Fairfield County Family and Children First Council mission
The Council creates and facilitates a coordinated system of services that responds to the strengths and needs of our community. It is a partnership of public and private non-profit child- and family-serving agencies and organizations committed to improving the well-being of children and families. The Council strives to:
- Streamline and coordinate government services for families seeking help for their children;
- Develop and implement a service coordination mechanism to prioritize services and fill gaps where possible;
- Participate in a comprehensive and coordinated interagency system for infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities or delays;
- Monitor progress toward achieving results;
- Ensure input from families and from a broad spectrum of the community;
- Build community capacity.
The Council is steered by its Executive Committee, which includes representation from: parents, the Board of County Commissioners, the Mayor of the City of Lancaster, Educational Service Center (ESC), Pickerington Schools, Lancaster City Schools, Ohio Guidestone Mental Health, Fairfield County Board of DD, Job and Family Services, Fairfield Community Health Center, Early Childhood Programs of Lancaster-Fairfield Community Action Agency, United Way, Fairfield County 2-1-1, Fairfield County Health Department, ADAMH Board and Juvenile Court. The Fairfield County Board of Commissioners is the FCFC's administrative agent and Fiscal Agent.
Accountability
Annual Reports
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“Connecting the pieces” — coordinating systems and services so children thrive.
2025 Annual Report
Connecting the pieces to…
Ensure children have what they need to thrive by building community capacity, engaging and empowering families, and coordinating systems and services.
Fairfield County Family and Children First Council 2025 Annual Meeting and Awards Presentation
November 20, 2025, 8:30 AM
Breakfast Buffet
- Welcome: Jeannette Curtis, 211 Executive Director, FCFC President
- Business Meeting: Jeannette Curtis, 211 Executive Director, FCFC President
- Mary Good Award: Tiffany Wilson, FCFC Manager
- Program Updates: Tiffany Wilson, FCFC Manager
- Firefly Awards: Our Firefly Award recipients are recognized for lighting the way for others to succeed. Presented by:
- Dennis Surbaugh and Audra Wolf: Multi-System Youth
- Stephanie Loudon: Parent Education
- Cassandra Bridgeman: Perinatal Cluster
- Laurie Clark: Help Me Grow Early Intervention
- Keynote Speaker: Dave Henwood, Protective Services Permanency Manager
- FCFC Annual Report: Tiffany Wilson, FCFC Manager; Laurie Clark, HMG Contract Manager
- Closing: Tiffany Wilson, FCFC Manager
Fairfield County Family and Children First Council: What We Do and Why It Matters
The Family and Children First Council (FCFC) ensures that Fairfield County children and families thrive by coordinating systems, aligning community partners, and streamlining services. We bring together schools, health and behavioral health providers, courts, child welfare, developmental disabilities, and community organizations to work collaboratively on challenges impacting families.
What We Do:
- Coordinate Services: We ensure families with complex needs receive support without duplication, keeping providers on the same page and working toward shared goals.
- Facilitate Collaboration: FCFC brings different agencies together to tackle the challenges families face, helping everyone work better together and find real solutions that fit our community.
- Out-of-Home Placements: We work to prevent out-of-home placements whenever possible; however, when residential care is necessary, we coordinate these placements and, when possible, provide funding support to ensure children receive the care they need. By working with us, families can access necessary residential treatment for their children without involving protective services or risking the loss of custody.
- Support Schools: By addressing non-academic barriers such as housing instability, mental health, and transportation challenges, we help students stay in school and ready to learn.
- Early Intervention Support: We provide oversight to the early intervention program that help children with disabilities and developmental delays get the support they need, ensuring a smooth transition into preschool and kindergarten.
- Community Problem-Solving: FCFC tracks local trends and uses data to identify gaps, allowing partners to align resources and efforts where they will have the greatest impact.
