Partnerships and Community Collaborations

We believe in building partnerships that leverage the resources and expertise of many partners to bring critical support and services to families. In addition to our program partners, Families First acknowledges the following strategic partners and community collaborations:

Agenda for Children: Agenda for Children is a coalition of after-school programs based in Cambridge. The coalition oversees many quality improvement projects, including an Engaging Families Initiative where Families First provides coaching, training, and parenting workshops to a variety of after-school sites.

Baby University (a public/private partnership modeled on the Harlem Children’s Zone Project in New York): Baby University is a pilot project in Cambridge that brings together many city agencies and private non-profits to develop and implement a 16-week parenting program for parents of children ages birth-3.

Boston Children Thrive: Boston Children Thrive is a City of Boston and United Way initiative. The BCT mission is that by age 5, every child in Boston will be ready to succeed in school and in life.

Boston Public Schools Parent University: The Parent University is a system-wide family engagement initiative where parents take courses along four learning strands: Parents as Learners, Parents as Leaders, Parents as Advocates, and Parents as Teachers. Families First provides parent workshops in the Parents as Teachers track.

Children’s Hospital Young Parents Program: Families First offers parent workshops to adolescent mothers and fathers enrolled in the Young Parents Program. Families First is a part of a 5-year federal grant that funds the parenting component of the project.

Early Childhood System of Care in Allston-Brighton (ECSOC): ECSOC is a neighborhood-based initiative that brings together a large group of providers who work together to build a network of support for families.

East Boston Collaborative for Families: Families First is a founding member of this collaborative, which seeks to bring together schools and community-based agencies to address issues of concern raised by families in East Boston.

Joint Committee for Children's Health Care in Everett: The Joint Committee for Children's Health Care is a coalition of providers who help to connect families to needed health care resources.

For more information on developing a partnership with Families First, please call 617.868.7687 ext 14.