and studying spaces. Please come back in around 2 PM and we will re-open the doors. If you are going to join us for lunch, please stay at least 1/2 hour and join in the group in order to respect the food budget of the HELP Center.
Flu Season:
It’s that time of year again. The leaves are falling, the birds are migrating south, and the person sitting next to you in class is sneezing and coughing. The Flu vaccine, which is free of charge, is being offered on campus. Go to http://www.bhs.umn.edu/services/fluclinics/#fluschedule to view the University’s vaccination schedule. The Flu vaccine is being offered on all three campuses to help accommodate students.
Certain groups of individuals are considered priority for receiving the H1N1 vaccination. For example women that are pregnant, children under five, and those providing child care should receive the vaccination. Talk to your care provider for more information.
Another way to help protect you and your family from the Flu is to be informed. The Center for Disease control developed a helpful brochure, listing information about the Flu and H1N1. You can access the brochure at http://www.cdc.gov/flu/freeresources/2009-10/pdf/pan_flu_brochure.pdf for more information.
On Campus Events
Save the Dates:
Non-Traditional Student Week
November 2nd-6th
Stay tuned for upcoming details and events!
Share with each other
Student Parent Success Stories and Announcements
We would like to continue featuring personal success stories and announcements in our bi-weekly newsletter. If you will be graduating this fall, having a baby, buying a home, getting married, or are experiencing a related event, please let us know. You can send the announcements or stories to the SPHC e-mail address (sphc@umn.edu). We are proud of all of your accomplishments and upcoming events, and would love to share them with others.
Student Parent Pictures
Have any great family photos that you want to share with others? If so, please send them to us so that we can feature them in the newsletter. Please send us any pictures you want included in a newsletter to sphc@umn.edu as an e-mail attachment.
Scholarships
Talbots Scholarship Foundation
To be eligible, applicants must:
-be women currently residing in the U.S. or Canada
-be women who earned a high school diploma or GED on or before September 2000
-be enrolled or are planning on being enrolled in a full or part-time undergraduate course at an accredited 2, 3, or 4-year college, university, or vocational-technical school
-be attending the full 2010-2011 academic year, and receiving a degree no earlier than May 2011
-Have at least two semesters, or 24 credit hours or more, to complete an undergraduate degree as of the beginning of the 2010 fall academic year
The Talbots Scholarship Foundation awards 10 scholarships for $15,000, and one $30,000 scholarship. To apply, go to https://www.scholarshipamerica.org/talbotswomen/instructions.php. At the bottom of the page click on Register to Apply.
Parenting Information and Resources
Supporting Your Child's Academic Success
Good study habits are an important skill to acquire. The best time to pick up these skills is while your children are young, to help ensure a strong academic future. Below are some helpful tips that may help your child during their academic career.
1)Create a homework "center" for your child. This can be any area in your house as long as it is cleaned off, and stocked with enough school supplies (paper, pencils, erasers, etc). You should have your child sit in the "center" everyday to create a routine.
2)Sit with your kids when they are doing their homework. This ensures that they are finishing whatever needs to be done. At the same time, you are modeling great behaviors. You child will learn that even adults have "homework", whether it's studying for a test, paying the bills, or balancing the checkbook.
3)Help answer the child's question, but don't give them the answer. If your child is stuck on a problem, try to come up with an example to help him or her understand how to complete the question.
4)Encourage your child to read books that they find exciting. Ask them questions about whatever they are reading. If you don't know what to ask, you can always count on the five "Ws" (who, what, where, when, and why)
For more Parenting Information and Resources, check out our website at www.sphc.umn.edu.
Community Resources
Project for Pride in Living
Project for Pride in Living (PPL) is a wonderful community resources that has much to offer. Free classes are offered in the Twin Cities area including lessons on: parenting, career advancement, employment skills training, and computer training.
PPL also offers youth programs, free of charge, for families living near PPL sites. To learn more information, or to get involved, go to http://www.ppl-inc.org.
For more Community Resources, please check out our website (www.sphc.umn.edu).
Community Events and Activities
Family Friendly Activities in the Twin Cities!
ZOO BOO
A spook-tacular fund raiser for
Como Park Zoo and Conservatory!
October 17, 18, 23, 24, 25
Gates open from 4:30-7:30pm
Prices: 7.00/ticket
Ready for a night of non-scary fun for the whole family? Then head to Como Zoo in St. Paul for their annual Zoo Boo. This annual event is a fundraiser in which the zoo is turned into a kid-friendly world of fairytales. Through the night, over 200 live costumed characters will be interacting with families along the Zoo Boo path. Make sure to come in costume!!!
Discount tickets can be purchased at any metro-city Cub Foods store, or online a (thttp://www.comozooconservatory.org/supp/ZooBooTickets.shtml).
For more information, go to: http://www.comozooconservatory.org/supp/ZooBoo.shtml
Sever's Corn Maze
Weekends through November 1st
11am-6pm
Ages 4 and up $11.00, 3 and younger free
Want to experience more ghoulish festivities? Sever's Corn Maze, America's largest corn maze, offers a day full of activities for the entire family.
