Grantees

Support on-site, integrated mental health services for low-income pregnant and/or parenting participants in the Family Literacy Center.

Provide parenting support education and job readiness training to pregnant and parenting teenagers who have dropped out of school or who are at risk of dropping out.

It Takes A Village is a Brattleboro-based community organization with a mission to improve the postpartum experience for families with new babies. Through our Home Visiting Program, weekly playgroups & support groups, and larger community gatherings, we facilitate a rich network of peer support for local families. In the Home Visiting Program, Volunteers are matched with families and visit on a weekly basis for a twelve week period, to provide company and lend a hand. Our playgroups and gatherings fulfill a much-needed role of offering families access to one another for social & emotional support. We aim to decrease the isolation that many mothers with new babies experience.

We are implementing 2 proven models, Moms' Empowerment program & Kids' Club. Group-facilitated at the same time, once a week for 10 weeks, 4 times a year, both programs provide support to mothers & their children who have been recently affected by domestic violence by empowering them to discuss the impact of intimate partner violence on their child(ren)'s development; build parenting competence, provide a safe place to discuss parenting fears & worries; & build connections for the mother in the context of a supportive group while simultaneously enhancing their child's sense of safety by creating a common vocabulary of emotions for making sense of violence, managing emotions, family relationship paradigms, & conflict & its resolution.

King Street Center, located in downtown Burlington, serves children and youth ages 18 months to 18 years and their families through our Toddler, Preschool, K-5, Middle School, High School, Mentor, and Family Support programs. Family engagement is critical for student achievement and social development, and is a powerful strategy for sustainable long-term student success. Our philosophical approach is to serve the whole child, which means not just supporting their own development, but also their families so they are able to provide a positive and resilient environment at home.

For the last six months, King Street Center has been engaged in a strategic planning process with a heavy focus on equity to better approach our work in an anti-racist and anti-bias way. We have met with and listened to our families, alumni, staff, board, volunteers, and partnering organizations to learn about experiences, where opportunities to grow exist, what needs aren’t being met, and what KSC means to this community. Among many ideas, one of the most pressing needs we have heard is that parents needs more support, assistance, and connection. To that end we plan to hire a Family Support Specialist to coordinate services, support, and training to assist families in meeting the needs of their children and prevent crisis situations.

Learning Together works to enable young parents to get the support and education needed to become self-supporting, contributing workers, citizens and parents.