Birmingham officials are launching a new effort to connect the programs and services that support children from early childhood through school and into adulthood.
Mayor Randall Woodfin and Birmingham City Schools leaders unveiled the Birmingham Children and Youth Commission’s Cradle-to-Career Report and Roadmap Thursday, along with the new Birmingham Cradle-to-Career Coalition.
The goal is to create a more coordinated system around children and families, connecting resources that can sometimes operate separately — including childcare, schools, after-school programs, tutoring and career opportunities.
“We have all the pieces,” Woodfin said during the announcement. “Our challenge … requires us to connect them.”
The commission brought together 33 members and more than 75 community voices during a 90-day planning process conducted with the Harlem Children’s Zone, a New York-based nonprofit aimed at breaking intergenerational poverty. Participants included educators, parents, students, nonprofit leaders, government officials and others working with children and families.
Birmingham City Schools Chief of Staff Terry Lamar pointed to recent improvements in the school district, including a drop in chronic absenteeism and rising state school report card grades. He said the new approach is designed to make sure support follows students as they move from one school to the next.
Jeffrey Canada, founder of the Harlem Children’s Zone, also spoke at the event. Canada said Birmingham has an opportunity to show what can happen when communities organize around a shared plan and hold themselves accountable for results.
The roadmap focuses on five goals: expanding childcare for children under 3, increasing access to high-quality after-school programs, closing the third-grade reading gap, improving eighth-grade math proficiency, and connecting more young people to jobs, internships, apprenticeships or postsecondary education by age 24.
Officials plan to establish a governance structure, identify neighborhood organizations to help coordinate the work and involve parents, young people and community partners.
The strategy is to be conducted at the neighborhood level with first phase focusing on Woodlawn-Kingston and Smithfield, North and South Titusville.
Zhaundra Jones, a Birmingham native and philanthropic strategist, will serve as a senior adviser helping lead the implementation. Jones said this phase will focus on identifying who is already serving children, finding gaps in those services and figuring out how organizations can work together more effectively.
Matisha Taylor, a South Titusville parent of five who spoke at the event, said navigating available resources can be difficult for families and said the roadmap could make it easier for parents to find the help their children need.
Read the full Birmingham Children and Youth Commission Cradle-to-Career Report and Roadmap here.
