Corner Office: Imagine a Future
We just wrapped up our 7th annual Champions for Children & Families fundraising luncheon. Many of you joined us to celebrate to support families and honor the champions in our community.
The theme of our event was Imagine a Future. We want to extend that same vision with you, right now. Let’s do that …
Imagine a future where all children enter kindergarten ready to learn and succeed. At Child & Family Resources we use proven, cost-effective strategies to increase the numbers of young children who have the skills to thrive. Professionals talk about the importance of Kindergarten readiness and the ability to read by third grade. If a child can’t read by third grade he or she is statistically far more likely to be a high school dropout, be on welfare as an adult, get arrested, get divorced, and develop problems with drugs or alcohol. Apparently, some private prison companies use regional third-grade reading scores to help determine where to build more prisons for future customers!
Imagine a future where all young children, especially those living in poverty, have a chance to attend a quality preschool. Today just one in six Pima County toddlers does so. At Child and Family Resources we partner with early childhood educators and preschools/child care centers to increase quality, provide needed support and incentives, and build a stronger early childhood education system. The sooner our society can learn that public investment in education and school needs to begin long before Kindergarten, the sooner we will catch up with the many countries of the world with educational outcomes and success vastly better than ours. American society continues to promote this antiquated notion that school is meant to begin at age five. Compare us to the many European and Asian countries whose average high school test scores are significantly better than ours. They invest in the first five years of life, and support early childhood education!
Imagine a future where all families are provided the tools, encouragement, and techniques to promote their children’s positive development and well-being. At Child and Family Resources, we invite parents of newborn infants and toddlers, particularly those who come from backgrounds of poverty, violence, or substance abuse, to work with our trained counselors. These home visitors partner with parents, providing services in the family’s homes, to promote healthy child development, effective nurturing, and rewarding parenting. Investing in home visitation programs is a far more cost-effective way to promote literacy and school success than remediation programs that public schools offer.
Imagine a future where children with disabilities or developmental delays have every chance to reach their potential. At Child and Family Resources, our staff- physical therapists, speech pathologists, and counselors partner with parents of young children with special needs to teach them strategies to promote optimal development.
Imagine that future … and now let’s make it so. Join us in efforts to make these things possible! Sign up for our quarterly newsletter, support our efforts, and vote for changes that support families.
Together, we can make this future a reality.