Last month we had the privilege of working with Susan Robins to bring you the Member Spotlight series on Vita Centre. We’re happy that this member-focused feature allows us to invite, get to know and introduce a Families Canada member each month to share their experiences, best practices, challenges and more in their work with families. We encourage our members to connect with each other and thrive together as we support and strengthen families across Canada.
Our Member Spotlight this month features Mosaic-Newcomer Family Resource in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Thank you, Maisa’a Haj Ahmad, for sharing your organization with our members.
About Maisa’a
Hi Maisa’a! Please tell us about yourself, your role and what motivated you to join Mosaic.
Maisa’a Haj Ahmad, Director of Family Programs
Mosaic-Newcomer Family Resource (Mosaic)
Maisa’a: My name is Maisa’a Haj Ahmad. Mosaic has been my employer for a number of years. At present, I am the Director of Family Programs. I hold a bachelor’s degree in computer information and systems, and I am currently pursuing my master’s degree in Conflict Analysis and Management at Royal Roads University in BC. In addition, I enrolled in several courses at Red River College, where I studied the Science of Early Childhood Development and Graphic Design. Commencing my affiliation with Mosaic in 2014, I participated in the Positive Discipline in Everyday Parenting Program (PDEP) as a parent. This program sparked my curiosity regarding child development, in an effort to assist me in my vocation as a mother educating her children, in a culture other than the one in which I was raised. Subsequently, I commenced my volunteer work in Mosaic Family Programs, gradually learning to facilitate programs. During this time, I received comprehensive training in a variety of programs and delivered them in English and, at times, Arabic.
In 2016, Mosaic offered me full-time employment as the lead mentor and coordinator for all Syrian programs, serving the large number of Syrians who immigrated to Canada at that time. As Mosaic’s Positive Discipline Coordinator and PDEP Country Trainer, I had the opportunity to co-train numerous facilitators in Manitoba and other provinces. In 2016, I joined a team funded by Save the Children – Sweden and travelled to Indonesia to train PDEP facilitators. In 2020, I was hired to train Vietnamese facilitators in the online Positive Discipline program. Last year, I became a certified trainer of the Nobody’s Perfect Parenting Program.
I assumed the role of Director of Family Programs three years ago. I was motivated to join Mosaic by shared values and Mosaic’s mission to assist individuals and families with resettlement and integration into Canadian society. Working at Mosaic has increased my awareness of my assets and abilities. I am particularly proud to assist newcomer women who are vulnerable and bear a great deal of responsibility for their families.
About Mosaic-Newcomer Family Resource
Please tell us about Mosaic and the needs or challenges in the community that Mosaic is responding to.
Maisa’a: Mosaic – Newcomer Family Resource Network is a rights-based organization that provides newcomer parents and primary caregivers with opportunities to develop additional language and parenting skills. The goal is for them to build the confidence and independence needed to participate actively in community life, so they may contribute to and share in the benefits of their new communities.
Mosaic is a trauma-informed agency, highly accessible to vulnerable newcomers, particularly low-income racialized mothers and their families. Known for our English classes with onsite childcare and Family Programs, we also specialize in care for newcomer children, and employability training for multi-barriered newcomer women. Family Programs focus on families who face multiple barriers including poverty, language, racism, and trauma. Our largest groups served are Syrian, Somali, Yazidi, Ukrainian, and Eritrean, among 49 nationalities. Expressed needs include connection/reduced isolation, English language training, employability, and family support programs.
We have 27 English classes at onsite childcare locations across Winnipeg and more than 60 Family Program groups and 1-1 home visits per year and a Family Resource Centre located in Knox United Church. Some programs and services are offered without geographical or transportation barriers.
“What surprised me was the love I have never felt like this before. Respect, love, friendship, care, and support are the core principles of Mosaic. The most important thing for me is to always be a part of this lovely and friendly family, that is Mosaic” – Tetiana M. (Participant in the Mosaic Family Engagement Mentorship (FEM) program)
Relationship with Families Canada
Can you tell us about your organization’s relationship with Families Canada?
Maisa’a: Mosaic has been an active member of Families Canada (formally FRP Canada) since 2009. When we started as a new organization, we found the resources on the FC website invaluable. We have used numerous resources over the years. Mosaic has also appreciated the pamphlets and resources on families, play, child development, etc., that have been translated into other languages. As a newcomer serving agency, we appreciate how Families Canada has worked so hard to make their materials assessable to newcomers. We have also purchased all our PDEP books from Families Canada since we started offering the program and trainings in 2012. The member discount has made the books much more affordable. We appreciate how the rights-based philosophy and mission of Families Canada aligns with Mosaic’s and how Families Canada has always been readily available to our organization, responding with help and support to any requests for partnerships over the years.
