Staff Spotlight: Marla Butler

Parent educator Marla Butler has seen a lot of changes in over 11 years working with Family Resource Center St. Croix Valley. While some might find change to be challenging, Butler has embraced it. “I enjoy the variety of my day-to-day,” she said. “I like meeting new people. It’s rewarding to see a parent share the joys of what their child is doing, and also to hear their questions.”

Over her tenure at the Family Resource Center, one of the biggest changes she has been a part of was a shift in the Home Visiting program in 2012, when parent educators began visiting families every two weeks instead of monthly. This has been really positive, said Butler, because “we get to know families better and provide more comprehensive services, as well as more developmental screenings.” Other notable changes over the years have been growth in the organization’s hospital partnerships and fine-tuning the format of Play & Learn groups.

Another exciting change is more recent; in the fall of 2016, Butler took on new responsibilities for data management and compliance requirements to maintain the Family Resource Center’s Parents As Teachers affiliate status. She is also helping to manage a two-year grant that supports training on abusive head trauma, working closely with office manager Keri Fitts to track statistics. “It’s exciting to me to work with the numbers,” she said. “I feel a definite sense of accomplishment around areas where we are doing well, and it’s good to see the growth areas too.”