Court Improvement Project - COVID-19 News, Resources and Updates

Court Improvement Project - COVID-19 News, Resources and Updates

The Nebraska Court Improvement Project will post links to important information for youth and families in Nebraska on this page. Click on a topic below for more information.

From the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services:

10 Actions for Every Nebraskan to be Taking Now to Slow Spread of COVID-19

LINCOLN – Cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continue to increase in Nebraska and nationwide. Slowing the spread of COVID-19 in the state is critical. The actions below help protect each other and those who are more vulnerable to severe illness and death, and help hospitals and clinics from being overwhelmed so they can continue to provide care to families, friends and neighbors who need it.

  1. Stay 6 feet away from others.
  2. Stay at home and only grocery shop once per week alone.
  3. Wear a cloth face covering in public (grocery stores, pharmacies etc.) when you can’t stay 6 feet away from others.
  4. Work from home.
  5. Hold conference calls or virtual meetings instead of in person.
  6. Stay home if you or someone in your house has a sudden onset of cough or shortness of breath or a fever.
  7. Wash hands often with soap and water. If soap and water aren't available, use an alcohol-based sanitizer.
  8. Wash hands right before you eat.
  9. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze then throw the tissue in the trash.
  10. Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces, especially counters, handles, doorknobs, tabletops, remotes and keyboards.

Statewide information

Statewide information
Statewide information

Nebraska Judicial Branch - Emergency Status Webpage

 

COVID-19 Nebraska Courthouse Status Map

Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services - COVID-19 Webpage

Nebraska Children and Families Resource Page

This page has links to continuously updated information from state agencies and community resources. Visit the page to see information related to Bring Up Nebraska Priority Areas like basic needs, housing and more. Check back often and share the link with your networks!

State Hotline for COVID-19 Information: (402) 552-6645, 8AM - 8PM – 7 Days a Week, 2-1-1

Other State Resources and Update Pages

Follow the Governor’s news page for the latest guidance and public health directives

Follow the Governor’s Social Media for the latest town halls and updates: Facebook   Twitter: @GovRicketts

Important Policy Updates

Governor Ricketts’ Emergency Declaration allows for Nebraska to apply for regulation waivers for programs. State Agencies will be applying for waivers to help Nebraskans with supports during COVID-19 response. The Nebraska Department of Economic Development, NEDHHS, Nebraska Department of Labor, and the Nebraska Department of Education are all responding to COVID-19 with new strategies and flexibility for families and businesses. Here are a few items of Note:

Children and Family Services - This Fact Sheet from DHHS Division of Children & Family Services will be continuously updated. It answers FAQs about licensing, child care, aged and disabled services, economic assistance (SNAP, Employment First)

Child Care Survey - In the context of the ongoing coronavirus response, Buffett Early Childhood Institute is hoping to learn about the challenges and needs of early childhood care and education providers in Nebraska, in order to share with state and local officials, policymakers, and others. If you are a child care provider, please complete this short survey.

Unemployment - The Governor has waived the following eligibility requirements for unemployment insurance benefits for claims filed between March 22 and May 2. (the timeframe will be evaluated as the COVID-19 situation progresses)

Work Search - This change applies to all workers filing for unemployment.  While many job search efforts are conducted online, waiving the requirement to search for work is in line with the social distancing practices that are needed to limit the spread of COVID-19 and potential exposure to the disease.  The change will also accommodate those workers who are temporarily impacted by COVID-19, including those who are in an unpaid status due to a shutdown, quarantine, or because they are caring for a family member due to illness or a facility closure. 

Unpaid Waiting Week - This change will make the first week of eligibility payable rather than an unpaid waiting week and will help all unemployment recipients get their payments sooner.

Employer charging - Unemployment benefits are typically paid with contributions from employers.  NDOL will temporarily waive charges incurred by employers whose team members are filing claims related to COVID-19.  Nebraska has a healthy Trust Fund that will be utilized to pay for unemployment benefits tied to COVID-19.
Workers needing to file for unemployment benefits should do so online at NEworks.nebraska.gov.  The NEworks mobile app is available to download free for those who don’t have computer access.  For technical assistance, access the NEworks live chat feature, email ndol.nichelp@nebraska.gov, or call 402-458-2500.

Housing – HUD has issued an immediate foreclosure and eviction moratorium for single family homeowners with FHA- insured mortgages for the next 60 days. Learn more. See more information on the Nebraska Children COVID-19 Resource Page.