Families Canada (FC) and Mosaic Newcomer Family Resource Network have partnered on many projects over the years in a mutually beneficial, supportive relationship. Some of the longer-term projects where Mosaic partnered with Families Canada include:
Peer Support Program
2-year Partnership with FC (when it was called FRP Canada) where Mosaic partnered with FC in the development of the program, and manuals. FC supported Mosaic in piloting the program. The Director of Family Programs was invited to be part of the Steering Committee and to act as a mentor to support other agencies.
Home Visit Parenting Program Partnership
Families Canada provided the support needed for Mosaic to develop a parenting home visit program for isolated, newcomer parents and caregivers. This relationship-based home visit program provides a skilled home visitor who makes weekly visits to the client’s home for weekly sessions. The program has many activities developed specifically to help integrate the content of the program and to engage the families in the program. The home visits are delivered in the families’ first language. A skilled childcare worker accompanies the facilitator to the home so that the children in the home can be meaningfully involved in child-led activities, allowing the parents and caregivers to focus on the parent program. This project also included support from Families Canada to develop a toy lending library. When a childcare worker is visiting a home, once they are aware of the child’s interests and skills, they can borrow toys, games and materials from the library, specifically geared to each child in the family.
Introduction to Positive Discipline Videos for Newcomer Parents
1-year partnership on creating videos on an Introduction to Positive Discipline. Mosaic partnered with FC and PDEL to create these videos. FC provided financial support, guidance, and filming assistance while Mosaic provided the PDEP newcomer participants, space, and support to create videos which are now a valuable resource on the FC website. The Director of Family Programs was invited to collaborate with Families Canada in writing the guide to be used with the videos.
Intergenerational Programs
2-year project where FC obtained funding to develop an intergenerational program, initiated the steering committee and the program development. Mosaic was invited to be a member of the steering committee for this project. Mosaic was also invited to design and deliver the 3-day facilitator training in Ottawa to facilitators from FRPs across Canada. FC supported Mosaic in piloting the program where newcomer seniors and young children come together with their parents for the benefit of all. FC and Mosaic developed this program through a PDEP lens. The intergenerational program, which Mosaic calls Grand Friends, was a particularly valuable program in reducing social isolation of newcomer seniors and young families during Covid. It continues to be a favorite program at Mosaic Family Resource Network.
Nobody’s Perfect Virtual Facilitator Training Program
Mosaic’s Parent Program Coordinator is part of Families Canada’s Advisory Committee, developing and evaluating a new virtual facilitator training program for the Nobody’s Perfect Program.
Collaboration and Partnerships
How does your organization collaborate with other organizations or agencies to enhance your services and ability to support families?
Maisa’a: Mosaic provides English classes in four community locations, including our main office. Our goal is to offer programs and services as close as possible to where newcomer families have settled. This requires numerous collaborative partnerships with community-based organizations, community centres, places of worship and others to provide accessible spaces where we can run programs, reduce barriers such as transportation, and provide on-site childcare.
Challenges and Solutions
Every organization faces challenges. Can you discuss some challenges your organization has encountered and the strategies implemented to overcome them? How has the organization adapted and evolved to meet the changing needs of the community?
Masia’a: Mosaic is primarily funded by Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), and participants must have a permanent resident (PR) card to receive services. However, we have been able to accommodate individuals with different immigration statuses by applying for various grants that do not have eligibility limits.
The Family Engagement Mentorship program assists women in developing skills to work with children and families as childcare providers. Initially, mentees completed their practicum hours at our family resource centre. However, it was difficult to accommodate 30 women in one session to finish their practicum in one space. We thus partnered with three childcare centres in two different parts of the city to accommodate the mentees and do their practicum somewhere close to where they live. This saved them time and turned out to be a great opportunity to connect those women with other agencies and help them to interact with other communities while reducing the burden on our Family Place staff. This helped several of them get jobs at the facility where they did their practicum.
Measuring Success
How does your organization measure its success and impact on families and the community?
Maisa’a: We collect feedback from participants using a number of evaluation forms, based on the program and the literacy level of the group. The evaluation forms we use are anonymous on Google Forms in English, and we occasionally give them in other languages based on the language of service delivery, which we afterwards translate. Below are some of the measures that help us assess our performance.
- Language Skills: People do the language assessment at the end of the school year and find an improvement in their language skills in the four areas of reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
- Mosaic maintains records and tracks the participants enrollment and commitment whether by finishing the program that they are enrolled in, registering, attending more programs, or referring their friends and family members to attend our programs.
