Children and Parenting Resources
Being Successful in College as a Parent
https://online.maryville.edu/blog/being-successful-in-college-as-a-parent/
Bethany Christian Services - By Appointment Only
Jefferson City, MO 65110
800-754-0909
https://bethany.org/locations/us/missouri/columbia
Safe Families for Children - When parents are going through a temporary crisis, we find families to care for their children. This allows parents to take essential steps toward stability.
Infant Adoption in the U.S. - When an expectant parent decides to pursue adoption, we offer support as they seek adoptive parents for their child.
Pregnancy Support - We help thousands of expectant parents every year—of all ages and backgrounds—and empower them to make a plan. Only they can make the decision, but they don’t have to make it alone.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Jefferson City
Knowles YMCA, Annex Building 424 Stadium Blvd. PO Box 104176 Jefferson City, Missouri 65101
573-634-3290 Fax: 573-761-3552
Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday; 8:00 am – 5:00 pm Contact Person: Lee A. Knernschield, Program Director Services offered to the public: We match Bigs with Littles through extensive background and reference check: Mentoring is offered to children of one parent families. Directions: 424 Stadium Blvd – Across the street from high school football stadium.
Boy Scouts of America - Five Rivers District
Scouting programs in Jefferson City, Russellville, Wardsville
Bradley Kellerman - 573-469-2129
bradley.kellerman@scouting.org
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) provides the foremost youth program of character development, personal fitness, career education, and leadership training, which helps all youth ages 5-20 be “Prepared. For Life.®”
Boys and Girls Club of the Capital City
1105 Lafayette, Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-634-2582
https://bgcjc.com/
This program serves children after school and in the Summer. It provides a safe location to enable all young people, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens. The Club is open year-round serving close to 1,000 children per year. When the children arrive, they enjoy an after school snack before moving into homework/reading time where children read for 20 minutes every day, receive help with homework and tutoring if needed. After homework time, children enjoy a multitude of activities including STEM, art, physical fitness, music, dance and more! Children also receive a hot, nutritious dinner before going home. It’s important our Club kids NEVER go to bed hungry. And what does this service cost a low income family? Only $25/semester because money should never be a barrier for a child who needs us most!
Blair Oaks R-II School District
6124 Falcon Lane, Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-636-2020 Fax: 573-636-2202
https://www.blairoaks.k12.mo.us/
CMCA - Capital Early Learning Head Start
609 Marshall Street Jefferson City MO 65101
573-634-0040
Apply Online:
English link: Head Start App (English)
Spanish link: Head Start App (Spanish)
Head Start is a federal program for preschool children from low income families. Children who attend Head Start participate in a variety of educational activities. Staff assist parents with medical and dental care, provide healthy meals and snacks and supervise children playing indoors and outdoors in a safe setting.
Head Start helps all children succeed. Services are offered to meet the special needs of children with disabilities. Children in Head Start are between the ages of three and five years old. Early Head Start serves infants and toddlers and a home based program is also available.
CMCA - Cole East Head Start
605 Cherry Street, Jefferson City MO 65101
573-636-3577
Apply Online:
English link: Head Start App (English)
Spanish link: Head Start App (Spanish)
Cole East Head Start works hard to provide low cost, high quality child care for preschool aged children ages 3-5 and family services to our community.
Home Based Services: Weekly home visits lasting 90 minutes for prenatal mothers and birth to age 3. This program assists families with education, child development, nutrition, mental health, family development, etc.
CMCA Head Start Administration Office
807 North Providence Columbia, MO 65203
573-443-8706 Fax: 573-876-6993
Apply Online:
English link: Head Start App (English)
Spanish link: Head Start App (Spanish)
Hours: Monday –Friday 8:00am -5:00pm Services: Parental, Early and Head Start.
CMCA - ShowMe Healthy Relationships
800 N. Providence Rd., Ste. 110, Columbia, MO 65203
573-443-8706 ext. 1022, or 855-422-4510 or text 573-239-1776
nolanda@cmca.us
The ShowMe Healthy Relationships Program offers free courses for individuals who would like to learn more about healthy relationships. The courses are designed to help those that are not in a committed relationship learn how to identify the qualities that make a healthy partner, and how to communicate and maintain relationships. Participants also learn how parenting, finances, and personal well-being impact their healthy relationship choices.
