In an effort to make attendance as easy as possible, parents and their children attend separate sessions that meet concurrently. Parents learn about Nurturing Parenting skills and ways to promote discipline and communication. Teen and children’s activities help children express their feelings, and include strategies for building self-worth and personal power. Little ones (0-2) can stay with you.
Nurturing Parenting Program®
In 2003 the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) developed a logic model for reducing child abuse and neglect 
based on building resiliency as a way of reducing risk factors. These conditions are known as “protective factors”. The protective factors identified by CSSP include:
- Parental resilience
- Social connections
- Knowledge of parenting and child development
- Concrete support in time of need; and
- Social and emotional competence of children
The Evidence-Based Nurturing Parenting Program® classes at the Pagosa Springs Nurturing Center last for 16 weeks in order to help build Protective Factors in families that when present, increase the health and well-being of children and families. The long term goals are to prevent recidivism in families receiving social services, lower the rate of multi-parent teenage pregnancies, reduce the rate of juvenile delinquency and alcohol abuse, and stop the intergenerational cycle of child abuse by teaching positive parenting behaviors. The Nurturing Programs® target all families at risk for abuse and neglect with children birth to 18 years.
Pre-test and Post-test Assessments are mandatory to measure the effectiveness of our program in changing long standing parenting habits and beliefs. Assessments are gathered at the beginning and end of the program. Two versions are available: Short version (SV) for average parents who are attending parenting classes; and the long version (LV) for high risk families or families mandated by the courts to attend.
Crianza con Cariño (Parenting with Care)
Crianza con Cariño classes for Spanish speaking families are taught simultaneously while Nurturing Parenting Program® classes take place and is also a 16-week program.
The Nurturing Program for Parents® was validated with Spanish-speaking families in Colorado, Wisconsin, Arizona, Texas, Mexico, and Venezuela.
Program concepts and language have been carefully reviewed and edited by Hispanic professionals in human services to ensure that the nurturing parenting concepts are culturally sensitive, appropriate and accurately presented.
Note: Classes are also held at the same time for the children of parents who are attending both Nurturing Parenting and Crianza con Carino classes.
Co-Parenting in Divorce
Parents most generally take this course because of a state court-ordered requirement to complete a parent education and family stabilization course.
The course lasts for a minimum of four hours in accordance with state requirements.
The course is presented in nine separate sections, which represent the following topics:
- Divorce as a Loss
- Permanency of Parent Role and Shared Parenting
- Developmental Stages of Childhood
- Communicating with Children in a Divorce Situation
- Communicating with the Other Parent
- Abuse
- Legal Concepts
- Parenting Time
- Resources
At course completion a certificate of completion is provided.
A Window Between Worlds
A Window Between Worlds is a nonprofit organization dedicated to using art to help end domestic violence. Through creative expression, battered women, and children gain a sense of renewal and power. Their images of hope, survival and strength educate the public and become “a window between worlds” for survivors taking steps to change their lives.
A trained facilitator leads art expressions workshops for women and men at the Pagosa Springs Nurturing Center.
Working With Basic Skills Students
Since 1987, Motheread, Inc. has been partnering with programs to address basic skills challenges with a combination of innovative curriculum and highly effective training. Using adult narratives and children’s literature, the curriculum teaches essential literacy skills utilizing real-life adult contexts and roles. Adults also learn how to be reading role models for children.
All lessons have been correlated with CASAS competencies as well as federal standards and guidelines. The average CASAS increase for students in these classes is 1.47 grade level equivalent.
Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters
Professional chefs and nutritionists volunteer their time and expertise to lead hands-on courses that instruct adults, teens, and kids living in low-income families, how to get the most nutrition out of a limited budget.
