Community Initiatives

The community initiatives team provides education and outreach opportunities to children and families aimed at creating greater family success. The team participates in weekly health clinics, monthly community events and provides important information about literacy, school readiness, and family services. The Community Initiates team has a goal to increase public awareness about the importance of high-quality early learning and school readiness and provides important content through various media platforms. Partnering with Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health and the Allentown Health Bureau, the team collaborates on a collective impact initiative to improve healthy outcomes for children and families in the Franklin Park neighborhood in Allentown. The team also supports Project Child, a program to create awareness around safety and to prevent child abuse and neglect.

LEHIGH VALLEY BASED HEALTH AND EDUCATION SERVICES LAUNCH NEW COLLABORATIVE

New collaborative is selected as a participant in The BUILD Health Challenge®

ALLENTOWN, PA (May 25, 2023)– The Allentown Health Bureau, Community Services for Children, Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital, Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health, Pool Center for Health Analytics and Valley Health Partners are proud to announce a new collaborative that aims to create an equitable early learning environment for young children in Allentown and particularly in the Franklin Park neighborhood. The partners are committed to working together in new and innovative ways to integrate and reduce barriers to services that families rely on with the goal of supporting healthy early development.

Additionally, this collaborative is proud to announce its selection to participate in the fourth cohort of a national program, The BUILD Health Challenge® (BUILD).

Launched in 2015, BUILD addresses the root causes of our most pressing health challenges by changing the conditions in our society, environment, and policies that impact health and well-being at the population level. While access to care remains a critical issue in the U.S., it is only a small piece of the puzzle when addressing health disparities and long-term well-being of a community. BUILD invests in community-centered, multi-sector partnerships that strive to ensure that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be healthy.

Allentown is among 13 new communities throughout the United States in BUILD’s fourth cohort that will receive support to advance health equity over the next three years. Other communities in this cohort of BUILD include San Antonio, TX, St. Louis, MO, and Durham, NC.

BUILD HEALTH CHALLENGE announcement

Early Childhood Institute

In addition to training offered through the Early Learning Resource Centers, we provide national-level professional development for pre-kindergarten to grade 1 teachers and trainers in such areas as STEM and early literacy through the Early Childhood Institute. Grant assistance from PPL allowed us to develop a comprehensive STEM training for pre-k teachers. Check out our events page for upcoming conferences on topics related to early childhood development and education.