1. Archiving Bilingual Head
Start
A Case Study for Health and Education in East Harlem

2. Health in the United States
According to a study by W. Douglas Evans et al. on “Changing
Perceptions of the Childhood Obesity Epidemic,” childhood obesity has
been increasing since the 80s, and these children represent “a new
generation of Americans [who] will enter adulthood already obese or at
risk for obesity”
An increase in soda and fast food consumption, along with changes in
exercise habits of the youth and increases in TV watching, have
contributed to these statistics. The following chart details the impact of
these factors (source: http://visual.ly/childhood-obesity-triples)

4. According to this graphic, soda and fast food consumption increases result in the
intake of more sugars and calories, as well as fats and oils. Comparisons
between the 1970s and today show stark contrasts and correspond to the rise of
the obesity epidemic. Unfortunately, in many neighborhoods, easy access to fast
food puts the residents at risk, and in some cases, healthier eating options are
largely overshadowed by this accessibility of unhealthy foods.
Source: http://visual.ly/1-3-children-america-overweight

5. Health in the United States
If programs and schools are located in environments that are low-income,
it is even more of an urgent issue. Many low-income areas are designated
as being “food insecure” or “food deserts,” because there is either a lack
of fresh fruits and vegetables or the closest supermarket is too far for
residents to easily access.
In “U.S. Food Insecurity Status: Toward a Refined Definition,” Alisha Judith
Coleman-Jensen states that many low-income homes fall under the
category of “marginally food secure,” therefore the focus is on their
security as opposed to the fragile nature of their situation. Policies aimed
towards “food insecure” homes- mainly public assistance policies- are not
targeted towards homes with marginal security, which Coleman-Jensen
finds problematic.

6. Why Bilingual Head Start?
https://popcorn.webmaker.org/templates/basic/index.html?savedDataUrl=/api/p
#

7. Importance of Community
Intervention
Continuing to assess East Harlem’s status as a possible food desert, a
discussion of La Marqueta provides some context on the community’s
struggle to increase the availability of fresh fruits and vegetables. Efforts
to revitalize La Marqueta, a market which, according to the New York
Times, reached prominence in the 50s and 60s, is a response to the
“Ability” category outlined by Shaw.
One article detailed information about health concerns in the Dan River
Region and the community-based participatory research framework of a
health coalition forming in this region. The article, written by Monica
Motley et al, does not discuss program outcomes but does look at the
process of coalition-building, an aspect that can be found in Bilingual Head
Start which has partnerships with various community groups.

8. Early Childhood Education
Education programs have acted spaces for larger interventions, on the
federal and state level. In the 60s, Head Start programs were created to
provide low-income families with quality early childhood education for
their children in light of findings that disparities in the reading
comprehension skills of children from higher income families and children
from lower income families begin to form when these children are 5 years
old. Because education has been treated as a socio-economic equalizer,
developing a program such as Head Start became a hopeful solution for
change.
Bilingual Head Start exemplifies the ways in which the program is more
than a federal or state intervention. Cultures, more specifically the
Mexican and Puerto Rican cultures, are infused into the program because
it is tailored to serve the community in which it is based.

9. Importance of Culture
How do we begin to bring culture into discourse about the new
healthy food movement in a way that respects cultures, as opposed
to disparaging them? The healthy food movement expects people to
eat in a certain way without any understanding that we have
memories rooted in the way we cook, the things we cook, and who
we cook with. Switching to ingredients not common to a specific
culture will most likely change the taste of the dish as well so it has
lost its familiarity.
Bilingual Head Start acknowledges the role of culture in building the
children’s self- and group-esteem, so it strives to affirm various
cultures by teaching the children about the origins of these cultures
and incorporating cultural practices, arts, and foods in various
activities.

10. Building the Archive
Explaining the importance of a program such as Bilingual Head Start begins the creation of the archive but what components comprise the actual archive?
1
. Photos: visual aids, shows daily activities, allows us to see how the space
r
e-affirms culture
2
. Interviews: personal accounts of the teachers and staff
F
uture possibilities: The teachers and parents frequently take photos of the
s
pecial events. Having them become involved in the archive and submitting
t
heir photos gives them an outlet to express their solidarity with the program.

