Julia C. Hester House Initiatives

Providing continued delivery of quality, life-enhancing services to all segments of our community: early childhood, youth and teens, families, and seniors.

Early Childhood Services

The overall goal of the Hester House Early Childhood Services program is to foster a positive, healthy learning environment for our children and to continue to empower our individual families. Based on Head Start Performance Standards and Texas Early Learning Standards, the program encourages each child to explore the environment in a positive way with a strong emphasis on early literacy and strong family support. Our staff and families meet together to build relationships of respect and equality.

• Pre-Kindergarten Services – provides basic skills to children 4 years old. Hester House has adopted Innovations, a compre- hensive curriculum for preschoolers focusing on encouraging, facilitating and stimulating the pre-school child’s development within the context of a community where psychological, physical and mental needs are stable.

• After-School – provides supervised after school services for youth ages 5 to 12. Students are pre-enrolled in recreational and educational activities that compliment their daily school curriculum in the areas of academic enhancement, skill development, enrichments and community involvement.

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Youth Services

The Youth Empowerment Program mentors teens 13 to 17 years old encouraging self-sufficiency through academic, career and character development activities. The program provides critical after-school activities and adequate role models for teens in the Fifth Ward community. We address the needs of teens by providing a safe environment and activities that support positive development and interaction with their peers and members of the community at large through structured recreational activities, field trips and social activities.

Hester House collaborates with a network of community partners that provide a myriad of career and character development activities. These partners facilitate educational and self-awareness presen- tations such as team building, health and drug education, life skills training and diversity training. Youth skills are enhanced through job readiness training, goal setting and career/entrepreneurial awareness.

Through mentoring, youth learn how to address the complex problems and issues they encounter daily. In addition to the mentoring opportunities offered by our community partners, Hester House staff model positive behavior that deters youth from engaging in negative actions.

Academic achievement is an important component of Hester House’s youth services program. Youth are encouraged to strive for academic excellence through individualized tutorials, homework assistance and other academic activities.

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Family & Social Services

Through supportive and case management services, the Hester House Family & Social Services program addresses immediate client needs while assessing root causes impacting the client’s ability to maintain and/or achieve self-sufficiency. The elimination of these obstacles allows families to achieve personal, educational and economic independence which ultimately enhances the quality of life in the Fifth Ward and surrounding communities.

• Case Management Services – addresses client needs through intake, assessments, information and referrals, development of personal goals/objectives, monitoring, mentoring and evaluation.

• Supportive Services – addresses basic urgent and emergency needs. Services consist of a food pantry, utility assistance, rent/mortgage assistance and life skills
  (i.e. financial literacy, employment assistance, educational assistance).

• Adult Education Services – A.B.E./G.E.D. classes.
  In July 2009, the Julia C. Hester House partnered with Houston Community College (HCC) to offer Adult Basic Education (A.B.E.) and General Educational Development (G.E.D.) classes to community residents. The classes are available to individuals, 18 and older, who want to acquire their G.E.D. Entering students are tested to determine where they will start in the course materials. Class fees are also determined during the testing period. Skills taught in the class include social studies, math, science, language arts reading and writing, and logic/decision-making skills for application in the “real world.” Class size ranges from 10 to 20 students, so to provide closer teacher to student attention. Classes operate on 6 week duration period. Call 713-672-2573 for orientation and registration information.

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Senior Services

Hester House’s Senior Services program empowers seniors to live independently and with dignity. Critical services for the elderly are provided in a community-based environment promoting health and nutrition, social activities, recreation and supportive services. The program seeks to decrease loneliness and isolation, improve and maintain health conditions and provide linkage to critical resources to help sustain at-risk seniors within their homes. Ultimately, the impact will result in an increase in lifestyle changes, which supports the agency’s mission of promoting quality living in Fifth Ward.

Health and nutrition are key components of the Senior Services program. We strive to meet the needs of seniors by providing nutritional meals and health education/awareness. Hester House provides “Meals On Wheels” congregate hot lunches served in a group setting allowing low-income seniors to consume at least one well-balanced meal a day. Seniors also receive literature and attend presentations to become educated and informed about various health and nutritional topics. The receipt of various nutritional and health information encourages them to alter their behavior and attitude, which results in improved health conditions.

Another important component is social and recreational activities. Seniors are provided structured and entertaining activities consisting of field trips, arts and crafts, physical fitness programs, birthday recognitions, intercultural celebrations, devotional services and intergenerational activities with Hester House’s Child Care Services program. Seniors involvement with their peers encourages long-term friendships and relationships preventing isolation and loneliness.

Hester House also provides supportive services. Identification of issues impacting the ability of our seniors to live independently and with dignity is central to our mission. Hester House’s case management consists of client assessment, developing plans of action, referrals, follow-up and coordination with family members and other community providers. Supportive services also include the distribution of food, clothing, utility assistance, rent and mortgage assistance, holiday assistance, personal care assistance, child-care, etc. Complimentary transportation is also provided to transport seniors to and from the center daily.