Eligibility: Over 18 and not currently in a committed relationship
Fees: None, barrier reducers are given for participation
Central Missouri Foster Care and Adoption Association
809 Swifts Hwy, Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-298-0258 573-476-6039
CMFCAA is a community service organization that provides for the needs of foster, adoptive, kinship, and guardianship youth and families. What began as a small support group has grown into a multifaceted organization that provides direct support, education, services and advocacy to foster and adoptive families in a 13 county central Missouri region.
Central Missouri Mother's Milk Depot
Cole County Health Department
3400 Truman Blvd, Jefferson City, MO 65109
573-636-2181
https://colecounty.org/Search?searchPhrase=Central+Missouri+Mother%27s+Milk+Depot
According to the Cole County Health Department, babies receiving donor milk are less likely to suffer fatal conditions, have much lower rates of infection, spend less time in the hospital, and are more likely to grow and thrive. The milk depot in Cole County is the third affiliated with the Heart of American Mothers' Milk Bank at St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City. A mother’s milk overflows with nutrients essential for newborns, but sometimes complications can prevent some mothers from getting their milk to their babies. When this happens, Saint Luke’s Heart of America Mother’s Milk Bank is there to offer pasteurized donor milk to mothers who still wish to provide breast milk as a nourishment option. Donated milk supports the smallest and sickest babies in our NICUs. Women who are expressing more milk than they need may contact St. Luke's directly at 816-932-4888. Local health care workers also provide the milk bank's contact information to mothers. Once mothers are referred to the milk bank, they will receive a 15-minute screening call. After a mother passes the screening, the milk bank sends them a questionnaire, which has to be signed by the mother's doctor and the baby's. Once mothers are approved, the donors are put in contact with the Central Missouri Mother's Milk Depot, to set up a time and day that works well for bringing in the donation. The milk is stored frozen and shipped to Kansas City, where it will be pasteurized (heated to eliminate pathogens) and homogenized (mixed with other milks to make it uniform).
Child Care Aware of Missouri
866-892-3228
Services: Assist families by providing a list of child care providers in their area. We also provide training to child care providers in order for them to stay in compliance with the state regulations.
Fee: None for families/parents seeking child care, nominal fee for providers for child care trainings Area: Child Care Aware serves as a community resource on child care for 46 counties in Central and Northeast Missouri.
Cole County 4-H
2436 Tanner Bridge Rd., Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-634-2824
https://extension.missouri.edu/counties/cole/4-h
A working union of the 4-H Foundation of Cole County, Cole County 4-H Council, our 4-H families, and concerned Cole County residents to provide more opportunities, knowledge and experience for Cole County 4-H members to become capable, competent and caring citizens in our clubs, communities, country and world.
Cole County Childcare Facilities
Missouri Dept of Health & Senior Services
https://healthapps.dhss.mo.gov/childcaresearch/
Please note:The records available for review on this site may not reflect the complete history of a child care facility’s compliance. Public records regarding a licensed or license-exempt child care facility are available for review and/or may be requested from Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), Section for Child Care Regulation (SCCR). Public records regarding a registered child care facility receiving child care subsidy funding are available for review and/or may be requested from Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS), Children’s Division (CD).
Cole County Family Support Division - Jefferson City Resource Center
3600 Country Club Dr., Rm 102, Jefferson City, MO 65109
855-373-4636 Fax: 573-526-9400 Children's Division 573-751-4688
Relay Missouri: 711 (Information line if you are hearing and/or speech impaired)
Text Telephone: 800-735-2966 TTD Voice Access: 800-735-2466
Public assistance to help Missourians with food stamps, health care, child care, child support, blind services and other basic needs. Health care coverage for eligible Missourians. Child welfare services to help ensure the safety, permanency and well-being of Missouri children. Specialized assistance to troubled youth.
Cole County Public Schools Review
https://www.publicschoolreview.com/missouri/cole-county
A listing of all the public schools in Cole County with maps and contact information.
