Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 10-26-20

FLORIDA SENTINEL FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2020
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Program Aims To Help Parents With Court Orders To Find Jobs
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
The Non-Custodial Parent Em- ployment program (NCPEP) was one of the first Programs in the U. S. for Non-Custodial Parents, established in 1997 by the Florida Legislature with programs in Pasco, Pinellas and Hills- borough Counties.
NCPEP then expanded with two additional counties in 2000 Miami- Dade, and in 2018 Hernando. NCPEP assists the non-custodial parents with finding and keeping a job; and help- ing the non-custodial parent to estab- lish a pattern of regular child support payments.
The program also motivates par- ticipants to increase their interaction with their children. It also empowers them to understand the child support system, become involved parents and
MRS. SHIRELLE SIMMONS-HUDSON ...Program Director
ultimately to become self-sufficient. Since inception, the Program has served 22,762 non-custodial par- ents (70% have criminal back- grounds). This number translates
into 60,757 children who have been positively impacted.
Ms. Tammy R. Wilson is the Administrative Assistant of the NCPEP program, Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Community Services.
The NCPEP program brings a re- turn on investment through child support collections: a combined $3 per dollar spent in the program, 80% of the clients continue to pay child support after leaving the NCPEP pro- gram. The NCPEP program is a great alternative to incarceration and a great positive resource for the courts.
“A Non-Custodial Parent is a par- ent that does not have physical cus- tody of his or her minor child as a result of a court order,” explained Shirelle Simmons-Hudson, Pro- gram Director, Non-Custodial Parent Employment Program, a part of the Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Com-
munity Services. There is no age limit for participating in the program, but participants must have a child sup- port court order, meet 200% poverty income guidelines and live in either of the locations listed.
Mrs. Simmons-Hudson says, “It is not difficult to help clients get employed that have a background, since we work closely with employers that are background friendly, which is a big help.”
Further, the Non-Custodial Parent Employment Program conducts an application and resume’ training for all of its clients.
For additional information on the program, please contact: Hillsbor- ough County – (813) 930-7663; Pinel- las County – (727) 608-2473; Pasco-Hernandez County – (727) 484-3438; or Miami-Dade County – (786) 336-1107.
Local Educator, Organization Featured In Forbes Magazine
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Ms. Ora D. Tanner is a proud educator. She has reason to be. She is an educator who was honored by Forbes Magazine for her work to ed- ucate underserved high school stu- dents. The article appears in the September 2020 edition, FastFor- ward section.
Currently, her skills are displayed with the Upward Bound Program at the University of South Florida (Tampa), through a program she founded, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Education Project.
The AI Education Project equips high school students, especially those from low-income communities most impacted by automation, with the knowledge and skills they need to participate in the future of work. “We accomplish this through an interac- tive digital curriculum designed with Gen Z in mind. Think: more TikTok than Scholastic.
MRS. ORA D. TANNER ...Forbes Magazine honored her non-profit, AI Education Project
“As an 8th grade science teacher at a Title I middle school (Ferrell Middle School before it became all-girls), I quickly realized many of my students didn’t have a basic understanding of science or technology. This wasn’t be- cause they were incapable of learning
about these topics. Far from it. Rather, it was because they hadn’t been given the opportunity to access this content. I took it upon myself to expose my students to as many STEM learning experiences as I could.” (From Forbes article)
Ms. Tanner and co-founders of AI – Alex Kotran and Ehrik Aldana – were one of 9 non-profits selected to participate in Forbes’ FastForward Accelerator Program during the summer. They were among the lim- ited women and people of color non- profits that were featured.
Tanner’s organization did not re- ceive a plaque or award, but she said having her work displayed in Forbes “has led to connections and opportu- nities that I do not think would have taken place otherwise. I have had ex- ecutives, CEOs and key decision-mak- ers from top companies and organizations reach out to me.”
With the assistance of the Fast- Forward Director, Shannon Far- ley, the name of the non-profit was
changed from The American AI Forum, to AI Education Project. “With the original name, we spent so much time explaining ourselves to people. We changed the name to in- corporate what we’re actually doing.”
Although AI is working with the students in USF’s Upward Bound Program, the only group in Florida, they are currently in 4 other states (Ohio, Arkansas, Kentucky and Michigan), and reaching 2,500 stu- dents for fall 2020.
For spring 2021, they are partner- ing with several groups in Florida to expand the AI Literacy curriculum.
Mrs. Tanner and her husband, Eric, recently celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary. They are the parents of 3 children – 23, 21, 19. She attends Kingdom Builders Christian Center in Lakeland.
“Right now, all of my free time is spent finishing up my Ph.D., in In- structional Technology and Educa- tional Measurement at the University of South Florida,” she said.