The legal applicant for this grant is the lafayette council on aging, INC

The lcoa is a not-for-profit organization which operates a broad range of programs, under the provisions of a state charter which was obtained in november, 1965. The lcoa acts in an advocacy capacity on behalf of the elderly population of lafayette parish (louisiana). The mission of the lcoa is to enhance the well-being of the elderly by providing an expanding and innovative range of services delivered with respect, care, and compassion, while upholding the dignity and independence of the individual. The number of vsys requested for the lcoa foster grandparent program is 82, with a requested funding amount of $333,390. The proposed service categories are k-12 success-public schools, k-12 success-faith based schools, and school readiness. The lcoa foster grandparent program will address such community needs as school readiness and the ability to read. Foster grandparents will assist children in various areas such as : language-foster grandparents will help children master their language skills, which in turn will help increase reading ability as well as improve speech and speaking ability; concentration-foster grandparents will help children SIT still and focus on one task at a time, which will help stretch attention span; work attitude-foster grandparents will help teach children the importance of completing tasks, even the least enjoyable ones, as this is a very important component of the "adult" world; coordination-foster grandparents will help children improve and strengthen muscle tone by engaging them in such activities as throwing and catching balls, tossing bean bags, and crumpling paper; body parts-foster grandparents will help children develop positive body image by helping them to identify the right and left side of their bodies; this will, in turn, help them better interpret the world around them; counting-foster grandparent will help children learn how to count; thereby, teaching them simple math skills; colors-foster grandparents will help children learn how to identify basic colors such as white, black, green, red, blue, and yellow. All of the above-mentioned activities will be done with much repetition and play (WWW.learninginfo.ORG/early-childhood-education.HTM). Foster grandparents will also assist in activities designed to help build socialization, behavior-management, and problem-solving skills, independence, and self-confidence through the use of exploration, experimentation, and conversation. The anticipated outcomes are that children receiving FGP assistance will demonstrate significant improvement in the development of social, behavioral, and problem-solving skills, exude confidence, and demonstrate independence. In addition, the children will be prepared to enroll in kindergarten or be promoted to the next grade level, having mastered pre-reading skills, grown richer in vocabulary and demonstrated strong basic math skills.