Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Early Childhood Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rockwood’s Parents as Teachers program reports growth; has served more than 1,800 children this year
Summary
The district’s Parents as Teachers program reported serving more than 1,800 children to date, surpassing last year’s family count, and described outreach and screening activity; the board discussed program reach and strategies to increase participation from roughly 25% toward a 40% goal of eligible children.
Rockwood School District staff reported growth in the district’s Parents as Teachers (PAT) program and outlined outreach, screening and program-delivery numbers during the board’s annual program review.
David Herold, director of early childhood, introduced Stephanie Kane, the program’s supervisor, who told the board the PAT program serves children from birth through kindergarten entry and has served over 1,800 children so far this year. Kane said the program had completed 5,328 personal visits this year to 1,247 families as of January and that the program’s staff includes 29 parent educators and 10 developmental screeners and nurses.
Kane reported completed screening numbers: 330 health/hearing/vision screenings for the birth-to-3 population and more than 509 developmental screenings for children ages 3 and up; the program is in the middle of kindergarten screenings. Kane said the statewide Parents as Teachers model originated in Missouri and that the program is listed in MSIP 6; she said Missouri districts are required to offer the program.
Board members asked how the program reaches families and whether the district is tracking the number of visits per family against long-term outcomes. Kane said outreach includes hospital and pediatric partnerships, flyers (Peachjar), social media (Facebook and Instagram), apartment-complex outreach and principal newsletters; she said the program aims for monthly visits and families with greater needs can receive up to 25 visits per year. Kane and board members discussed misconceptions that the program is only for families with concerns and emphasized the program is universal and free to participants.
Board members noted the program currently reaches about 25% of age-eligible children and said district leadership hopes to increase that share to about 40 percent. The board thanked parent-educators and praised the program for connecting families and producing measurable benefits when children receive more visits.
The presentation closed after a question-and-answer session; the board did not take formal action on the PAT report at this meeting.
