How does someone become a good parent? What does that even mean, and how do you acquire the wisdom, patience and intuition that every child needs his or her parent to possess?
These are the essential, age-old questions that every parent — especially first-time parents — have asked for generations. And the truth is, finding answers is easier for some than for others. If you’re young or a single parent, financially stressed or your life is in flux the challenge becomes even greater.
That’s why the Senate’s decision on April 14 to renew the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV) stands out as so important.
The MIECHV program supports parents of children from birth to kindergarten, giving those parents access to resources and allowing them to hone the skills they need to raise physically, socially and emotionally healthy children. The Home Visiting programs receiving federal funding in Oregon include Early Head Start, Healthy Families Oregon and Nurse-Family Partnership.