Even Start
Mickie Galajda * ABLE Instructor
(Even Start)
The Coshocton Even Start Program is in its third year. The Coshocton ABLE Program is a partner with the Coshocton City Schools to meet the "Family Literacy" needs of Coshocton County.
Even Start Family Literacy programs are based on the belief that educating a family, intervening with at least two generations of the family, secures the advancement of parents and children in the present and in the future. Families are the primary stakeholders in the Even Start programs, which break the intergenerational cycle of illiteracy and poverty. In order for families to be eligible for participation in an Even Start program, the family must include a parent/guardian who is in need of Adult Basic Education (ABE) and have a child age birth through seven who resides in a high-poverty area. This program was authorized by Congress in 1989 and provides education to the family unit: an adult caregiver or a parent eligible to receive services, and a child or children under the age of eight. To establish such programs, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) provides federal financial assistance through formula grants to states for family-centered education projects. Even Start applicants need to apply in a partnership consisting of two organizational entities, such as one or more local education agencies and one or more community-based organizations, public agencies or institutions of higher education. Priority points in the grant competition are given to projects planning to operate in areas with the highest concentration of poverty.
The term "family literacy services" means services that are of sufficient intensity in terms of hours, and of sufficient duration, to make sustainable changes in a family, and that integrate all of the following activities:
Although each project must have the four components, the way a community designs their program will depend on the availability of resources and the needs of the families being served. Therefore, Even Start program models are widely varied. A few are completely home-based, but most combine center-based and home-based services. Successful Even Start programs tailor services to fit families not fit families to the program. Programs must remain flexible and accommodate the diverse and dynamic needs of all impoverished families involved.
Even Start federal funds are not meant to add to existing services, but meant to create a new range of services. Program services are the umbrella to provide seamless services for the whole family. Services already available in the community must not be duplicated, but can be built on existing community resources to create a full range of services. A match is required for Even Start which may include funding from any of the components mentioned above, including: on-site Head Start and ABE; parent education classes provided from Title I; any provisions of support services, facilities on the program campus; any other local, state, and federal programs or community collaborations. The Even Start Family Literacy programs may also be designed to serve special populations, e.g., migrant, Indian and English as second language, or operate in specialized context, e.g., rural areas or homeless shelters.
This program supports family literacy programs that integrate early childhood education, adult education, parenting education, and literacy activities for low-income families, including parents eligible for services under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act and their children from birth through age 7.
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