Southside Family Nurturing Center

Our History

Southside Family Nurturing Center was founded in 1974 on the belief that child abuse and neglect are preventable. With modest beginnings in the basement of Our Savior's Lutheran Church on Chicago Avenue, we now serve over 100 families with over 130 children every year in our 113-year-old "mansion of the Phillips neighborhood" on 18th Avenue.

As one of the first private, not-for-profit agencies to implement holistic family treatments in the state of Minnesota, SSFNC has celebrated many great accomplishments over its 32-year life span:

Since 1974, Hennepin County has contracted with SSFNC to provide services for its most difficult clients.
The National Center for Children in Poverty, in conjunction with The Minneapolis Foundation, chose SSFNC as the case study for a research project. Their report, Trapped from Birth, was published in 1990.
In 1991, the Emma B. Howe Foundation selected SSFNC to coordinate the development of a culturally diverse curriculum with national implications.
Since 1994, SSFNC's Center Base Program has earned accreditation by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs.
In 1997, SSFNC was chosen by Hennepin County to administer the Phillips Neighborhood Family Partnership program, initially funded by the state of Minnesota and The McKnight Foundation, and now funded by Hennepin County.
In 2001, SSFNC received an Excellence Award from the Greater Twin Cities United Way for fostering outstanding program excellence, community involvement, and integrated service delivery.
In 2005, SSFNC completed a successful transition of leadership staff who had led the agency since its inception.
In 2005, through funding from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council and local Target stores, SSFNC initiated an arts program for children and families, in partnership with In the Heart of the Beast Puppet Theatre. The program is now in its second year.
In 2005, a grant from the Otto Bremer Foundation enabled SSFNC to develop a handbook of activities for children who are English language learners, we also developed a diversity curriculum that will also be utilized in the classroom and for agency-wide staff training.