- Parent Education: FCFC offers parent education classes to anyone in Fairfield County who needs them. Classes can be offered as closed groups or open groups for families, childcare providers, teachers, or anyone in the community.
Community Engagement and Communication:
FCFC holds an Executive Council meeting every other month, bringing together community leadership to discuss agency updates, shared priorities, and system improvements. This council includes:
- Dave Levacy, County Commissioner
- Aundrea Cordle, County Administrator
- Marie Ward, Superintendent of the Educational Service Center
- Corey Clark, Director of Job and Family Services
- Sarah Fortner, Director of Protective Services
- David Uhl, Superintendent of the Board of Developmental Disabilities
- Amanda Wattenberg, Vice President of Regional Operations, OhioGuidestone
- Melissa Dever, Director of United Way
- Dana Hoff, Director of Early Childhood Programs at Community Action
- Danny Fisher, CFO of Fairfield Community Health Center
- Jeannette Curtis, Director of 2-1-1
- Joe Ebel, Health Commissioner of the Health Department
- Marcy Fields, ADAMH Board Director
- Nathan Hale, Superintendent of Lancaster City Schools
- Marvella Allen, Director of Prevention & Intervention, Pickerington Schools
- Shannon Seesholtz, Executive Assistant to the Mayor
- Lonita Tuff, DYS Probation
- Terre Vandervoort, Juvenile Court Judge
- Melissa Newman, Parent Representative
In alternating months, we host a Full Council meeting attended by over 50 agency representatives across the community. These meetings allow agencies to share updates, learn about new programs, and hear from guest speakers.
FCFC also sends weekly email blasts to over 400 community members, sharing flyers and updates on programs, trainings, and upcoming events, keeping the community connected and informed.
FCFC’s collaborative work ensures schools and agencies are not alone in meeting the complex needs of students and families. It builds a community infrastructure that protects and strengthens children, enabling them to learn, grow, and thrive.
Multi-System Youth (MSY)
Service Coordinators: Audra Wolf and Dennis Surbaugh
The Multi-System Youth program offers Service Coordination and Wraparound services for youth with complex needs and their families. This approach involves coordinating various agencies, resources, and services to address the unique needs of each child and family. With active family involvement, a personalized service plan is developed to enhance the effectiveness and responsiveness of services, ensuring they align with the specific goals and needs of the family.
Fairfield County collaborates to pool its resources and efforts, providing service coordination and a wide range of support, including and evidence-based interventions.
In FY 2025 the Multi-System Youth Service Coordinators facilitated a Focus Group to gather insight, opinions and perceptions regarding the Multi-System Youth Program. This information has been used to improve family experiences. The program has also initiated the development of a parent-led support group that integrates parent education, combining shared experiences with evidence-based strategies to empower parents to grow, connect, and thrive collectively.
Multi-System Youth Program Pooled Funding Partners
- Fairfield County Board of County Commissioners
- Fairfield County ADAMH
- Fairfield County Board of Developmental Disabilities
MSY FY 2025 MSY Program Data Snapshots
Chart: MSY Services Provided (bar chart, scale 0–60). Categories: Service Coordination; Social/Recreational; Home-Based Therapy; Wraparound. See the Original PDF tab for chart values.
Chart: MSY Youth Served by Age (bar chart, scale 0–30). Age groups: Age 1-5; Age 6-8; Age 9-12; Age 13-15; Age 16-18; Age 19-20. See the Original PDF tab for chart values.
Multi-System Youth Success
“I am not even sure where to begin. It’s been a long and tumultuous journey after the sudden death of my husband left me alone with two young grieving teen boys. I found MSY while desperately looking for help and searching what options were out there to get us through our crisis.
[Our service coordinator] has been so generous with [their] time and has offered several avenues to help. [They are] always available with other ideas and suggestions as we navigate this uncertain journey that often feels hopeless and overwhelming.
MSY has helped us by providing guidance and constant support with a therapist through Home Remedy. We are still on the journey, but it’s not quite so bumpy and definitely not so lonely.
