Success Stories

Last Monday, Way to Grow had a busy morning at the Minnesota State Capitol! Alongside other education advocates from across the state, Way to Grow families showed up again to support early childhood care and education in the state of Minnesota at Advocacy for Children Day. With the help of Greater Twin Cities United Way, we’re asking legislators to prioritize Minnesota’s youngest children.

This year’s support issue: continuing to expand access to culturally responsive, trauma-sensitive early childcare and early childhood education for all. 

At Advocacy for Children Day, we heard from Northside Achievement Zone’s Andre Dukes, featured author Pamela Mercado Michelli, parent speakers, Shannon Smith Jones of Greater Twin Cities United Way, and Way to Grow’s very own Director of Programs, Patricia Wilson.

Thank you to all the Minnesota representatives who shared, listened to our stories, and supported this event, including Mayor Melvin Carter, Rep. María Isa Pérez-Vega, Rep. Nathan Coulter, Rep. Samantha Sencer-Mura, Senator John Hoffman, Rep. Matt Norris, Representative Patricia Mueller, Senator Erin Maye Quade, and Senator Zach Duckworth.

Here’s how you can help: continue spreading the word about the importance of early childhood education. Support advocacy and engagement work that leads to lasting change, through direct participation or through financial contributions. Be an active participant in your local government and consider writing to your lawmakers and policy leaders. You can find your policymakers using the “Who Represents Me?” tool on Minnesota State Legislature’s website.

Together, we’re creating a bright future for Minnesota’s youngest generation.

We are thankful to work with and alongside our community partners, as well as countless other organizations advocating for early childhood care and education in Minnesota on Advocacy for Children Day: United Way Twin Cities, The Sheltering Arms Foundation, Start Early Funders Coalition, BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota, CARE Fellowship, Child Care Aware of Minnesota, Children’s Defense Fund Minnesota, Generation Next, PICA Head Start, Free Spirit Publishing, YWCA Minneapolis, Initiative Foundation, Joyce Preschool, Kids Count On Us, Little Moments Count, Minnesota Association for the Education of Young Children, MNAFEE, MCAA, Minnesota Coalition for Family Home Visiting, MN Prenatal-to-Grade 3 (P3) Initiative, NAZ, New Horizon Academy, Planting People Growing Justice, Before Racism, Rainbow Child Development Center, Take Action MN, Saint Paul Promise Neighborhood, Think Small, West Central Initiative, and Women Venture Twincities.

“I look like an alligator!” Declares Daya, striking a pose for the camera, donning her green dress and green eyeshadow. It’s a reflective statement of Daya’s personality: creative, energetic, and outgoing. As we spoke with Way to Grow’s latest Scholar, we saw that vibrant personality in action for this superstar student.

Sonia, Daya’s mother, joined the Way to Grow program nearly six years ago, when her eldest, Jaylah, was six. Sonia is grateful for the support that Way to Grow has continuously provided her family throughout these years, offering the tools to provide an opportunity for her children to succeed in school and life.

When Daya faced difficulties with reading, her Way to Grow Family Educator, Amanda, created customized and engaging tactile activities for Daya that best suited her learning style. The combination of specialized home visits and attending after-school reading support put her on a path to success. 

“Amanda’s been great,” says Sonia. “Home visits have been good because they do activities besides reading, allowing her to move and interact with materials.” 

Today, Daya’s a stellar bilingual student naturally inclined to help others. Sonia proudly shares that Daya was a huge help to her teachers in 1st grade by offering to translate instructions to other classmates who speak Spanish! Daya is proud of her accomplishments and continues to grow as a reader. 

From struggling to know her letters to reading books and becoming a pillar of support for her classmates—all it took was a little extra support from Way to Grow to bring out Daya’s full potential.

Go Daya! We cannot wait to see what your future holds!

On a chilly Saturday in March, Maurice’s laughter fills Way to Grow’s playroom. Wearing a dragon onesie, Maurice (7) is eager to show off his reading skills to his sister, Lizzy (10), and his mom, Mary. When asked about Maurice’s progress, Mary smiles and says:

“It’s a complete 180. Way to Grow gave him confidence.” 

Last year, Maurice was struggling to stay focused in kindergarten. Big emotions led to classroom outbursts and frustrating suspensions, and Mary found herself often leaving work to pick Maurice up from school early. With the right tools and support, Mary knew Maurice had the potential to succeed.

Mary reached out to Way to Grow and met Roxy, who became her family’s Way to Grow Family Educator. Roxy quickly got to work, researching ways to customize the Way to Grow curriculum to capture Maurice’s trust and attention.

According to Mary, working with Roxy has been transformative. Through listening games like “Roxy says” and plenty of space to focus, Maurice became familiar with Roxy and quickly began having more positive reactions during home visits. 

Mary has learned a lot this year, too. Her most important lesson? “Patience,” she says. “How to be more patient as a parent and knowing when to get help.” 

Mary is a vocal parent advocate for Lizzy and Maurice, and her hard work has paid off. In just one year, Maurice’s reading speed has tripled!

Now, Maurice is proud to be a leader and a helper in his first grade classroom. When he learns something new in school, he’s eager to tell Roxy. Mary laughs: “He’s always asking when Roxy will visit so he can show off.” 

It’s no doubt that Maurice has a bright future ahead. We can’t wait to see how far he goes! 

Since moving to Minnesota from his home country of El Salvador, Ricardo has dedicated his life to being a role model for his two sons, Ezequiel (6) and Alexis (10). “He’s a very good dad,” says their Family Educator, Maria. Ricardo remembers meeting Maria for the first time: “Necesitaba mucho apoyo,” shares Ricardo. “I needed a lot of support.”

Seeking new ways to increase the family’s access to Spanish language resources, Maria introduced Ricardo, Ezequiel, and Alexis to their local public library last fall. Ricardo remembers watching Ezequiel and Alexis run through the library shelves for the first time, laughing together amidst a seemingly endless collection of books, computers, and games.

“Eso no tiene precio,” says Ricardo. “That’s priceless.”

Maria’s language-to-language connection has allowed her to build a strong foundation of trust with Ricardo and his boys. When water began creeping into the basement of their family home, Ricardo called Maria for support during a Brooklyn Center city inspection: “She advocated for us and practically demanded that the problem be resolved.”

Through resource connections and engagement with community services, Way to Grow Family Educators create a unique network of support that reflects the needs of each individual family. As Ricardo dedicates each day to building a bright future for Alexis and Ezequiel, Maria will be there to offer support, resources, and trusted advice along every step of their journey.