Cole R-1 Russellville
13600 Rt. C, Russellville, MO 65074
573-782-3534 Fax: 573-782-3545
https://cole-mo.schoolloop.com/
Cole County R-V School District
14803 Highwy 17, Eugene, MO 65032
573-498-4000 Fax: 573-498-4090
https://coler-v-k12-ct.schoolloop.com/
Dream Factory - Central Missouri Chapter
P.O. Box 139, Columbia, MO 65203
573-489-8710
centralmissouri@dreamfactoryinc.org
Helps fulfill the dreams of critically or chronically ill children ages 3 - 8.
Every Child's Hope
1026 Northeast Dr., Jefferson City, MO 65109
573-635-9194
ECH provides intensive case management focused on safety and permanency for children being fostered by Missouri Children’s Division in St. Louis County, St. Louis City. St. Charles County, Cole County, and Franklin County.
First Chance for Children
1010 Fay Street Columbia, MO 65201
573-777-1815
http://www.firstchanceforchildren.org/
First Chance for Children provides a wide range of comprehensive programming designed to support families with their specific parenting needs. From diapers and cribs, to parent education, play groups, and more, First Chance for Children has a service for all families with children under the age of 5. Together, we can ensure all children are ready for school, ready for life.
Safe C.R.I.B.S., which stands for Community Resources, Infant Beds, and Support, provides infants without a safe place to sleep a pack and play crib. The crib is delivered to the family and is followed by 5 additional home visits focusing on family wellbeing and child safety. CRIBS is open to low-income families or those experiencing high parenting stress
Baby Bags provides diapers, wipes, hygiene items, and other supplies needed to provide care and comfort to children delivered along with Child development and safety information. Items are available at the First Chance office or through one of our partner programs.
Geographic Area Served: Boone, Howard, Cooper, Randolph, Audrain, Callaway, Moniteau, Cole, and Osage Counties.
Focus on Kids - MU Extension Office Cole County
2436 Tanner Bridge Rd., Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-897-2497 Fax: 573-634-5463
https://extension.missouri.edu/programs/focus-on-kids/
More than half of all marriages end in divorce, and the majority of these involve children. Conflict between parents, both before and after a divorce, is associated with many negative outcomes in children. The purpose of this workshop is to help parents learn how to nurture and support their children during and after their divorce.
Focus on Kids satisfies the Missouri law that requires parents who are divorcing to attend an educational parenting program. It is conducted in cooperation with Missouri’s circuit courts.
Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland
230 Metro Drive Jefferson City, Missouri 65109
877-312-4764
Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm and the first Saturday of the month from 9:00 am to1:00 pm (council shop). Contact Person: Angela Peth Services offered to the public: Youth Services. Girl scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. .
Heart of Missouri Girls on the Run
3512 I-70 Dr. SE, Columbia, MO 65201
573-607-1078
https://www.heartofmissourigirlsontherun.org/Our-Programs
At Girls on the Run we inspire girls to recognize their inner strength and celebrate what makes them one of a kind. Trained coaches lead small teams through our research-based curricula which includes dynamic discussions, activities and running games. Over the course of the ten-week program, girls in 3rd-8th grade develop essential skills to help them navigate their worlds and establish a lifetime appreciation for health and fitness. When girls develop and strengthen these life skills, they can thrive. More importantly, they can then develop a final skill: CONTRIBUTION. Girls on the Run inspires girls to build lives of purpose and to make a meaningful contribution to community and society. This comes to life through a key element of the curricula when each team creates and executes a community service project. Heart of Missouri Girls on the Run was established in 2011 to serve counties in mid-Missouri has provided life-changing programming to more than 1,000 girls in the past 5 years!
InfantSee Program
Central Missouri Eye Care Associates
1445 Christy Dr., Jefferson city, MO
573-659-5560
Free one-time eye exam for children 6-12 months (no income guidelines). At an InfantSEE eye examination, our doctors can detect abnormal or unequal amounts of refractive error, such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism, evaluate eye movements and strength , and screen for eye health problems.
Jefferson City Area YMCAs
Firley YMCA, 525 Ellis Blvd., 573-761-9530
Knowles YMCA, 424 Stadium Blvd., 573-761-9531
Hartsfield YMCA, 3507 Amazonas, 573-761-9532
Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday; 4:30 am – 10:00 pm and Saturday & Sunday; 6:30 am – 6:00 pm
Services offered to the public: Membership includes use of tennis courts, racquet ball courts, indoor track, basketball courts, fitness center and pool. Variety of programs offered – aerobics, gymnastics, swim lessons, youth sports, after school programs etc.
