The Wilson-Wood Foundation recently awarded a grant of $10,000 to Safe Children Coalition (SCC), for its HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) program. The grant will help area families with young children to prepare their children for success in school and beyond. This is the fourth year that the Wilson-Wood Foundation has provided support – totaling $40,000 – for the HIPPY program.

The HIPPY program helps parents to provide educational enrichment for preschool-age children and is designed to remove barriers to participation in education. The program is offered to all participants free of charge so that disadvantaged children have the opportunity to enjoy future success; the goals of HIPPY are consistent with the mission of the Wilson-Wood Foundation, which aims to do good deeds in health, education and human services.

In 2021, HIPPY served 212 parents and children with economic, social and educational challenges in Sarasota County. Every HIPPY family is TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) eligible and faces overwhelming poverty. In a survey, 100% of parents indicated that the program has helped their children to learn the skills necessary to succeed in school; 100% of HIPPY children who were assessed improved their scores on the Bracken School Readiness Assessment and 93% of children transitioning to kindergarten passed the school readiness assessment. Additionally, in 2021, HIPPY expanded services to include English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes for parents.

“Since 1992, HIPPY has encouraged participation from local parents who might otherwise not feel empowered or equipped to get involved in a meaningful way with their children’s education,” said SCC president and CEO Brena Slater. “We are grateful to the Wilson-Wood Foundation for its continued support of our HIPPY program to help the children of low-income families to succeed in school and break the cycle of poverty.”