The Cubbies Who Care program is part of Jefferson City School District’s Southwest Early Childhood Center, with the mission to provide conscious discipline education for parents and to be used in classrooms. Conscious Discipline©, is an evidenced-based parent education curriculum built on current brain research, child development information and developmentally appropriate parenting practices. The curriculum is designed to empower parents to consciously respond to, rather than unconsciously react to, everyday conflict. The Cubbies Who Care program focuses on four areas of interest: parent meetings, staff and community, Parents as Teachers, and teens as parents. Funded in part through a grant from the Children’s Trust Fund (CTF), Cubbies Who Care uses surveys to determine the needs of at risk parents. Many of the families participating are affected by poverty and nearly 80% of the Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) Program students have one or more developmental delays. With the help of Southwest Early Childhood Center staff and volunteers, Cubbies Who Care is able to provide parents with the resources needed to support their children.
We spoke with Nicole Langston, Principal of Southwest Early Childhood Center, and Lisa Dierking, Family Advocate for Southwest Early Childhood Center, about the Cubbies Who Care program.
AUDIO: Lisa Dierking talks about her role, as well as the structure of the Cubbies Who Care program.
Through small parent meetings, Title One and Early Childhood Special Education families have the opportunity to connect with each other, and to come together and learn together.
AUDIO: Nicole Langston explains the needs of local childcare providers.
Community surveys allow for needs to be assessed, but more importantly provide information on how these issues can be solved.
AUDIO: Learn about the other two focuses within the Cubbies Who Care program.
The Parents as Teachers program provides community-wide meetings for all parents, while the Teens as Parents program focuses on teen parents by providing positive, conscious discipline examples.
AUDIO: Find out how one Missouri business supports Cubbies Who Care.
Scholastic gives away books during every parent meeting. Because of this support, every family that attends a parent meeting receives two books.
AUDIO: Hear how Cubbies Who Care is using the Children’s Trust Fund grant.
Through the CTF grant, the Cubbies Who Care program has been able to provide useful materials for parents and families.
AUDIO: Nicole Langston talks about the long term goals for the program.
The overall purpose of the Cubbies Who Care program is to build up our community, while providing parents the skills needed to mold children with positive futures.
For more information about the Cubbies Who Care program, call (573) 659-3026.
