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Two new programs for student parents launched this fall at the Alamo Colleges District.
In August, the nonprofit AVANCE-San Antonio opened a Head Start program at Palo Alto College. And, in September, AVANCE started a class for prospective student parents at San Antonio College.
At a ceremony on Wednesday, officials with the city, the nonprofit, and the community college system celebrated both programs, and their potential to help reduce inter-generational poverty.
“This is the power of a two-generation approach. When we support parents, we uplift families. And when families thrive, our community thrives,” San Antonio College President Francisco Solis said.
Alamo Colleges Chancellor Mike Flores echoed that point.
“We're creating spaces through these two initiatives where education becomes a shared family journey. Parents can pursue their degrees with the confidence that their children are learning, growing and thriving alongside them,” Flores said.
“We know childcare remains one of the greatest needs for our students and, indeed, many of our neighbors, but partnerships like this one with AVANCE help us close that gap,” he added.
According to Flores, nearly 20% of students enrolled in the Alamo Colleges are parents.
The Head Start program at Palo Alto College is part of a national initiative to increase the number of Head Start classes located on community college campuses called Kids on Campus.
But, according to AVANCE Executive Director Yesenia Alvarez-Gonzalez, it’s the first one located in Texas.
“This partnership bridges higher education and early learning in a way that has never been done before in our state,” Alvarez-Gonzales said. “It's a model of how we can support student parents, strengthen families, and break the cycle of poverty through education.”
Alvarez-Gonzalez said the Palo Alto Head Start already has 100 kids on its wait list.
“That is amazing, but it's also a call to action that there is a greater need,” she said.
Alvarez-Gonzalez said they currently serve 31 kids ranging in age from six weeks to four years old at Palo Alto, and they are working to add another classroom.
Palo Alto President Robert Garza said they’re limited in part by the size of their facility.
“We do need a new facility. So, if there's anybody out there that would love to come and donate to us so that we can expand these opportunities, we definitely welcome that. But we do need opportunities to grow. And unfortunately, our facility only has four classrooms,” Garza said.
Previously, Garza said Palo Alto had a drop-off model, where parents dropped their children off during class time. Now, the Head Start program is a set curriculum with full day hours.
During the ceremony, Palo Alto student Lorena Salinas said the Head Start made college possible for her.
“For a long time, the idea of pursuing a higher education felt out of reach due to financial struggles and a lack of support,” Salinas said. “The faculty at AVANCE with Palo Alto have made me feel so loved and welcome. Every single day, my son runs in and just loves on each and every one of the staff, and it's so important to me, because not only am I getting an education, but at the same time, my child is learning.”
The parenting support class at San Antonio College, called AVANCE to College, teaches parents about both child development and how to navigate college.
Alvarez-Gonzalez said it’s held once a week for two semesters on the college campus through a partnership with SAC’s Empowerment Center, and it counts for college credit.
“For many of our families, our parents, their discussion has been about survival. They've been in survival mode, and for the first time now, we are able to provide that early access for parents,” Alvarez-Gonzalez said. “Those dreams that they had, you know that they kind of left behind because life happens right, they can now make those a reality and make those come true.”
Jakii Hairston is in the inaugural AVANCE to College class at SAC, one of 18 students. She said AVANCE, and the class of other moms, has been a light during a dark time in her life.
“It's given me a new confidence, knowing that starting over doesn't mean that it's over for me,” Hairston said. “We've been in this program almost three months, and already been taught how to enroll into college, how to find classes tailored to our lives and lifestyles. We've learned our strengths and purposes. We've taken assessment tests to learn our passions and abilities. We've learned how to plan and achieve our goals.”
“AVANCE to College is teaching us that we can do anything we set our creative minds to, not just for us, but the little ones behind us,” Hairston added.
Just across the highway from Palo Alto, another child care facility called Educare is under construction at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. Garza and Alvarez-Gonzalez said Educare will help meet part of the need for child care in the area—and help provide a continuum of care for parents who transfer from Palo Alto to A&M-San Antonio.
Disclosure: Alamo Colleges is a sponsor of Texas Public Radio. We cover them as we would any other business, institution, or organization.
