PACT for West Central Illinois

Our Mission ... The mission of Parent and Child Together (PACT) for West Central Illinois is to provide a high quality, comprehensive program of education, health, and social services to children and their families, developing life-long learners. We believe that by working together we can further the vision and the intent of the agency's missions by: Affirming program parents in their parenting role, and working with them to improve their parenting skills. Providing program parents with information and encouragement to increase their knowledge of their rights and responsibilities as parents. Providing a program that will allow enrolled children and families to maximize their potential. Providing opportunities for parents to become involved in the program decision-making process. Providing opportunities for socialization for all enrolled children and their families. Providing opportunities for children with disabilities to be enrolled in the program and to participate in all aspects of the program in order to meet their individual needs. Providing a means of coordinating existing services for enrolled families to meet their individual needs. Providing screening assessments designed to enhance early identification and treatment of potential problem areas for enrolled children. Providing a cost-effective program that benefits all families involved. Providing employment opportunities to enrolled families. Our program philosophy ...... PACT BELIEVES .. . Parents are their children's first and most important teacher. Parents care about their children and will put forth strong efforts to improve their child's well-being. Parents can and do learn new and better ways of interacting with their children given sufficient information and encouragement. Resources for health and human services in West Central Illinois are limited and must be delivered without duplication to produce the most effective results. Involvement of parents and the community in decision-making increases the commitment to the program while enhancing the quality of decision-making. PACT was established in October 1978 in Adams, Hancock and Pike Counties. In August 1979, PACT was funded to serve two additional areas, Brown and Schuyler Counties. July 1982, PACT was funded to serve Cass County. In July 1984, PACT was funded to serve two additional unserved areas and began serving Scott and rural McDonough County. In 1985 and 1986 PACT began serving Sangamon and Morgan Counties. In September of 1998 PACT was funded to serve the city of Macomb. Over the years, PACT has expanded to many service areas and relinquished a few, but the mission has remained the same to serve families and children. PACT currently serves Adams, Brown, Cass, Hancock, McDonough, Pike, Scott and Schuyler counties.

Head Start and Early Head Start are federally funded programs designed to promote school readiness of children, ages 6 weeks to five, from families with low income, by supporting the development of the whole child through high-quality, comprehensive services. PACT provides Head Start and Early Head Start services to families & children ages 6 weeks to 5 years of age as well as Home Based services for pregnant women and children birth to 3. We believe that only by impacting the family can we truly make a lasting difference in the life of a child. Parents are their child’s first and most important teacher. We strive to make sure that parents understand that they’re the ones who can be there for their child throughout their entire life, supporting them in the education and life decisions. As a HS agency, our mission is to provide more than just an educational experience for children. We provide comprehensive services that include education, health, and social services.