The Institute For Work & the Economy

The Hephzibah Children s Association was founded in 1897 with 14 children when Mary Wessels took in the children of an orphanage destroyed by a fire. Now the company is divided into four sectors; daycare, family based services, group homes and the Hephzibah Academy. The HCA offers nine school day care sites with more than 334 children and one summer day care site, which enrolls nearly 230 children. The firm also offers after school care at all eight elementary schools in Oak Park, Ill. The HCA s family based services division offers six community based programs designed to assist with reunification with a child s family of origin, placement with relatives or adoption. The association offers group homes for child trauma victims and children in need of full-time care and a variety of academic programs, such as summer reading programs, to encourage at risk children s academic performance.