BATON ROUGE, LA — February 22, 2018 — Today, Mayor Sharon Weston Broome announced the creation of the Cradle to K Parent Club, the second phase of her Cradle to K initiative.

The Cradle to K Parent Club brings parents together in a supportive community grounded in the Cradle to K Parenting Pillars: Patience, Curiosity, and Conversation. The goal is to help parents build habits aligned with those pillars and to develop support networks amongst themselves.  

“We know that emotional support is essential for early childhood development, and that the first five years are crucial. It's during these years that you and your children develop the habits that will stay with you for years to come,” said Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome. “Our mission is to create families amongst families and to bridge the gap between parents and resources.”

Cradle to K aligns with the Head Start Family and Community Engagement standard by implementing intentional strategies which recognize parents as their children’s first and most important teacher.

At each event, volunteers from Head Start and child development programs will offer childcare while parents engage in conversations about the joys and stresses of raising small children in today’s world. The Louisiana Arts & Science Museum and LPB will provide educational activities and tutoring will be offered for children ages eight and up. Free meals will be supplied by the Jambalaya Shoppe.

Parents who come to three out of four events will become Gold Members of the ‘C2K Parent Club’ and will be invited to a celebration event at the Knock Knock Museum.

The Cradle to K Family Engagement events are a collaboration amongst Head Start and more than twenty community organizations including: BRCC, LSU, Southern University, the East Baton Rouge Parish School System, the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Louisiana Public Broadcasting, Shiloh Baptist Church, Volunteers of America, the Early Childhood Community Network, Baton Rouge Police Department, Knock Knock Museum, Volunteers in Public Schools, and volunteers from over a dozen organizations dedicated to supporting parents and young children.

Cradle to K Family Engagement Sessions will be held on February 22, March 22, April 19, and May 10. All sessions will be held at Shiloh Early Learning Academy from 5:45-8:00pm.

For more information, contact Dr. Tamiara Wade at (225) 389-3100 or C2KBR@brgov.com