Although ticket prices are a little steep, a variety of activities are included with the price of admission. When you purchase your ticket you will have FREE access to the following:
Barnyard
Magic Shows at 1:00, 3:00, and 5:00
Wildlife Shows 12:30, 2:30, and 4:00
Petting Zoo
Pig Races 1:30, 3:30, and 5:30
Bale Maze
Live Music (From 11AM - 5PM)
For more information or directions, check out their website at (http://www.severscornmaze.com/index.php).
Quick and Easy Recipes
Black bean, Corn, and Chicken Pasta
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (16 ounce) package jumbo pasta shells
- 1 cup fresh corn kernels
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 dash hot pepper sauce
- 1 dash Worcestershire sauce
- 2 boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces
DIRECTIONS
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
- In a large skillet over low heat, cook corn and black beans, 2 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, reserving their juice. Season with salt and pepper, and cook 2 minutes more. Pour in enough tomato juice to cover and season with hot pepper sauce and Worcestershire. Increase heat slightly, stir in chicken, and heat through, 3 to 5 minutes. Spoon over cooked pasta.
Spider Pretzels 
These arachnid treats are easy to make and they look positively lifelike crawling across your child's snack plate.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 round crackers
- 2 teaspoons smooth peanut butter
- 8 small pretzel sticks
- 2 raisins
DIRECTIONS
1. With the peanut butter, make a cracker sandwich. Insert eight pretzel "legs" into the filling. With a dab of peanut butter, set two raisin "eyes" on top. Makes 1.
2. If you have any healthy quick and easy recipes that you and your family enjoy, please share! E-mail us at sphc@umn.edu, and we will feature your recipe in an upcoming newsletter.
Who’s Who at SPHC:Susan Warfield, MSW, LICSW
As the Director of the SPHC, I am responsible for overseeing all programs of the Student Parent HELP Center, managing our child care grants and supervising SPHC staff. This has meant that I have had to step back from having the degree of direct contact with students I have always enjoyed having in the past. This has been a difficult but necessary step for me to take in order to meet the needs of our growing program. If you have an issue that absolutely cannot be addressed by another SPHC staff member, you may schedule an appointment with me. These appointments should be booked through the SPHC front desk at 612-626-6015. Intakes and basic questions about services offered should be directed to Jerri Clark Wagner, Chanee Rudolph or our Graduate Social Work Interns. I am entering my 10th year with the HELP Center and during this journey have moved from on-line staff, to Coordinator and now Director. With this evolution has come an increase in responsibilities and duties. Please know that even though you may not see as much of me in the actual Center as you may have in the past, I continue to work each and every day to bring you the programming, funding and visibility on campus that student parents need to have a successful experience at the U of MN. It has been fun to get a chance to meet and greet our new students and to hang out with our new and on-going students. Rest assured I am always right next door and will always be working hard to bring you the services and funding needed to assure that each and every SPHC student parent has what they need to succeed at the U!
Jerri Clark Wagner, MSW, LGSW
I am the Direct Service Program Coordinator for the Student Parent HELP Center. Originally from New York State, I graduated from Syracuse University in 2000 with an undergraduate degree in theatre, with minors in sociology and women’s studies. After undergrad, I was an AmeriCorps volunteer for one year in Chicago, teaching arts integration on the west side in a Chicago Public School. In June of 2003, I graduated with my Master’s in Social Work from the University of Chicago. While in graduate school, I served as a therapist with Chicago’s Metropolitan YWCA, working with survivors of sexual assault and their families. From 2003-2006, I coordinated two statewide youth violence prevention programs for the Illinois Center for Violence Prevention in Chicago. Prior to relocating to Minneapolis, I spent March-June of 2006 traveling and learning abroad in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda. I would love to talk about any of these varied experiences with you and really look forward to working with such an amazing and resilient population at the SPHC!
Elise Niedermeier
Hi everyone! I’m one of the Graduate Social Work Interns this year. I’m a first year community practice student, and I’m also working on a dual master’s in Public Health here at the U. I am pumped to be working with the Student Parent HELP Center this year! I received my undergraduate degree in Women’s Studies, Social Welfare, and LGBT Studies from UW Madison and moved to Chicago after graduating to work as an HIV test counselor with AmeriCorps and the National AIDS Fund. I’m excited to get to know you and your families throughout the year, so be sure to stop by to say hi!
Tannie Bemis-Wiegert
Hey everyone! I am one of the Graduate Social Work Interns for the 09-10 school year. I am a second year direct practice graduate transfer student. I recently moved here from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I received my undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2008. I majored in Psychology, and minored in Sociology. During my first year of graduate school in Milwaukee I joined AmeriCorps, where I served as an Early Literacy Tutor for at risk students in kindergarten through the third grade. I am extremely excited to be working with the Student Parent Help Center this year. I look forward to getting to know each of you, and your families. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask!
Chanee Rudolph
Hello!! I am the Undergraduate Teaching Assistant (UGTA) here at the Student Parent HELP Center. This is now my second year working here at the Student Parent HELP Center, but like many of you I am still learning a lot of new and exciting things. My job here is to assist you with anything you need as well as make you feel comfortable and welcomed, so please don't hesitate to ask me for anything if you have questions. I am currently my fourth year here at the University and I am a Family and Social Science major with a minor in Family Violence Prevention. So far, I have enjoyed myself more than any of you know and I am looking forward to many more memorable moments to come!