IMPACT + TESTIMONIALS

A national network of PARENTS and PARTNERS

families

cities

Organizations
and Schools

Certified
Facilitators

Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors works for PARENTS

The AP/OD curriculum:

Supports educational activities at home like reviewing the alphabet, reading frequently to children, counting games, and positive uses of technology.

Promotes role modeling such as being mindful of how parent behavior sets an example for children and taking time to respond to children’s behaviors.

Demonstrates reading and math practice with children by encouraging parent-child interactions, e.g. stopping to talk about a story, going to the library to check out children’s materials — as well as early math lessons on sequence, shapes, size, order, numbers, and counting.

Sets family goals around regular physical exercise, good habits with technology, and healthy eating — including healthy cooking of traditional cultural foods.

Prepares for transition to kindergarten by providing tools for navigating school options, championing children as they enter school, and advocating for family rights within public education systems.

Builds long-term engagement for involvement in family programs beyond AP/OD, including parent leadership in school and community activities.

Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors works for PARTNERS

Partnering with AP/OD:

Delivers an evidence-based parent program that can be reproduced locally for years — a proven, cost-effective acquisition with exponential impact.

Builds leadership capacity for staff, practitioners, and parent leaders by sending them to AP/OD Institutes to be taught by Master Trainers and certified to deliver the program in local contexts.

Develops a parent leadership strengths-based approach, including improving outreach and positive interactions with diverse families and communities.

Provides significant learning and growth for parents, allowing for two-generation impact that produces long-term results for families and communities.

Offers a user-friendly impact tool to monitor and evaluate what happens for parents in the program locally — and contribute to high level national data supporting diverse families with young children.

Serves as a gateway for continued parent involvement as families find an organizational and community home due to transformation experienced in the program.

National recognitions

2018 Child Care Exchange Doyen in Early Care and Education

2017 Campaign for Grade Level Reading Champion

2017 New Profit Proximity Accelerator

2016 Champion of Children’s Wellbeing by Ashoka Changemakers and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

2015 White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics “Bright Spot”

2015 White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics Commitment to Action Recognition

2015 The James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award

2014 White House Cesar E. Chavez Champion of Change Award

2012 Champions for Children Award

2012 Campaign for Grade- Level Reading Bright Spot Program

96% of parents report confidence across language and literacy, school preparation, and advocacy compared to 45% before participating in the AP/OD program.
-UC Berkeley: Bridges, Cohen, Fuller, 2012

AP/OD supports parents of young children to claim their voice as their children’s first teachers. It also empowers them to come out of the shadows and advocate for their children’s education.
—Arlae Alston, Organization Puente de la Costa Sur

The future belongs to those who prepare for it today.
-A “dicho” or popular saying from the AP/OD curriculum

AP/OD increases educational activities [for families with children 0 to five years old] at home. These shifts begin in the home, move into schools as children age, and eventually lead to advocacy at the community level. Parents who have participated in the program have gone on to take part in campaigns to increase early childhood funding, promote immigrant policies, and improve public school curriculum.
–”Joining Together to Create a Bold Vision for Next Generation Family Engagement: A report for Carnegie Corporation of New York,” Global Family Research Project, October 2018

AP/OD is an incredibly comprehensive and powerful program. Our goal is to offer it to parents in all of our elementary schools. If we can accomplish this, we will no doubt see an improvement in student achievement.
–Administrator Ruth Yoon, Parent Community Services Branch, Los Angeles Unified School District Early Childhood Education

Leveraging Dollars

AP/OD’s parent program and national training Institutes run on a lean budget, but local communities leverage millions of dollars to bring the program home to families and children. Partners have secured resources to deliver the program in diverse communities across the country, impacting 178,000 children from 2008-2018.

Types of Direct Implementation Funding Received by Local Partners

45% from Private & Family Foundations

36% from Government Grants

30% from Early Head Start

25% from Title I School Funding

-National Abriendo Puertas 10-Year Anniversary Survey, Pedroza 2017

Child Trends’ Evaluation of the Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors Program: Key Findings (2014)

Participants in AP/OD made significant gains across all areas of assessment

Parents demonstrated significant increases in their knowledge of language and literacy development, social-emotional development, health development, and school preparation.

Parents exhibited noteworthy gains in understanding their rights as parents, and their children’s rights in school.

Parents reported a significant boost in self-confidence regarding their parenting skills, getting their children ready for school, and advocating on behalf of their children.

Greatest impact: educational support

The evaluation study found that the AP/OD program led to the adoption of parenting practices that enhance preschool children’s learning and preparation for school. The study found that Latino parents participating in the program gained knowledge about high-quality child care and education settings, and improved their organizational strategies and ability to plan and set goals for their children. Parents also gained an appreciation for their role as models for their children. Importantly, these practices appear to be sustained over time.

Reports