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PARENT-CHILD HOME PROGRAM RECOGNIZED BY WHITE HOUSE AS A BRIGHT SPOT FOR ADVANCING HISPANIC EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE

PCHP Now Featured in National Online Catalog for Fostering the Educational Attainment for the Country’s Hispanic Community

NEW YORK September 15, 2015 –The Parent-Child Home Program (“PCHP”), a leading early literacy/school readiness organization that promotes parental engagement in early literacy and language development to ensure school success, today announced that it has been recognized as a ‘Bright Spot’ by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. The announcement was made in Washington, D.C. by Alejandra Ceja, Executive Director of the Initiative, at the launch of Hispanic Heritage Month and in honor of the Initiative’s 25^th anniversary. PCHP will now be featured in a national online catalog that includes 230 programs that invest in key education priorities for Hispanics.

For 50 years, PCHP has been providing low-income families with the necessary skills and tools to ensure their children reach their greatest potential in school and in life.  Hispanic families are a core focus for PCHP because of the particularly high numbers of Hispanic families who do not have access to early education and school readiness opportunities for their children.  School readiness services delivered through home visiting are a particularly effective outreach to isolated immigrant communities, with families who are not only impacted by poverty but also by language and literacy barriers.

“We are thrilled to be recognized by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics as a Bright Spot in Hispanic Education,” said Sarah Walzer, Chief Executive Officer of The Parent-Child Home Program.  “Now more than ever it is vitally important to reach families in Hispanic communities as they represent one of the fastest growing populations of children under the age of 5.  Much of our focus is on reaching families from non-native English-speaking homes who need access to the knowledge, skills, and materials to prepare their young children for success in school.  We are very proud to be recognized for our work with Hispanic communities across the country.”

PCHP works with low-income Hispanic families with children ages 16 months to four years-old, challenged by the most significant obstacles to school success including poverty, language and cultural barriers, limited parental education levels, and low literacy levels.  The Program supports Hispanic parents by modeling critical skills and approaches to school readiness and providing tools, including books and educational toys, and encouragement to read, play, and talk with their children.  PCHP helps prepare parents to be their children’s first and most important teachers, to create literacy and language-rich home environments, and to effectively prepare their children for school success.

“There has been notable progress in Hispanic educational achievement, and it is due to the efforts of these Bright Spots in Hispanic Education, programs and organizations working throughout the country to help Hispanic students reach their full potential,” said Alejandra Ceja, Executive Director of White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics seeks to leverage the recognized ‘Bright Spots’ to encourage collaboration between stakeholders focused on similar issues in sharing data-driven approaches, promising practices, peer advice, and effective partnerships, ultimately resulting in increased support for the educational attainment of the Hispanic community, from cradle-to-career.

The Initiative was established in 1990 to address the educational disparities faced by the Hispanic community. To learn more about the Initiative and to view the Bright Spots in Hispanic Education national online catalog visit www.ed.gov/HispanicInitiative.

About Parent Child Home Program

The Parent-Child Home Program’s (PCHP) nationwide network of program sites provides under-resourced families with the necessary tools to ensure their children achieve their greatest potential in school and in life.  Since 1965, PCHP has been assisting underserved communities in replicating and expanding this proven school readiness program that builds early parent-child verbal interaction and learning at home.  Through twice-weekly visits by highly trained community-based Early Learning Specialists, PCHP provides families the skills, materials (books and educational toys), and support to help parents engage and teach their children.  Almost 50 years of research shows that the Program effectively increases school readiness, decreases the need for special education services before grade 3 by 50%, and increases participants’ high school graduation rates by over 30% to the same level as their middle income peers.  For more information please go to www.parent-child.org.

Media Contact:
Parent-Child Home Program
David Press Tel: 917.721.7046

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