Notes from a Partner on Visit to Clarendon Early Learning Academy

Notes on Visit to Clarendon Early Learning Academy

Stephanie Feeney, Professor Emerita of Early Childhood Education, SVP Partner

On December 19th a small group of SVP partners and friends visited Clarendon Regional Early Learning Academy to learn about their efforts to provide early childhood programs and services to young children and families in North Portland. We were particularly interested in seeing the Academy because it offers some promising directions for promoting children’s readiness for success in kindergarten. Attending were Mark Holloway, Larry Fox, Ellen Macke, Ginger Fink, Lauren Johnson, and Stephanie Feeney.

The Early Learning Academy was opened in the fall of 2014 with the mission of providing services to children from 15 months to 5 years of age and their families. It Features partnerships between Portland Public Schools, Albina Early Head Start, Oregon Community Foundation, Indian Education, Neighborhood House, Teen Parent Program, and Early Learning Multnomah.The Academy provides:

• Classrooms for 4 and 5  year olds serving children who are eligible for Head Start and the Federal Free and Reduced Meals program

• Early Head Start serving 15 month – 3 year old children

• Head Start for Native Spanish speakers

• A Native Montessori classroom serving 3, 4 and 5 year old Native American children in a mixed-age setting

• A community coordinator to facilitate classes for parents and caregivers and support families as they transition to kindergarten.

During our visit we were able to observe a number of different programs in action and meet with program administrators including Nancy Hauth, Program Manager, Pre-K/Kindergarten Supports and Child Care, Portland Public Schools (PPS); Eileen Isham, Head Start Co-Director, PPS; Jill Bryant, Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports (PBIS) Grant Coordinator, PPS; and Aimee Edward, Early Learning and Transition Coordinator, Neighborhood House.

Following are some impressions from the visit:

• There was a high level of enthusiasm energy and everyone appeared to be having a wonderful time on this Friday before Christmas.

• The tone was welcoming and interactions between adults and children were positive and supportive.

• Children were developing motor and artistic skills as they applied frosting and decorations to gingerbread cookies and houses. Family members were available to help with these projects.

• It was a “pajama day” so children, and teachers were wearing comfortable, Christmas themed sleep garb.

• The physical environment (a renovated elementary school) was open, airy, inviting and impeccably maintained. There were colorful, well-equipped classrooms, meeting and office space and places for informal interactions to occur.

• The administrators appeared enthusiastic about the opportunity to work together to blend resources from many funding streams in order to provide better coordination of programs and ways to ameliorate some of the structural divisions (different funding sources, eligibility requirements) that make it difficult to provide services to young children and families who need them.

• Teachers and administrators were working together to find ways to address some needs that were not being met in the community (for example working with the families of young children who were not enrolled in programs and providers who work with children in unlicensed home care settings.

• We could see that implementing a variety of different programs in one space facilitated communication and sharing of resources.

Clarendon is the first Regional Early Learning Academy in Portland Public Schools. More early learning centers are being planned for other areas of the city. This would be an important step in breaking the fragmentation of the existing early childhood system and providing high quality programs and services to children and families who most need them. The success of these programs would be dependent on finding knowledgeable and committed teachers and administrators like those at Clarendon.

The Children’s Book Bank donates books to the programs at Clarendon so you can make a contribution by giving them books that your children have outgrown.