11. Photos
The following photos show the space of Bilingual head Start that is
transformed for the Mexican Heritage celebration held by the school.
During this celebration, students dressed up in traditional Mexican
clothing and performed for parents, teachers, and administrators.

12. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
The stage

13. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Display table

14. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Poster about the role of art
in our ability to express
ourselves

15. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Poster explaining the
cultural significance of the
art produced by students

16. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Recyclable milk cartons as
visual art. Making the
connection between the
self, culture, and the
environment

17. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Display table links food, culture, and health. Emphasizes healthy aspects of the tortilla
(fresh corn)

18. The Space of Bilingual Head Start
Daily space of the program. Walls lined with information about health.
Pamphlets available to parents

19. Interviews
Qualitative data that relays the experiences of teachers
and staff, such as Family Engagement workers
Themes:
1. Involvement
2. Targeting Health
3. Promoting Culture
4. Observed Outcomes
5. Parent Involvement
6. Visions for the Program

20. Interviews
Currently, there are two interviews transcribed.
Interviewees:
-Celina, teacher who heads class Mother Earth
- Nilsa, Family Engagement worker

21. Involvement
Nilsa, from the Family Engagement office, has worked at the school for 22
years. She became acquainted with the school because an outreach
worker at Head Start approached her; she subsequently put her son in the
program. He is now 28 years old.
She went through several positions as a parent. For instance, she was the
president of the Delegate Agency Parents’ Committee (DAPC), a group
that “worked hand-in-hand with the administration…helping to provide
services and give parents’ point of view.”

22. Involvement
Celina, a teacher for the Mother Earth classroom, has been at the program
for 5 years. She is from El Salvador and came here to receive her BA in Early
Childhood Education from City College, before receiving her Associate’s
degree. “One of my first jobs in the states was baby-sitting so this is what I
love to do.”
She did not know anything about the program before being hired. She heard
about the program through a job listing on Craigslist. She had previously been
a teacher but had to leave her job to take care of her baby. When she
decided after 3 to 3.5 years to return to work, she sought out Craigslist and
saw the Bilingual Head Start ad. “I had my mind set for a year, because at first
I wasn’t sure if I would even take the job. I heard stereotypes about Harlem,
but when I came here, I felt welcome. It was nice to see Hispanic faces. I
really liked it here and decided to stay. I learned about the community here
and their needs.”

23. Targeting Health
The Bilingual Head Start is a sugar-free program. According to Nilsa, they
“encourage parents not to give sweets to students.” They also “invite
parents to speak to the cooks [and] take nutrition classes.” The program
does not use canned goods and gives healthy alternatives to sweets (i.e.
gives students nutrition bars as opposed to cookies, no frosting on
birthday cakes). Parents are welcome to bring in new recipes for the
healthy cookbook.
Celina feels that Head Start has been “a great experience.” “Not many
institutions and people take time to worry about others’ health.” She
adds, “I try my best to eat healthy because I have two kids.” She makes
sure to cook at home often and does not cook fried foods frequently. “The
thing is not to do it every week, every day”- moderation is key.

24. Targeting Health
One way that Celina tries to get the kids to eat healthier things is by giving
prizes. “Once, the kids didn’t want beans so I said ‘If you eat the beans, you’ll
get a sticker’ so they tried it and they liked it!” Aside from this, there is
ignorance about the matter. “There’s ignorance about not knowing that
whatever they buy at McDonald’s is not beneficial to the child’s body. At
some point in my life, I was in the same position.”
Celina mentions that the children enjoy doing food pyramids. “They have
pictures of foods they cut out from magazines. They choose one food and try
to figure out where it goes on the pyramid.”

25. Targeting Health
Nilsa notes, “As educators, we feel like these children are the most important
thing to us.” They do follow-ups on physicals and dental exams. There is an
asthma action plan that “helps the family monitor the child’s asthma and
avoid triggers.” For children with special needs, therapists come on-site to
check on them. Making sure the students are healthy is definitely a priority.
Nilsa also feels like it is important to combat the worldwide obesity problem.
She feels that “it’s not hard for the kids to adjust [to a new diet]. Children eat
anything that tastes good! So we give them homestyle meals.” They also give
students 1% milk, water, brown rice, and various other healthy foods. “A lot
of people, kids and parents, are changing their diets!” The students set the
table for their meals as another way of being involved and learning
responsibility.

