School Readiness and Preschool

Parent-Child Home Program

Free Preschool Programs for Three- and Four-Year-Olds Parent-Child Home Program Early Childhood Education Professional Development Compensation Project

The Parent-Child Home Program is a home visiting program that helps families prepare their children for preschool. Research shows that children who enter school with fewer skills than their peers are seldom able to catch up. The City of Seattle funds the program in partnership with the Business Partnership for Early Learning.

The program begins when a child is two years old and continues for two years. A home visitor is assigned to the participating family and visits them for 30 minutes twice a week, for at least 23 weeks in a year, on a schedule convenient for the parents.

The objectives of the program are to:

• Increase pre-literacy skills for the child
• Improve social-emotional development for the child
• Enhance interactions between parents and children
• Strengthen positive parent behavior

The program serves approximately 200 families in southeast and southwest Seattle who live in poverty and have children of color. Priority is given to African American, Chinese, Laotian, Samoan, Native American, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Ethiopian, Somalian and other immigrant and refugee families.

The Parent-Child Home Program began in November 2005 and is funded by the City of Seattle and the Business Partnership for Early Learning. The City funds more than 40 of the 200 families served. City allocations to the nonprofit, community-based organizations providing these services for 2007 are approximately $126,718.

2008 Funded Agencies and Programs

• Atlantic Street Center
• Neighborhood House at NewHolly Head Start, 206-760-9330
• Neighborhood House at Rainier Vista, 206-461-4568
• Southwest Youth and Family Services

Information

For more information about Seattle Human Services Department-funded services for children and families, call Deborah Harris at 206-684-8852 or e-mail childrenandfamilies@seattle.gov.

For more information about our partners and similar programs, contact the agencies listed above or:

• Business Partnership for Early Learning
• Parent-Child Home Program

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