San Antonio Spotlight: AVANCE

As part of the San Antonio community, we at Alamo City Moms Blog feel strongly that we are part of something bigger than the small worlds we operate in daily. San Antonio is a city rich with incredible not-for-profit organizations and resources that support different needs of San Antonio families, mothers, and children. Once a month, we will be spotlighting a not-for-profit agency that we feel can help our readers. This month Marisa is sharing about AVANCE-San Antonio. [hr]

I have to confess: I struggled as a new mom. I was so overwhelmed with this new, tiny creature who was completely dependent on me. I was exhausted and genuinely missed my daily routine at the office and having control over my day to day. I felt guilty that I wasn’t the glowing, calm, Zen-like mama I’d always wanted to be. But I had an incredible support network rooting me on. My mom, mother-in-law, and grandmother visited regularly, helping me with the baby or taking over and allowing me to rest (and bringing food and groceries while they were at it). I had an exceptionally supportive husband who happily took the night shifts and changed diapers. I had tips and advice from girlfriends who had their own children. And I read more baby books than I am willing to admit. The days grew less overwhelming, less challenging, and more fun and rewarding. Our financial situation allowed me to focus only on my baby for months, and I had all the tools to be the best mom I could be.

This was a true luxury. There are so many parents out there who don’t have the support system we take for granted—some, in fact, don’t have a support system at all. Low-income parents, in particular, face daunting challenges. Women who are poor are more likely to become teen moms. Teen parents, in turn, are less likely to finish high school, which drastically limits economic prospects for the family. There have been extensive studies on the negative impact of poverty on a young child’s development and the difficulty of escaping the cycle of poverty as a result. San Antonio’s teen pregnancy rates are over 42% (far greater than the U.S. average of 29%), and one in four children in Bexar County live in poverty. These facts have not only huge repercussions for impoverished families but for our community and economy.

AVANCE-San Antonio

That’s where AVANCE-San Antonio comes in. AVANCE identifies and recruits (literally door-to-door in the hot summer months) low-income parents who have dropped out of school. These young parents are often isolated and reluctant to accept help at first, but AVANCE recruiters are persistent. Once the parent enrolls in the program, AVANCE employs a “two generational approach” for parents and children. While children three years old and younger receive high quality early childhood education to build the academic, social, and physical foundation they need to achieve school readiness—a foundation that low-income kids typically don’t have—their parents (mostly moms, but AVANCE has a fathers program too) receive parenting classes to learn how to fulfill their roles as their child’s first teachers, as well as the resources and encouragement they need to go back to school and get their diploma or GED, including services like tutoring, transportation, and childcare.

All parents are treated with the highest level of dignity and respect. The goal is to empower the parents and help them to meet their potential—an opportunity that their life and circumstances didn’t necessarily present for them.

AVANCE has used this formula for more than 40 years, and it really works. Eighty percent of AVANCE families are earning $40,000 or more a year after completing the program. AVANCE has literally broken the cycle of poverty for thousands of families in the San Antonio area.

To celebrate this coming Mother’s Day, consider taking a one-hour tour to learn more about the incredible work being done at this organization. Contact Dee Dee Gonzalez at (210) 220-1788, ext. 252. There are also many opportunities to volunteer and help out—just from one mother to another.

AVANCE-Barbara Gentry

 

 

Marisa
As a civil rights litigator, Marisa is passionate about education and immigrants rights. She is obsessed with all things San Antonio, where she grew up, and lives close to downtown with her husband Andres, an immigration attorney, her tenacious 2-year old son, a gentle rescue dog named Quixo and a “big boned” tuxedo cat named Sancho Panza. Marisa looks forward to sharing the highs and the lows of what she affectionately calls the “controlled chaos” that is her life as a fulltime working attorney, mom and wife in the Alamo City.