By Carol Leish, MA –
“’All children will learn, grow, and develop to realize their full potential’
“Parents as Teachers is a vision that recognizes that children’s earliest experiences have a profound impact on their lifelong learning, health and well-being,” according to, Jennifer Palomino, MPH, CHES, Public Information Officer at Ventura County Public Health. “Emphasis is placed on the critical role parents and caregivers play as their child’s first and most influential teacher and affirms that, with the right support, guidance, and resources, families can create a nurturing environment that foster healthy development.”
The Parents as Teachers (PAT), model was selected from the Ventura County (VC) Home Visiting Program’s curriculum to guide service delivery to participating families. This started when the VC Home Visiting Program was established on April 1, 2019 through a collaborative partnership with the County of Ventura Human Services Agency. According to Palomino, “for the past six years, Ventura County Public Health has implemented the Home Visiting Program, providing eligible families across the county with evidence-based parent education and support. This program is a nationally recognized model with more than 40 years of demonstrated effectiveness in strengthening families and promoting positive child development outcomes.
“Children must be under 24 months of age at the time of enrollment. Children are served up to age four. The program focuses on increasing parents’ knowledge of child development, early learning, and effective parenting practices. Through this, parents gain a deeper understanding of age-appropriate developmental milestones, individual differences among children, and early brain development. The program emphasizes positive parent-child relationships, responsive caregiving, developmentally appropriate guidance, and strategies that support school readiness, early literacy and social-emotional development.
“The program also strengthens parental knowledge related to health, safety, and family well-being. Parents learn about child health, nutrition, safe environments, injury prevention, and the impotence of early identification and intervention for developmental concerns. It builds parents’ confidence to advocate for their children.”
School readiness is increased through the program by helping parents support early language, literacy and cognitive development through everyday interactions and play. This strengthens parent-child relationships, encourages routines that support learning, and connects families to early childhood resources, all of which contribute to long-term school success.
“CalWORKS eligibility is determined by income, family size, and other factors established by the State of California. Families can apply through the County of Ventura Human Services Agency, which conducts eligibility determinations,” according to Jennifer Palomino, media contact for Ventura County Public Health. Carina Cervantes, MPA is the program administrator. The program address is 1701 Solar Drive, Suite 260, Oxnard, CA 93030. The program phone number is (805) 981-5193. For more contact information, visit their local website at https:/hcaventuracounty.gov/public-health/pat or the national website at https://parentsasteachers.org.
