In an effort to make a positive impact on the well-being of children in inner-city neighborhoods and on education in the Albany, Albany Medical Center has formally launched what it calls “a ground-breaking community-based partnership.”
James Barba, president and CEO of Albany Medical Center, says the initiative entails a four-year affiliation in which Albany Med will be a major funder and supporter of the Baby Institute. Officials call it a "grassroots organization" created to help parents improve children’s readiness for school, by working to increase language skills in kids 3 and under. "Here's what we're going to do, at least for starters. Through a contract with our partners and the New York Council of not-for-profits, Albany Medical Center will help Jolene manage her business operation and build her organization. We hope to expand it so that more parents and more children can take advantage of it. Through a partnership with the Albany Housing Authority we will support a new home for the Baby Institute here at the Ida Yarbrough homes. Through the talent of our dedicated staff at Albany Medical Center we will buttress the Baby Institute with oversight and administrative support as well as advise it on things like fundraising and marketing. By design, the Baby Institute will NOT become part of Albany Medical Center. Rather, it will remain its own 501c3 organization within the community where it was born, helping to ensure that it retains its unique grassroots identity and its already proven success."
Noelene Smith is executive director of the Baby Institute: "I just really believe that Albany Med as an educational institution will do a lot to enhance what we're doin'. Parents also need support around well-baby visits, around what to ask their pediatrician, and Albany Med brings that.
Citing the dismal Albany High graduation rate, Smith pointed to a "30 million word gap between children in underserved communities versus children in more affluent neighborhoods," implying that programs offered by the Baby Institute could have long-term effects on children whose parents participate. Mayor Kathy Sheehan is on board: “It’s our job to deliver children to our schools ready to learn. And this is about making sure that when our children show up and we hand them off to the school district, that they’re ready to learn.”
Barba adds Albany Med is committing to a minimum of 4 years of support for the Baby Institute. "If we can embed it in the culture, the DNA of Albany Medical Center, we'll continue it. The first year, this year, the commitment is $175,000-$200,000 just to get it going. You know, that's foundational money if you will, for rent, for staff, that Noelene has spoken to. For paper clips and Xerox machines and everything that it’s going to need to be purchased and to have on hand so that the kids and the parents can get the kind of education that we believe that the Baby Institute will deliver."
The Baby Institute is modeled after the Harlem Children’s Zone’s Baby College. It has reached more than 350 parents since its inception in 2010 under the Albany Family Education Alliance.
