PARENTS IN COMMUNITY ACTION

Parents In Community Action, Inc. (PICA) is a private, non-profit agency operating Head Start and Early Head Start programs in Hennepin County, Minnesota. PICA provides comprehensive early childhood and family development services to over 2,400 young children and their families living at or below the federal poverty level, including nearly 500 homeless families residing in area shelters. According to the most recent Federal Poverty Guidelines, a family of two is considered to be living in poverty if their annual income is at or below $15,730 (Federal Register, Vol.79, No.14 1-22-14). PICA’s mission is to “provide comprehensive early childhood and family development services that empower children and families to reach their full potential.” This includes providing a variety of education and training opportunities for Head Start parents that equip them to play an active role in their children’s education, improve their health, develop marketable job skills, obtain living-wage employment, and become active participants in their community. To accomplish these important goals, PICA developed the concept of a multi-function Training Center that allows us to provide much-needed education and training programs for Head Start staff members, low-income parents, and the community. Our overall vision for PICA’s early childhood, staff development, and parent Training Center includes the following guiding principles: • Training, educating, and developing an agency staff that is culturally and/or linguistically reflective of the children and families we serve; • Providing opportunities for the families we serve to become involved in decision making about our programs and services and to participate in training and education programs that will prepare them for living-wage employment; • Providing opportunities for young children to learn and grow in a multicultural environment, and preparing them for life in a global society; and • Providing training to the community of early childhood providers impacting quality to not only Head Start but also the Early Childhood field at large. Recognized multiple times as a National Head Start Association Program of Excellence, PICA serves as a national model for its high quality staff and parent training programs, and we are committed to sharing our knowledge and expertise in these areas so other early childhood professionals can learn from our experiences. PICA is also committed to hiring, training, and retaining staff members who are reflective of the cultural and linguistic characteristics of those we serve. Our training reflects this multicultural perspective, and our diverse staff—83 % of which is ethnically and/ or linguistically reflective of the population we serve—is uniquely equipped to prepare young children and their families to succeed in today’s world. Maintaining high quality education and comprehensive services that support children and families requires ongoing training and professional development. PICA, as the largest trainer of teachers of color in the state of Minnesota, has established and maintains a comprehensive system of training and credentialing for staff and parents. Currently, 40% of PICA’s staff and credentialed teachers are former Head Start parents. A “grow our own” staff training and development philosophy is practiced to maintain our diverse staff, which is representative of those we serve and contributes to quality programming. This grow our own philosophy is implemented through a tiered approach both with parents and staff. Parents are provided opportunities to participate in PICA’s on-site parent training programs in the areas of child development, nutrition, clerical skills, and transportation. For example, after completing one of these training programs, the parent gains basic work skills such as being accountable for job assignments, arriving on time, and learning the basic job requirements for each area. Parents can then continue their professional development by becoming a substitute teacher, and then becoming a Teacher Intern learning specific skills used in educating young children. PICA’s existing Training Center, is over 50 years old, and needs further renovation and expansion to house services that better meet the urgent needs of the community. Phase I of this project—now completed—has provided us with some space. This capital grant will facilitate the completion of Phase II of PICA’s Training Center Renovation/Expansion Plan, allowing us to expand our training options and to house new programs and features that will benefit our staff, parents, and the community.