Parenting is difficult for those who feel they are prepared emotionally and financially. But for teen parents, and often for those who had their first child during their teen years, parenting presents a special challenge. Fifty percent of the parents enrolled in PEP either are or were teen parents. PEP provides life skills, parenting skills and child development information to parents ages 15 through 35. Project staff assist parents in developing an individual family plan of realistic and achievable goals and provide group sessions for parents in locations convenient to the families' neighborhoods.
Staff also work with parents in their homes on developmentally appropriate activities for children.
In addition to the PEP staff, volunteers function as career mentors by providing support and encouragement to parents entering the job market. They provide practical information on issues such as planning a budget, restoring credit, and learning job interviewing skills. PEP staff are seeing significant positive results for the participating families in setting and achieving their goals. The project is currently being evaluated to document these positive outcomes. This is being accomplished in cooperation with community outreach efforts of the Greater Southeast Community Hospital in Washington, DC, which is centrally located to the neighborhoods where the participating families live.