From its humble beginnings in 1973, AVANCE has grown into a national nonprofit with sites across the country that deliver innovative family education and support services. Specifically dedicated to serving the hardest-to-reach population, AVANCE strives to empower families to break the cycle of poverty through a proven two-generation, family engagement approach that combines early childhood development and parenting education. At the core, AVANCE believes that a program providing culturally appropriate parenting education, empowerment, and community building with early childhood development services to hard-to-reach families can change the trajectory of children’s lives. The AVANCE approach imparts parenting knowledge that directly impacts children’s development while enabling parents to achieve their own educational and professional goals. AVANCE’s renown Parent-Child Education Program instills a philosophy of nurturing care, wellness, and language development in caregivers as they embrace their role as their child’s first teacher and their home as first classroom. AVANCE believes the key to healthy early childhood development begins with capitalizing on parents’ inner strength and innate love for their children to help them become the best teachers and stewards of their children’s growth and success. Parental education alone is not enough; an effective intervention must build parents’ resilience, interpersonal connections, networks, and access to education, jobs and other opportunities. True parental engagement empowers parents to become advocates for their children and families. AVANCE has earned much acclaim from national press such as the New York Times, Parade Magazine, ABC World News Tonight, Hispanic Business Magazine, MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, Univision, and Parents Magazine. Additionally, AVANCE has been included in books authored by three First Ladies of the United States: Hillary Rodham Clinton’s “It Takes a Village”, Barbara Bush’s “First Teachers” and Rosalynn Carter’s “Helping Someone with Mental Illness.” Several dignitaries have also visited AVANCE including Charles, Prince of Wales.
