Multi-year initiative helps parents prepare Oregon’s kids for success in school and life
Portland, Ore. — May 11, 2010 — The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) today announced a new multi-year initiative to support parenting education programs in Oregon. Funders of the Oregon Parenting Education Collaborative include OCF, the Meyer Memorial Trust and the Whipple Fund and Crane Creek Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation. It supports parents in their critical role as children’s first and most important teachers by helping communities build stronger, more coordinated parenting education services.
“We know there are excellent parenting education programs in Oregon, but they are underfunded and parents often don’t know how to find them. Research continues to show that support for parenting education is one of the most important investments we can make in our children’s futures as well as our society’s longer-term economic health,” said Mary Louise McClintock, OCF’s Early Childhood Program Director.
A recent report by Oregon State University found that unstable funding undermines the availability and consistency of Oregon’s parenting programs and that rural areas are frequently underserved. The Parenting Education Collaborative takes aim at these issues, providing grants of $80,000 to $90,000 per year to support six regional parenting education “hubs” in Coos/Curry, Deschutes/Crook/Jefferson, Douglas, Hood River/Wasco, Linn/Benton and Wallowa/Baker counties. The hubs will be funded for at least three years. Additional initiative partners include The Ford Family Foundation and Oregon State University.
Early childhood care and education is one of OCF’s main focus areas. Research shows that adult-child relationships play a critical role in the earliest years of children’s lives and effective parenting education programs enhance parents’ child-rearing skills, competence and confidence. Parenting education programs also lower family stress and reduce isolation. Furthermore, investing in parenting education is an investment towards the future well-being of our schools, workplaces and society in general. A recent publication by the Partnership for America’s Economic Success, a national group of economists and business and foundation leaders, stated, “Our entire nation’s economic health and societal well-being are significantly enhanced when parents have the tools they need to help their kids start school prepared to learn, develop the social skills necessary to pay attention and work in teams, and grow up to be productive adults.”
To learn more, visit http://oregoncf.org/receive/grants/grant-opportunities/ready-to-learn/parent-ed-collaborative.