It wasn’t that long ago that Lam Hoang felt isolated and alone, having moved to Multnomah County from her home in Vietnam. Since then she's emerged as a parent leader in the community, sharing her experience and voice to ensure children of color have every opportunity to thrive in kindergarten and beyond.
Bashir’s family fled violence in his home country of Somalia when he was seven years old. He spent 18 years in a Kenyan refugee camp before his family was able to come to the United States through the refugee resettlement program. Almost immediately after he arrived, he got to work giving back to his new community.
On October 17th we're joining millions of people across the world in recognizing International Day for the Eradication of Poverty and our shared commitment to eliminating poverty for kids and families.
Here are four ways we're making schools, families and stronger for kids in our region.
Through Preschool Promise 1,300 kids across the state will now have access to quality preschool. United Way co-leads two early learning hubs that received Preschool Promise funds and are helping to open preschool slots for more low-income kids and kids of color right here in our own backyard.
We believe every kid should arrive at kindergarten ready for school success. Registering on-time is vital to ensuring kids and families have the opportunity to connect with their school and teachers and have access to important summer activities.
The evidence is resounding - early exposure to books is critical to a child’s long-term educational success. When kids start school behind, they rarely catch up. A unique partnership between Washington County Cooperative Library Services, Community Action and Early Learning Washington County - an initiative co-led by United Way - is working to close the gap.
There are some fresh faces here in the office at United Way of the Columbia-Willamette. Really fresh.
Our new “Infant at Work” program gives parents the option to bring their baby to work with them until the child is 180-days-old or begins to crawl, whichever comes first.
Studies show that the development of early literacy skills through early experiences with books and stories is directly linked to a child's success in learning to read. But in low income neighborhoods, there’s an average of just one book for every 300 children.