- Employment Programs: Many of our participants find jobs after they finish their training and practicum hours with Mosaic or other agencies.
- Parenting Efficacy: We evaluate the knowledge and confidence in parenting of people after participating in a pre- and post-questionnaire, which would reflect the program’s effectiveness.
Success Stories
Are there any particular cases or situations that stand out to you as examples of the organization’s success?
Maisa’a: It is difficult to focus on only one instance of feeling that we have made a difference in someone’s life. Maybe one of our biggest successes is the fact that many of our staff were once participants in our programs. More than 80% of Mosaic’s staff are newcomers with lived experience. All are totally motivated to give back, and to be a part of the work that we are doing to build strong community connections, eliminate isolation, and create equitable spaces for parents and children to come together and feel a part of their new home. Each day we meet newcomers who are at some stage in their journey. Some have been here for many years, some have just arrived. Over the past 15 years, we have helped thousands of newcomer women and their families settle successfully in Winnipeg. They may have only come to us for English classes with on-site childcare, or they may have deepened their relationship with Mosaic and joined family programs, become a volunteer, taken training to facilitate to others, and been one of the hundreds of women who joined our facilitator team. They may have had the experience of giving back to their community by sharing their new skills and confidence to help others.
Community Impact
How has your organization contributed to the overall well-being of the community it serves?
Maisa’a:
- Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC): Mosaic operates 27 classes with childcare out of 4 community sites. The curriculum focuses on general settlement and family topics and is meant to ease the transition for newcomers into Canadian society. Topics include learning about the education system, community resources, and parenting in the Canadian context.
- Parenting and Family Literacy Programs: We offer several attachment-based, child’s rights-based programs that provide parents with opportunities to connect with other parents facing similar challenges. These programs aim to strengthen parent-child relationships, help parents navigate challenging parenting situations constructively, support the emotional wellbeing of the parents and their children, support family literacy, promote healthy living, and understand culture norms, values, and laws in Canada. These programs help new Canadians find ways to integrate successfully into their new home while maintaining their own values and culture.
- Empowerment: Newcomer women are empowered through our programs to become contributing members of their new community. They go on to work in their first employment in Canada, sometimes in their first ever jobs. They learn parenting skills that allow them to parent with confidence in this new Canadian setting. Women who complete our programs have opportunities to learn and grow. They bring their friends to us, and they take what they learn back to their communities in a neighbor-helping-neighbor approach to community development.
Future Goals
What are your organization’s future goals and how does your organization envision continuing to make a positive difference in the lives of families in the coming years?
Maisa’a: As the province of Manitoba continues to attract and retain immigrants and refugees from all categories, Mosaic will continue to play a leading role in their settlement journey. As the only settlement organization completely focused on supporting parents and reducing barriers that specifically impact women, like childcare and transportation, Mosaic has filled a niche in the services provided to newcomers.
Our family support programs are of high quality and partner organizations seek out our expertise. Recently, we expanded our Family Engagement Mentorship program, helping to build a smooth pathway for newcomer women who wish to pursue a career in childcare, either as a childcare assistant or Early Childhood Educator. This program is helping to address a serious staff shortage in early learning, as well as preparing newcomer women for work in Canada. The program now includes practicum placements in licensed early learning centres, providing a great opportunity for Mosaic to formalize new partnerships and for newcomer women to have authentic experiences and enhance chances of being hired.
For the past 4 years, Mosaic has provided Care for Newcomer Children for other settlement organizations. Building on our strengths and expertise, we can make it easy for others to provide their services without the barrier of childcare. This is a service that fits with our vision of reducing barriers to access and making services more equitable. We are keen to increase this service and provide seamless childcare services for anyone providing other critical settlement services. Mosaic has the sense that this can be expanded upon, and more and more newcomer women can gain employment and confidence through the process.
Connect with Mosaic-Newcomer Family Resource
Website: Mosaic Newcomer Family Resource Network (mosaicnet.ca)
Facebook: Mosaic – Newcomer Family Resource Network | Winnipeg MB | Facebook
Instagram: Mosaic NFRN (@mbmosaic) • Instagram photos and videos
LinkedIn: Mosaic Newcomer Family Resource Network | LinkedIn
Connect with the Community
We at Families Canada enjoy and are inspired by the good work that our members do. We are grateful to Maisa’a and other members who have accepted our invitation to help us launch this initiative and foster connection among members.
We would love to learn more about the work Families Canada members do with families across Canada. Our whole community benefits from our shared experiences. We invite you to share your story by getting in touch with our Membership Team at info@familiescanada.ca today.
