`

Your baby is born. Congratulations, you are a parent. You now hold a job of monumental consequence. Whatever you do (or don’t do) will permanently affect the life of your child. Your new job includes lifetime tenure, but denies union membership, promotion, and retirement benefits.

This job—one of the most important you will ever hold—requires no training. Your squirming bundle of joy comes with no instructions. You will never receive a cum laude parenting diploma to hang over the crib. Where do you turn for help with this job?

Try the First Steps Washtenaw program in Milan.

Loving a child and ensuring its safety and well-being are obviously the primary objectives of parenting. Add to that a stimulating home environment, a few good role models, and you may, if you’re lucky, have a great child to send to kindergarten to begin the formal process of education.

As parents in the early 1970s began to search for support in the early development of their children, educators began to take note of evolving brain research and early child development.

In 1972 the Missouri State Board of Education adopted a position paper affirming the significance of children’s early learning and its impact on later school success. With a continuing commitment to the position, the Missouri Board incorporated an independent nonprofit organization called the "Parents as Teachers National Center," an early childhood parent education and family support program designed to enhance child development and school achievement. This program was the model for First Steps Washtenaw, the parent program for First Steps Washtenaw in Milan.

Lynn VanVeelen, coordinator of First Steps Washtenaw in Milan, knows that parents are their childrens’ first and most influential teachers. In her 30 years of teaching kindergarten in Milan, she learned what "Parents as Teachers" and neuroscientists have learned through years of reasearch: parents are the principal architects of their children’s development.

VanVeelen says, "As long as I can remember my colleagues and I would talk about our dream of parents getting support in early childhood education. We wanted children to begin to learn and get ready for school long before they entered kindergarten. As kindergarten teachers we felt we were on the right track about early education and parent involvement. Now we know from brain research that we were right. Neuroscience is telling us that the first five years of life, especially the first three, is the time when most of a child’s brain development takes place."

IN THE FALL of 2000, with encouragement from superintendent Dennis McComb, VanVeelen applied for a grant through the Washtenaw Intermediate School District that would enable Milan to begin a First Steps Washtenaw program. After receiving the grant funding, VanVeelen accepted the position of coordinator of the program.

Leaving the classroom after 30 years of teaching kindergarten was difficult for VanVeelen.

"I love the community, the parents and the children," says VanVeelen. "I wanted to do something for Milan in return for the 30 years of support I received while I was teaching. This program was where my heart was. I wanted to make learning a positive experience for the entire family."

The First Steps Washtenaw program started in Milan in June of 2001. More than 40 children 0-5 years-of-age enrolled in the school readiness program which met at the Marble Memorial United Methodist Church. As the program outgrew the church facility, a room opened at the Paddock Elementary School. The program moved to the school where it now occupies three classrooms. Currently 127 children from 100 families are enrolled in the program.

The goal of First Steps Washtenaw in Milan is to coordinate parent education through playgroups, home visits and developmental screening. First Steps Washtenaw in Milan is a 12-month program. Playgroups meet at Paddock on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10-11 a.m. and Tuesday nights from 6:30-7:30. During the playgroups, parents and their children interact with each other and with parent educators, sharing goals, accomplishments, and concerns.

Nelson Gilbert, father of 8-month-old Caitlin Gilbert, share playgroup time.

"THIS IS AN awesome program," says Nelson. "As a new parent it gives me the confidence to realize how good I am as a dad. The parent educators put me at ease. I enjoy meeting other parents and sharing their parenting experiences. If you have your child’s best interest at heart, how could you not enroll in this program?"

As First Steps Washtenaw in Milan continued to grow, VanVeelen hired Lisa Mellinger and Heather Meyer, both certified parent educators. Mellinger’s background is in special education while Meyer’s degree is in social work. Mellinger and Meyer comprise what VanVeelen calls her "dream team," helping her to support families during play groups and making home visits throughout the year. Mellinger and Meyer visit with First Step families approximately once every six weeks. During the home visits the parent educators interact one-on-one with the parent and child, answering questions and sharing age-appropriate child development information.

VANVEELEN recently expanded the First Steps Washtenaw in Milan program to the Federal Correctional Institution where she holds two-hour classes, once a week for fathers who want to learn how to relate to their children most effectively during short visits, or via letters or phone calls. Currently 26 fathers are enrolled in the program. VanVeelen says that the prison program has given her one more opportunity to support families in the early education of their children.

All families from within the Milan School district are eligible to join the First Steps Washtenaw in Milan program. The tuition is determined by a sliding scale based on family income. Scholarships are also available.

Photos by Margie Bovee

Finger

Nelson Gilbert enjoys play group time with his daughter Caitlin. Gilbert says that since he enrolled in First Steps Washtenaw of Milan, he has gained confidence in his role as a parent. As Caitlin hangs on to her father’s finger, she appears to agree that he is doing just fine.

Bubble

Parent educator Lisa Mellinger visits the home of the Knechtel family. Much to her mother Margie’s delight, 3-month-old Sarah displays her first foray into bubble blowing.

Doorway

Parent educator Lisa Mellinger brings First Steps to the doorsteps of the Knechtel family of Milan.

Purple Bows

Sue Okonski, owner of Apotheke on East Main Street, joins the many other merchants along Main Street who are displaying purple bows in their storefront windows. The bows signify support for the First Steps Washtenaw program.

Reading

Lisa Mellinger takes a few minutes during a home visit to read to 21-month-old Abby Knechtel. Both Abby and her 3-month-old sister Sarah are enrolled in First Steps Washtenaw in Milan.