Early Learning Indiana is working to engage parents in their child’s education and development and help parents support their child’s learning at home. Through a newly awarded AmeriCorps grant provided by Serve Indiana, Early Learning Indiana will be able to build the capacity of Indiana pre-k programs to engage parents.
A growing body of research suggests that meaningful engagement of families in their children’s early learning supports school readiness and later academic success. As a means to supporting family engagement and children’s learning, it is crucial that programs implement strategies for developing partnerships with families.
The good news is that parents of all income-levels desire and want to be more engaged in their child’s early education. A 2014 nationally representative poll commissioned by the Kellogg Foundation found that 42% of U.S. parents believe that involvement in their child’s education is most critical between birth and through preschool.
The addition of the AmeriCorps grant will provide approximately 15 AmeriCorps members who will work with high-quality pre-k programs in three of the five counties (Allen, Marion and Vanderburgh) participating in the state of Indiana’s On My Way Pre-K pilot program. The AmeriCorps members will train and support providers’ capacity to engage families and develop on-going partnerships with parents and community based organizations.
Transform Consulting Group applauds Early Learning Indiana’s leadership in applying the latest research on family engagement while addressing a critical gap in Indiana’s pre-k programs. Transform Consulting Group was hired by Early Learning Indiana to help them strategize a partnership with AmeriCorps to support the engagement of families in high quality pre-k programs and assist them in completing the AmeriCorps grant application.
Need help updating a program design or applying for a grant? Transform Consulting Group stays current with the latest research. We can use this experience to align your program and organization to “what’s working”. Contact us today, no matter whether the project is large or small!
