5 Head Start Programs Receive Funding from NCFL to Enhance Parent Engagement

Today, NCFL and National Head Start Association (NHSA) unveiled Head Start programs that have been selected to implement NCFL Family Learning, a novel two-generation and community-centered education model in five U.S. communities.

The following organizations will each receive a $160,000 grant from NCFL, made possible by funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation:Print

  • East Side House, Inc., Bronx, New York
  • Educational Alliance, Inc., New York, New York
  • Genesee Intermediate School District, Flint, Michigan
  • Guilford Child Development, Greensboro, North Carolina
  • Adelante Mujeres, Forest Grove, Oregon

The sites were selected through a national competition and rigorous proposal review process.

“This two-generation project puts families at the forefront of learning together in an innovative and empowering way,” said Sharon Darling, NCFL president and founder. “Family Service Learning has already been successful in cities such as Detroit and Houston. With this initiative we will reach even more families and build upon Head Start’s already strong legacy of parent engagement.”

Each Head Start site will incorporate NCFL’s traditional family literacy approaches — Parent and Child Together (PACT) Time® and Parent Time — along with two cutting-edge components—Family Service Learning and Family Mentoring. NCFL will provide program directors and facilitators with professional training and technical support to produce family engagement outcomes outlined in the Head Start Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (PFCE) Framework.

“We are thrilled for Head Start to have this opportunity to connect NCFL’s model to the PFCE family engagement and child outcomes,” said Yasmina Vinci, NHSA president. “It’s a strategic and practical way to drive powerful parent engagement in what their children are learning.”

NCFL’s whole-family approach to achieving educational outcomes, currently being implemented in 16 partner U.S. communities, has already been proven to improve child and family outcomes for low income, ethnically diverse families.