Nebraska Legislature

The Nebraska Legislature temporarily suspended legislative session due to public health concerns. State senators will reconvene as early as Monday 3/23/20. They will consider measures to address coronavirus among other priorities. As senators receive calls from their constituents, Central Navigation is one of the resources they can consider referring constituents to for help. Communities are encouraged to reach out to their state senators and share stories and data about what they are seeing. For assistance with this or navigating policy issues related to COVID-19 (ex. utility shutoff policies), communities can contact Rachel rmeier@nebraskachildren.org.

Technology

Technology
Technology

Tech Options for conducting business during Social Distancing (PDF)

Internet service providers in Lincoln

There are a number of internet service providers in Lincoln. The three providers that contacted Lincoln Public Schools to apprise us of special offers or considerations for families of Lincoln Public Schools students are Allo Communications–Imperial, NE; Spectrum–Stamford, CT; and Windstream–Little Rock, AR. For more information, please visit our website.

Other Links to Stay Connected
*BE CAUTIOUS ON NATIONAL WEBSITES AND READ THE FINE PRINT FOR BILLING AND PERSONAL INFORMATION!!
ZOOM.US : FREE way to gather in groups. https://zoom.us/pricing
Facetime – iPhones Skype https://www.skype.com/en/get-skype/

Food Distribution

Food Distribution
Food Distribution

List of Nebraska Food Pantries by County (PDF)

From Lincoln Public Schools Nutrition Services

In an effort to limit the amount of person-to-person contact time in our community, we are moving to a weekly grab-and-go lunch/breakfast schedule from Nutrition Services. Every Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (or while supplies last) each child will receive five breakfasts and five lunch meals. 

Weekly meal distribution will continue to be distributed weekly at these eight sites:

  • Belmont Elementary School – Door 8 (3425 North 14th St.)
  • Arnold Elementary School – Door 10 (5000 Mike Scholl Street)
  • Hartley Elementary School – Door 8 (730 North 33rd St.)
  • Calvert Elementary School – Door 7 (3709 S. 46th St.)
  • Clinton Elementary – Door 3 (1520 N. 29th St.)
  • Park Middle School – Door 5 (855 South 8th St.)
  • Northeast High School – Door 35 (2635 North 63rd St.)
  • Lincoln High School – Door 44 (2229 J Street)

Children 18 and younger are eligible for meals. The child does not need to be an LPS student. Meals are also available to persons with disabilities, ages 18 to 21, who participate in LPS programs. Children are no longer required to be present when picking up meals.

From the Food Bank of Lincoln

ALL Schools with LPS BackPack Program and Food Markets

The Food Bank of Lincoln remains committed to feeding children and families. To ensure food distribution sustainability and help as many people as they can for as long as they can, the Food Bank of Lincoln will temporarily halt all BackPack Program activity and School Food Markets. However, during the week of March 23-27, any family is welcome to pick up pre-packaged bags of food at these locations:

Wednesday, March 25: Lincoln High School, 3-3:45 p.m.
Thursday, March 26: Northeast High School, 3-3:45 p.m.
Friday, March 27: Everett Elementary, 3-3:30 p.m.

Each week the Food Bank of Lincoln will announce locations, dates and times of future distribution at schools.

For more information about accessing the Lincoln Food Bank other distribution locations visit their website.

Mental Health, Activities and Support

Mental Health, Activities and Support
Mental Health, Activities and Support

Helping children handle the stress

Watching news reports, spending time on social media and listening to people discuss their fears about COVID-19 can cause people to feel anxious. This is a particular concern for young people, who may not fully understand or have context for the information they are receiving. 

It is important to remember that children look to trusted adults for how to respond in stressful situations. Adults who remain calm, share factual information and provide answers that are developmentally appropriate can help young people remain calm.

Click here for key talking points.

Making the most of school closings (webpage)
Tips for Staying Mentally Strong During COVID-19 (webpage)
Resources for Children (webpage)
Tools from Calm to help you take breaks

Support Groups for Parents

Resources: Talking to Kids/Family

Child Mind Institute:

COVID-19 discussion with kids: https://childmind.org/article/talking-to-kids-about-the-coronavirus/

Active Resources for evaluations/symptoms related to COVID-19/other… https://childmind.org/coping-during-covid-19-resources-for-parents/

General Mental Health Info related to kids: https://childmind.org/audience/for-families/

Resources: Activities with Kids/Family:

 

 

Non-Emergency Mental Health Resources

 

https://childmind.org/coping-during-covid-19-resources-for-parents/

UNL resource, see below.  https://cehs.unl.edu/comingtogetherforwellness/

Important highlights of the site:

  • Easy to sign up for 30 min free consult with a therapist.
  • Facebook group for people to support and encourage one another https://www.facebook.com/groups/532767604340716/
  • WhatsApp group chat. Some felt they were more likely to text messages of encouragement – WhatsApp is especially important for the immigrant/refugee populations.
  • Phone and Zoom support group times during the week (for now Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). The purpose is for social support and connection.
  • Fun tips of the day
  • Podcast for support and ideas about strengthening individuals and families.
  • Simple and easy tips and resources so people don’t have to sift through mountains of info.