I am so very grateful for the support and guidance MSY has and is providing!”
Early Intervention
EI Contract Manager: Laurie Clark
Fairfield County Early Intervention (EI) Program — SFY25
The Family and Children First Council (FCFC), with a grant provided through the Department of Children & Youth, partners with the Lancaster-Fairfield Community Action Agency (LFCAA) and the Fairfield County Board of Developmental Disabilities (FCBDD) to provide Early Intervention (EI) services throughout Fairfield County.
Early Intervention is a statewide program designed to support infants and toddlers from birth to age three and who also have a developmental delay or disability. The program’s primary focus is to promote each child’s growth and learning while empowering families to support their child’s development within their everyday routines.
Each family is connected with a Service Coordinator who helps guide them through the Early Intervention process. Working together with a team of professionals, the family develops an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). This detailed, personalized plan outlines goals and strategies tailored to the child’s unique strengths and their family’s concerns for development. Services are provided in the child’s natural environment, such as the home or other familiar community settings, allowing learning to occur in comfortable and meaningful ways.
By providing targeted support during these critical early years, the Fairfield County Early Intervention Program helps reduce long-term developmental challenges and fosters positive outcomes for both children and families.
As we move through SFY26, the program remains committed to maintaining continued collaboration among local partners and the Fairfield County EI team strives to ensure that every eligible child and family receives the individualized support they need to thrive.
Parent Education
Parent Educator Facilitator: Stephanie Loudon
Parent Education Coordinator: Laurie Clark
The Family and Children’s First Council (FCFC) is dedicated to supporting and strengthening families in Fairfield County by offering a wide range of trusted, evidence-based parenting programs. These include The First Five Years, Parent Project, and multiple levels of the Triple P Positive Parenting Program. These include Level 3 Discussion Groups, Level 4 Group Birth–12, Level 4 Group Teen, and Primary Care which offered a one-on-one approach. Each of these programs is designed to help parents build skills, manage everyday challenges, and create positive, healthy routines at home.
| SFY25 Parenting Class | Number of Participants |
|---|---|
| Active Parenting: First Five Years (3-session series) | 13 |
| Parent Project (12 session series) | 14 |
| Triple P: Small Discussion Groups | 14 |
| Triple P Group (8 session series) | 24 |
| Triple P: Primary Care (one-on-one) | 4 |
| Total | 69 |
To help families fully participate, FCFC has the ability to offer funds that support the removal of barriers that may prevent parents from attending classes. In addition, FCFC can provide concrete support funds that assist parents as they practice positive parenting strategies and work toward their goals.
These valuable services are made possible through strong partnerships with the Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Fairfield County ADAMH Board, the Fairfield County Regional Planning Commission’s Community and the Ohio Children’s Trust Fund (OCTF). Their support ensures that families across the county can participate without financial barriers.
FCFC also leads the Parent Education Cooperative, which is a collaborative group of community partners who come together to review current programming, identify service gaps, and plan solutions. This group helps ensure that parenting programs remain relevant, accessible, and responsive to the needs of all families, including those who may be underserved.
In addition, FCFC creates and distributes the quarterly Family Resource Guide. This guide highlights available family and community resources and events and is disseminated throughout our county.
Through all of these efforts, FCFC continues to build stronger, healthier families and communities in Fairfield County. We are truly grateful for the ongoing support of our partners and the families we serve.
Perinatal Cluster
Cassandra Bridgeman, Coordinator
The Perinatal Cluster Program is a critical community resource designed to support mothers who face significant barriers to a safe and healthy pregnancy, birth, and first year of their baby’s life. This program addresses the unique needs of pregnant women who encounter challenges such as poverty, inadequate access to healthcare, and substance use issues. By offering service coordination tailored to 77 mothers and their infants in SFY 2025, the program has helped improve maternal and infant health and well-being outcomes throughout Fairfield County.