Jefferson City Home Educators (JCHE)
PO Box 105995, Jefferson City, MO 65110
http://www.jeffersoncityhomeschoolers.info
JCHE is 501c3 designed to provide support, encouragement, and fellowship to families who home educate in the JC area. JCHE provides activities for social and educational development and offers home school information to prospective families. Membership is open to any family who home educates their children at home. Membership dues are set each year in June, and JCHE's membership mirrors the homeschool year set by the Missouri Legislature: July 1 - June 30. Members may participate in JCHE sponsored activities, print JCHE Membership Cards, have access to the Members Only area of our web site, and join our private Facebook Group. JCHE members may also receive a discounted membership with the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA ) and some area merchants.
Jefferson City Public Schools
315 East Dunklin Street, Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-659-3000
Lutheran Family and Children’s Services (pregnant or parenting youth)
Locust St, Columbia, MO 65201
573-815-9955
LFCS is a statewide organization providing counseling, adoption, crisis pregnancy assistance, foster care, child care, youth mentoring services and disaster relief – reaching out to more than 22,000 individuals and families annually. LFCS is also a strong advocate for Missouri’s vulnerable families and works to improve the state and federal policies that affect them.
MPACT (Missouri Parents Act)
A statewide advocacy, information, and resource organization serving children with disabilities, their families, and consumers.
800-743-7634
Macaroni Kid
https://jeffersoncity.macaronikid.com/
This is website with a list of events and a calendar for events that are free or lost cost for families in Jefferson City, MO.
Missouri River Regional Library
214 Adams St. Jefferson City, MO 65101-3244
573-634-2464
Hours: Monday-Thursday 9:00 AM -9:00 PM, Friday 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Sunday 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM Services: Children's department, computers, Cd's and cassettes, audio books, parent teacher collection, videos, DVDs, fiction and nonfiction books, picture books, building block picture book awards books, Spanish language books and materials.
My Life Clinic
802 N. Providence Rd., Ste 2, Columbia, MO 65203
573-874-3561 Fax: 573-875-5244
Hours: Monday-Thursday 10:00-5:00
My Life Clinic offers professional, confidential pregnancy medical and non-medical services at no cost. Services include pregnancy confirmation, limited ultrasounds, pregnancy prevention and termination education, prenatal vitamins, limited STD testing and treatment, and adoption consultations. Appointments may be scheduled for general community resource education and referral. Once you are a client at our clinic, you may access parent mentoring, parenting classes, mom's support group, abortion recovery support program and earn baby bucks to use in our baby boutique. We are available for emergency needs diapers to all members of the community.
Eligibility: There are no limits to who can access services at My Life Clinic. Clients must qualify for limited OB ultrasound and STD testing. This can be done by speaking with our Nurse Manager. The baby boutique carries clothing up to size 24 mos.
ParentLink - University of Missouri
4800 Santana Circle, Columbia, M) 65203
(573) 882-7323 Fax: (573) 884-0409
Hours: M - F, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (closed noon to 1:00 p.m.)
Parent Link Warm Line - 800-552-8522 for high quality parenting information and answers to your parenting questions
Services: Provides research-based parenting information, referrals, and supportive conversation to parents and professionals working with parents and children; also available to students
Fee: Free
Eligibility: Parents and professionals involved with children
Parents as Teachers
812 St. Mary's Boulevard Jefferson City, MO 65109
JCPS Contact Person: Katie Epema 573-659-3026
Cole R1 Russellville Contact Person: Heidi Nichols 573-782-3298 ext. 1950
Cole R5 Eugene Contact number: 573-498-4034
Cole R2 Blair Oaks Contact Person: Shauna Kerperin 573-636-2020
Parents as Teachers is a parent education and support program for families with children from birth to Kindergarten entry, as well as expectant parents. It is designed to help you as a parent be able to help your child learn, grow and develop to realize his/her full potential.
FREE services include:
- Annual health/hearing/vision and developmental screenings for children age 3 months to 5 years (not yet in kindergarten).