Learning Resources

Learning Resources
Learning Resources

Learning Resources from Nebraska TV (Webpage)

Online Learning Resources from DigitalPromise.org (webpage)

List of online learning resources by subject matter (PDF)

For families/students who don’t access to the internet – Charter Communications (Spectrum) and Allo Communications may offer free access for 60 days. Please contact those companies directly:

Charter Communications – 1-844-488-8398
Allo Communications – 1-866-481-2556

Other companies may also be providing internet at free or reduced cost. Please contact your local provider for more information.

Multi-lingual Resources

Multi-lingual Resources
Multi-lingual Resources

This information has been passed on from Lutheran Family Services which includes a compilation of translated COVID-19 resources in multiple languages from credible sources. 


Below is a link of translated videos, made by Lutheran Family Services and Restoring Dignity, about COVID-19. Please share with anyone who would benefit. New videos and more languages to come (Nuer, Somali, Nepali).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQRvEfFmpM4&list=PL6XsN1SNHIDDUQ4xDwC6KMJKe6gcz8h4-

 

CDC

·      Includes:

o   Print Resources

o   Videos

·      Languages:

o   Arabic, Burmese, Farsi, Nepali, Spanish, Swahili, Ukrainian, Urdu

·      https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/index.html

·      https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/summary.html

·      https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska, Inc.

·      Includes:

o   Videos made in partnership with Restoring Dignity

·      Languages:

o   Karen, Karenni, Burmese, Nepali, Swahili, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda, Spanish, Nuer, Arabic (Sudanese and Middle Eastern), Kurdish, Kurmanji, Zomi, Pashto

·      https://www.youtube.com/user/lfsneb/videos

County Health Departments

·      Central:

o   https://cdhd.ne.gov/covid-19/covid-19-resources.html

·      Douglas:

o   https://www.douglascountyhealth.com/infectious-disease/diseases-and-conditions/2019-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov

·      Dakota County:

o   https://dakotacountyne.org/webpages/health/health_department.html

·      East Central:

o   https://ecdhd.ne.gov/covid-2019-novel-coronavirus.html

·      Elkhorn Logan Valley:

o   https://elvphd.org/

·      Lincoln/Lancaster

o   https://lincoln.ne.gov/city/health/

·      Madison

o   https://www.co.madison.il.us/departments/health/index.php

·      Sarpy/Cass:

o   https://www.sarpycasshealthdepartment.org/novel-coronavirus

·      Two Rivers:

o   https://www.trphd.org/

Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services

·      http://dhhs.ne.gov/Pages/Coronavirus.aspx

Minnesota Department of Health

·      Includes:

o   Fact Sheets

§  Prevent the spread, basic overview, hand hygiene, PSA’s

·      Languages:

o   Amharic, Arabic, Karen, Nepali, Somali, Spanish

·      https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/materials/index.html

Washington State Department of Health

·      Includes:

o   Fact Sheets

·      Languages:

o   Arabic, Burmese, Dari, English, Farsi, French, Hakha Chin, Karen, Kinyarwanda, Spanish, Swahili, Thai, Tigrinya, Ukranian, Urdu, and Vietnamese

·      https://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/NovelCoronavirusOutbreak2020/HealthEducation

Switchboard

·      Includes:

o   Fact Sheets

o   Posters

o   Multimedia Resources

o   Live Updates

·      Languages:

o   Arabic, Amharic, Farsi, Karen, Kinyarwanda, Nepali, Somali, Spanish, Ukrainian, Urdu

·      https://switchboardta.org/blog/a-round-up-of-multilingual-resources-on-covid-19/?mc_cid=55a6c15918&mc_eid=f1f4d8aaab

Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP)

·      Included:

o   Editable, shareable fact sheets with current COVID-19 information

·      Languages:

o   Arabic, Farsi, Kurmanji, Pashto, Somali, Ukrainian

o   https://www.healthdesignstudio.ca/