A significant portion of the mothers enrolled in the program struggle with substance use, which poses a substantial risk to both the mother and the baby. The Perinatal Cluster Program works closely with these mothers by connecting them to substance treatment programs, offering referrals for counseling services, and providing education on the effects of substance use during pregnancy. Through these referrals, the program aims to reduce substance exposure in utero and support mothers in their recovery journey.
The Perinatal Cluster Program plays an essential role in supporting mothers who face significant barriers to having a safe and healthy birth. By providing access to healthcare, substance abuse support, and creating Plans of Safe Care, the program ensures that vulnerable mothers and their babies receive the comprehensive care they need. Through this holistic approach, the program not only addresses immediate needs but also promotes long-term family stability and well-being.
For mothers dealing with substance use disorders, the program implements and/or monitors a Plan of Safe Care (POSC), a critical component in ensuring both mother and baby are safe and supported. The POSC outlines specific actions and resources that will be provided to address the health, treatment, and well-being of the family. During SFY 2025, 48 of the 77 mothers had a POSC. This plan often includes referrals to addiction treatment programs, parenting classes, housing support, and coordination with social services to create a secure environment for the newborn. The POSC not only focuses on the mother's needs but also includes plans to protect and support the baby's health, ensuring that both mother and child are cared for in the long term.
The Perinatal Cluster Program recognizes the social and emotional challenges that mothers may face, including isolation, mental health struggles, and lack of family or community support. Through connection to counseling services, peer support groups, and case management, the Perinatal Cluster Program helps mothers build a support system that fosters emotional well-being and strengthens their ability to care for their newborns.
Perinatal Cluster Success Stories
“I loved how accommodating the program is to my needs for Quil, and how easy it was to get the supplies I needed. It's made being a new parent so much easier and I couldn't be more grateful for the assistance I was provided. I also really enjoyed how easy it is to talk to you about day to day things and how my month was going. Thank you!”
“My family and I greatly appreciate the help of Cassie. She has been a huge support to us. She has helped us a lot with community resources during and post pregnancy. She helped us get a nice car seat, a baby crib , a diapers and many more. She has maintained contact with me all the way through to make sure that my needs are met. I would highly recommend her and would rate her 10/10.”
Photo: Mom & Baby First Trick-or-Treat as “Sully and Boo.” Photo used with permission of subjects
Fairfield County Family and Children First Council 2026 Meeting Schedule
The Fairfield County Family and Children First Council will continue to meet bi-monthly; however, please note that Full Council meetings have been moved from Thursdays to the third Friday of every other month. The Executive Committee will continue to meet on the alternate months, also on the third Friday.
All meetings will be held at the Agricultural Building except for the April 21 Executive Committee meeting, which will be held at the Records Center. Meeting locations will be verified prior to each meeting.
FULL COUNCIL MEETINGS
Time: 8:30 to 10:00 a.m.
- January 16, 2026
- March 20, 2026
- May 15, 2026
- July 17, 2026
- September 18, 2026
- November 20, 2026 (Annual Meeting, Location TBD)
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Time: 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.
- February 20, 2026
- April 17, 2026
- June 19, 2026
- August 21, 2026
- October 16, 2026
- December 18, 2026
Thank You to Our Funders!
The Family and Children First Council extends our sincere appreciation to the agencies and organizations whose support makes our work possible. Your investment strengthens our community and empowers families.
We gratefully acknowledge our funders for their commitment to collaboration, innovation, and service to children and families in Fairfield County.
Thank you for believing in our mission and for partnering with us to create lasting impact.
- Fairfield County Commissioners
- Fairfield County ADAMH
- Fairfield County Board of Developmental Disabilities
- Fairfield County Protective Services
- Fairfield Foundation
- Nationwide Children’s Hospital
- Ohio Department of Children and Youth
- Ohio Department of Medicaid