The Maine Families program delivered by the University of Maine Cooperative Extension has earned Blue Ribbon Affiliate status from the Parents as Teachers National Center Inc. The endorsement makes it one of the top-performing home-visiting affiliates within the Parents as Teachers’ international network.
Maine Families is delivered in Waldo, Knox, Lincoln, Sagadahoc, and parts of Cumberland counties by UMaine Extension. It includes personalized visits, group connections, developmental and health screens, as well as connections to community resources. The relationship-based program is designed to address public health priorities and support families with knowledge and resources to prepare kids for a strong start in life and greater success in school.
When asked how Maine Families Home Visiting has helped her family, one parent said, “My visitor made me feel more confident in my abilities as a parent and encouraged [me] that I’m doing a good job. The opportunity to speak to someone about parenting that is outside my family and is both passionate and knowledgeable helps me a lot.”
Parents as Teachers Quality Endorsement and Improvement Process (QEIP) is a rigorous process of assessing and improving the quality of Parents as Teachers affiliates’ operations and services. Each year, a designated group of Parents as Teachers affiliates participate by completing and submitting a self-study that is reviewed and corroborated by the QEIP team at the National Center.
As the QEIP enters its seventh year, it is clear that this emphasis on fidelity and quality helps to ensure that families are truly receiving and benefiting from the Parents as Teachers model. Further, Blue Ribbon affiliates are playing a vital role in the kind of rigorous research that is essential to the continued recognition and sustainability of Parents as Teachers as an effective, evidence-based model for home visiting.