By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Good food, good conversation, and lots of learning. The 20th Judicial District's Juvenile Services offers its Parent Project classes each September and January. Family Engagement Advocate Casey Rowland said the classes are available to all parents in the five counties served by the 20th Judicial District: Barton, Rice, Russell, Ellsworth and Stafford.
"We do it twice a year," she said. "It really brings parents together and lets them talk with each other, build a bond with each other. It's a 10-week class. We're going to start Jan. 21, and we go from 6-9 p.m."
The classes are held each Tuesday. There is no cost to attend and attendees received a homecooked meal and class materials. Parents can learn about the court system, how to improve relationships with their children, and how to better manage stress and conflicts. Juvenile Services Director Marissa Woodmansee said the payoff for parents has been huge.
"This is really tough stuff, trying to meet families at their point of crisis, trying to get them engaged, and trying to get them connected to the class," she said. "Ten weeks is a big commitment, but I will tell you we very rarely have anybody who is not a hard push to get them out the door once it's done. They want to stay. They want to keep coming back."
Parent Project classes are held in person at 1800 12th Street in Great Bend, but are now available via Zoom. Rowland said 15-20 parents typically attend each session, and she's seen an uptick in fathers participating in the program.
"I do have some Zoom parents who said they've taken the class via Zoom and now they're coming back in person because they think there's some stuff they've missed," Rowland said. "That's really cool, too. If you've come once, it doesn't mean you can't come again. There's a lot to learn."
Anyone interested in attending Parent Project classes can reach Rowland at Juvenile Services by calling (620) 793-1930.