Skip to Main Content

About The Baby College

The Baby College is a nine-week workshop that engages new and expectant parents and caregivers through the ins and outs of early childhood development.

Program highlights:

  • The Baby College follows a curriculum designed by a preeminent pediatrician and covers all essential topics for children ages 0-3.
  • Participants form a sense of community with their fellow classmates and make new friends they can turn to for support, questions, ideas, empathy, and laughter.
  • Graduates leave the program with a wealth of parenting knowledge and a bolstered sense of confidence.
  • Childcare is offered during workshops for children ages 4 to 12.
Play Icon
The Baby College infant dressed in lion costume at The Baby College Cycle 103 Graduation.

The Baby College celebrated its 103rd Cycle graduation in 2023!

The Baby College Curriculum

The Baby College’s hallmark curriculum follows Touchpoints, an infant development model created by Dr. T. Berry Brazelton, the late founder of the Brazelton Institute at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Brazelton’s approach maintains a balance between theory and practice, urging parents to implement what they learn in real-time to help solidify concepts and deepen understanding.

Parents and caretakers learn the typical stages of cognitive, social, and emotional development for children ages 0-3. They graduate the program armed with strategies to engage in meaningful interactions with their children and raise them in a healthy and safe home. Additionally, the program touches on appropriate discipline, early immunization, and adequate healthcare.

 

The Baby College G.R.A.D.S. Early Head Start

The Baby College G.R.A.D.S. (Guardians Responding and Developing Strategies) Early Head Start is a year-round, home-visiting program for expectant mothers and children ages 0-3. Through G.R.A.D.S. Early Head Start, graduates of The Baby College have an opportunity to deepen their understanding of early childhood development and strengthen parent-child relationships. All offerings are led by a point-person trained in the social work, early childhood education, or healthcare fields.

Program highlights:

  • G.R.A.D.S. Early Head Start team make weekly home visits to participants and host bi-weekly playgroups. These visits and playgroups provide parents and caregivers with high-quality tools to nurture their child’s growth through everyday activities, family relationships, and community support.
  • Participants receive guidance in enhancing early literacy and school-readiness skills.
  • Participants join parent workshops, support groups, and events to further empower them as their child’s first teacher.
  • Participants get the opportunity to join the next program in our pipeline, Three-Year-Old Journey.

Enroll

To enroll in The Baby College, call 212-665-9832 or click on the button and complete the form. To enroll in The Baby College G.R.A.D.S. Early Head Start, email grads@hcz.org.

Enroll in The Baby College
Three-Year-Old journey scholar wearing a red sweatshirt plays with a red ball.

Discover

Three-Year-Old Journey

Three-Year-Old Journey provides lottery winners of HCZ’s Promise Academy® Charter Schools with the opportunity to continue to learn, grow, and nurture friendships in the lead up to their admission to Promise.