- Group connection events where parents and children participate in activities together or parents come to receive information from speakers on a variety of topics.
- Connection to other local resources.
- Personalized home visits with a certified parent educator. Parents work with their educator to set and reach goals for their child and family, discuss a variety of child development and parenting topics, and share a parent-child activity chosen especially for their family.
Post Partum Support International
English or Spanish 800-944-4773
English text line 800-944-4773
Spanish text line 971-420-0294
The purpose of the organization is to increase awareness among public and professional communities about the emotional changes that women experience during pregnancy and postpartum. Approximately 15% of all women will experience postpartum depression following the birth of a child. Up to 10% will experience depression or anxiety during pregnancy. When the mental health of the mother is compromised, it affects the entire family.
Online Post Partum Support Group
http://www.ppdsupportpage.com/
Prenger Family Center
400 Stadium Blvd, Jefferson City, MO
573-636-5177
http://www.colecounty.org/328/Juvenile-Division
Short-term care facility where court personnel can observe youths adjudicated as delinquent by the Juvenile Court. After evaluation period, youth is either returned home or placed in a more suitable setting.
Public Preschools
Title 1 Preschool-Southwest Early Childhood Center
812 St. Mary’s Blvd. Jefferson city MO 65109
573-659-3026
Early Childhood Special Education Preschool-Southwest Early Childhood Center,
812 St. Mary’s Blvd. Jefferson city MO 65109
573-632-3435
Title 1 preschool, infant toddler care, early special education services and parents as teachers for eligible families and children.
Safe Kids Coalition - Columbia
404 N. Keene St., Columbia, MO 65201
573-771-9216 FAX 573-449-7588
Services: Child Passenger Safety: provides car and booster seats with instruction from certified Child Passenger Safety Technician; Helmet & Wheeled Sports Safety: provides helmets for kids 15 and younger with fitting and safety education; Pool, Spa, and Open Water Safety: water safety events scheduled throughout the swimming season; Pedestrian Safety: programs and events organized annually; Home Safety: poison prevention, falls prevention and toy safety, fire and burn prevention education; safety tips and fact sheets available on the website. Safe Kids Day each spring – Fun and educational
Eligibility: Preventable injury programs for children 19 years and under
Intake Procedures: Car seat and helmet fitting and instruction by appointment, educational program requests scheduled 4-6 weeks in advance
Required Documentation for Services: N/A
Geographic Area Served: Audrain, Boone, Cooper, Callaway, Cole and Howard counties
The Special Learning Center
1115 Fairgrounds Rd., Jefferson City, MO 65109
573-634-3070 FAX 573-636-3247
staff@speciallearningcenter.com
http://www.speciallearningcenter.com/
The Special Learning Center provides comprehensive, early intervention services for children with developmental delays and disabilities. Children served in the Special Learning Center program have delays ranging from mild to severe. Children without delays also attend the Special Learning Center and serve as friends and role models to their peers. In this program, our classrooms offer a warm, caring environment where individualized and appropriate learning activities for each child are offered. Students are grouped by developmental and age levels into early childhood classes. Sign language classes, physical therapy, speech therapy, and occupational therapy are offered on site and in the outlying school district. We also have a childcare center called Crayon Kids. Student/teacher ratios are kept to a minimum to maximize each student’s progress and help prepare students for entry into public school or their next educational placement.
University of Missouri Extension
2436 Tanner Bridge Road Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-634-2824
http://extension.missouri.edu/cole/
Services: Free or low cost information and programs on many topics. Parenting, health, nutrition, divorce, money matters, housing and more. 4-H youth development programs, and Job Skills.
Y Care Before/After School Care (Jefferson City YMCA)
Knowles Center, 424 Stadium Blvd., Jefferson City MO
573-761-9015
Y-Care offers a wide variety of fun, educational activities. Afternoon snack is provided. Y-Care before school session begins at 6:45 a.m. Y-Care after school session ends at 5:30 p.m. Available at Belair, Cedar Hill, Lawson, Thorpe Gordon, West, North (PM only), Moreau Heights (PM only), Callaway Hills (YMCA transports from Callaway to North. Y-Care at the Y (YMCA transports from Pioneer Trails, East and South to Knowles YMCA – PM only).