SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start Continues Tradition of Celebrating Parents
A steady stream of vehicles carrying parents and preschoolers drove onto the campus of the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville on Friday, April 16 for a parade that marked the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Head Start/Early Head Start 38th Annual Parent Training and Recognition Luncheon.
“We are so grateful and proud of our parents,” said Curtiseena Wilson, Cahokia Head Start Center manager and Awards Ceremony committee member. “We did not want the pandemic to interrupt our history of celebrating and recognizing our amazing parents, so we decided for the first time to have a drive-through parade.”
Each of the Head Start Centers and program options were given specific times to participate. Parents then arrived at their designated times and were greeted by waving, welcoming Head Start/Early Head Start staff and received a boxed lunch, fruit, and a swag bag that contained a yoga mat, a mask, hand sanitizer and family resource information. For parents receiving awards, their certificates were included in their swag bags. The theme of the event was “Building Bridges, Transforming Lives and Creating Family Well-Being.”
“This is nice and convenient,” said Crystal Clark, parent of Bluffview Center students Brian and Brianna Johnson. “It is good to see everybody.”
“I like Head Start. I miss not seeing the other parents,” said Home-Based mother Sonia Tiburcio, through interpreter Alina Schnietz, Family Support Program coordinator and Awards Ceremony committee member. “Head Start gives us a lot of security, information and help.”
“This is my first parent luncheon,” said Porsha Cobb, mother of Bluffview student DeMarcus Lee, 5. “This is a good idea because of safety. We still get to see the staff and get our lunch.”
“Normally what happens,” said Lisa Tate, SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start assistant program director/center operations, “are interactive training sessions for parents, feature guest speakers, individual Center display boards, a formal sit-down luncheon and many award presentations. The presentations and luncheon would culminate with the announcement of the SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start Parent of the Year.”
Award categories include: Success Families, Male Involvement, Perfect Attendance, Policy Council, Education/Training and Volunteers. Among the multiple winners, Tate highlighted the Special Male Involvement award recipient Levert Conway of the Discovery Center. The SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start Parent of the Year is also the Illinois Head Start Association Parent of the Year – Courtney Parker. During the drive-through parade, Parker waved at the intermittent motorcade of parents atop of a makeshift stage.
Other Awards Ceremony committee members included: Alicia Parker-Jordan, Belleville Center coordinator; Angela Cotton, family advocate; Kathleen Appleby, Bluffview Center coordinator; and Latonya Waller, Home-Based supervisor. Carolyn Jason is the interim program director.
The SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start Program serves more than 860 families and children birth through age five, including children with special needs, throughout St. Clair County. The program also provides services to expectant mothers. The program is housed in 12 early childhood centers, seven managed directly by SIUE staff and five collaborations. The program includes a rigorous school readiness program and provides comprehensive services, such as health/ dental screenings and family engagement and support activities.
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SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start staff welcome parents and advertise their centers and program options. Staff also enjoyed serving their parents during the 38th Annual Parent Training and Recognition Luncheon Drive-Through Parade.
