Video: A ballet class in North Memphis underscores the need for family wrap-around support

All parents experience challenges with their children. Universal Parenting Places are designed for parents who are seeking information and intervention at the earliest signs of concern. But beyond intervention, the Universal Parenting Places hold resources, respite and times for celebration — like a Ballet Memphis-led class for children and caregivers who attend the Perea Preschool UPP in the Klondike-Smokey City neighborhood. There are four other UPP sites across the area: Knowledge Quest, Baptist Memorial Hospital for Women, Christ Community Health Services – Raleigh and Leland Medical Clinic in Leland, Mississippi. 

Support for this story was provided in part by the Urban Child Institute; it is one article in a series highlighting the impact and importance of early childhood education.  The Urban Child Institute focuses its grantmaking, advocacy and community support on kindergarten readiness and third-grade literacy in an effort to improve the education, health and well-being of children and families in Shelby County.