Families and Schools have changed…
Historically, families and schools have worked together to help children develop into wholesome and healthy human beings. Currently, those lines between home and school have become blurred, and portions of what used to be the responsibility and privilege of parents has been handed over to educators. Family structures are fragile and 90% or more of our students live at or below poverty level. Finding creative and alternative approaches to traditional education is now the way for educators to meet the unique needs of today’s student. These approaches, in conjunction with finding ways to offer support to our families, are now a part of our reality.
We believe empowerment through education for our families is the way to break the cycle of poverty.
Our students often begin with a learning disadvantage directly resulting from living in the fragile city of East St. Louis, where poverty and violence are rampant and where education is not always valued or modeled. Many of our families are dealing with an incarcerated parent, poverty, hunger, and mental illness. These factors affect a child’s educational and emotional progress. It takes a well-trained staff and exceptional learning opportunities to create an educational program that will transform the lives of those we serve. We believe empowerment through education for our families is the way to break the cycle of poverty. We believe our holistic learning approach can strengthen our families and our local community: that those served have a voice in how we serve through membership on Advisory Board and committees, commitment to our faith-based philosophy and education, attendance and participation in meetings and events, etc.
