The Colonias Project

AVANCE Colonias Early Head Start

Now servicing Hidalgo and ValVerde Counties

AVANCE recognizes the economic and educational battles low income families face each day. Studies indicate that poverty during the first 5 years of life is more detrimental than at any other point of someone’s life. Due to this poverty a child’s school readiness is affected tremendously.  AVANCE recognizes that good parenting skills and a good relationship between a parent and child are key strategies to overcoming such barriers.

Through this program AVANCE strives to aid these families by valuing them, listening to them, and teaching them to prepare their children for a brighter future.

Funds for AVANCE became available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). With these funds AVANCE is now able to deliver a Home-based Early Head Start (EHS) program to 100 Hispanic pregnant women and children that reside in Colonias (Spanish word for neighborhood or community) in two of the poorest counties bordering with Mexico.  Services will be provided to 70 families in Hidalgo County and to 30 families in ValVerde County.  The program is year round and the families can be in the program from birth to three years of age.

The EHS Home based program works in conjunction with community partners to ensure the families are able to use all of their resources to the best of their ability.  We also work in collaboration with the parents to ensure the children are up to date on all immunizations, well child exams, dental exams, and pregnancy exams as needed for each participant. 

A home visitor/family development worker (HV-FDW) goes into the home of the family once a week for an hour and a half and works with the parent on age appropriate developmental goal and the parent learns the lesson and then models it for the child. 

 As part of the program, the parent also has the opportunity to participate in group socialization.  Socialization is when the parent and the child visit the EHS facility and the HV-FDW presents a child care setting that is age appropriate for the parent and child to work in.  The goal of the socialization is for the child to have the opportunity to interact with other children, the parent and child to interact in an age appropriate setting, and for parents to have the opportunity to interact with other parents of children.

All families wishing to enroll in Early Head Start must be income eligible by meeting the requirements of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.  For more information, please contact our office at (956)702-9334 for Hidalgo County residents, or (830)765-4824 for ValVerde County residents.