WALDO COUNTY — The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Maine Families program in Waldo County has been awarded $152,978 from Maine Children's Trust for a six-month contract in support of expectant families and families of newborns as part of Maine Families statewide. The program is at no cost to recipients and focuses on family strengths.

The Maine Families program in Waldo County is an evidence-based home visiting model that uses current research and practical knowledge of human development and public health in child development, health, safety and nutrition. The program aligns with state objectives to improve the health and well-being of families with the federal statutory requirements for Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting.
 
Provisions of high-quality, evidence-based services using Parents as Teachers and Touchpoints is only one facet of Maine Families, according to UMaine Extension, in a news release. Maine’s home visiting programs emphasize improved collaboration among other home-and community-based early childhood services systems such as Public Health Nursing.

For more information, contact Melanie Bryan, Parent Education Program manager, melanie.l.bryan@ maine.edu. 207.342.5971.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension:
As a resource for more than 100 years, University of Maine Cooperative Extension has supported UMaine's land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county, according to the Extension. UMaine Extension helps support, sustain and grow the food-based economy. It is the only entity in the state that touches every aspect of the Maine Food System, where policy, research, production, processing, commerce, nutrition, and food security and safety are integral and interrelated. UMaine Extension also conducts an out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H.
 
About the University of Maine:
The University of Maine, founded in Orono in 1865, is the state's land grant, sea grant and space grant university. As Maine's flagship public university, UMaine has a statewide mission of teaching, research and economic development, and community service. UMaine is the state's only public research university and among the most comprehensive higher education institutions in the Northeast, according to UMaine. It attracts students from all 50 states and more than 70 countries. UMaine currently enrolls 11,561 undergraduate and graduate students who have opportunities to participate in groundbreaking research with scholars. UMaine offers more than 100 degree programs through which students can earn master's, doctoral or professional science master's degrees, as well as graduate certificates. The university promotes environmental stewardship, with substantial efforts campuswide to conserve energy, recycle and adhere to green building standards in new construction. For more information about UMaine, visit umaine.edu.