26. Targeting Health
Celina doesn’t see many supermarkets in the area on her way to work, though
there may be some that she doesn’t come across. There is one on 116th
and
Park Avenue, on 115th
between 1st
and 2nd
as well. She has visited the 116th
st
supermarket with her class when they went to buy fresh strawberries. She
doesn’t feel that the prices for healthy food are too high for parents. “If you
want kids to eat healthy, you do everything possible for that to happen” so
parents can always find solutions to ensure that their kids have good
nutrition.
Nilsa states that, in terms of supermarkets, there is a Pathmark on 125th
street and Lexington. There are also little markets on 3rd
avenue, but it is
cheaper to buy directly from local farmers. These local farmers have a
relationship with the school; they sometimes come in for the parents to buy
fruits and vegetables. This is one partnership among many that Bilingual Head
Start has with other community groups.

27. Targeting Health
Celina mentions that once a year, students at the school make a chicken soup
together. They also make vegetable soup- each student brings a vegetable
from home. They talk about them in class by giving the students pieces of the
vegetables after chopping them up and talking to the students about the taste
and color of the vegetables. They put the ingredients in a pot and explain the
cooking process to students. They then give the pot to the cooks who make
the soup, and when the soup is ready, they eat it in class.

28. Targeting Health
The program promotes natural sugars, such as those found in fruits. Celina
details an instance when Rita Prats had to ask an ice cream truck to not park
in front of the school so that the children could leave school without being
tempted by these sweets. The school prefers to give students natural juice
pops. Celina has incorporated that at home. “I do the juice pops at home too.
Sometimes I do it with apple juice. I may use Tropicana. Or I do smoothies-
mango, milk, just a little sugar.” If her children eat sweets, they are
homemade with better ingredients; she has made low-sugar cookies at her
home, for example.

29. Promoting Culture
Nilsa describes the program as being multi-cultural. “If a family doesn’t
eat pork, we give that information to the cook who puts it in the child’s
record. We try to keep a home environment.” All holidays are celebrated,
especially Christmas. They try to teach the children the meanings of these
holidays.
There is a mutual respect for everyone’s culture and vigilance about not
offending any cultures.
They do “other things besides play.,” Nilsa says. “We try to give them as
much as we possible can”, by, for example, giving families Cool Culture
Cards, which allow students to attend museums.

30. Promoting Culture
When they make cultural foods, they speak to the kids about where the
food comes from. Celina recounts, “We made guacamole and said to the
kids, ‘Where does this guacamole come from. We want them to know what
different cultures have.” They make tortillas as well and had a showcase for
the Mexican culture (she estimates that 60% of students are Mexican).
“We like educating them about culture, who they are,” Celina states. They
have also has showcases about the Puerto Rican culture, and during
February, had a celebration of African-American culture. A parent
volunteered to buy costumes from Africa and she came in to take students’
measurements for the costumes.

31. Parent Involvement
Recruitment is “based on letting parents know the service. They have a
curriculum…it’s not about sleeping like daycare.” Nilsa also talks about
parent involvement in the classrooms.
Nilsa insists that “you have to think family-wise” and the program does so.
Bilingual Head Start feels like a family, a community. The Family
Engagement staff do home visits- this Is “not based on what [the family] has
but on safety, making sure they have window guards, no chippings, heat
and hot water in the wintertime [and] enough of an environment beneficial
for growth.” They train parents on safety, parenting, and preventing child
abuse- “whatever [parents] need, they can request” and the program fulfills
those needs. There are even Zumba classes for the parents. Parents can
bring friends along as well so the classes are open to the community.

32. Parent Involvement
At the time that she began her involvement in the program, Nilsa lived two
blocks away. She was attracted by the idea of parent participation, though
she didn’t know the program would let the parents participate more than
public schools did. She had “family workers [who] motivated [her] to getting
involved and going back to school.” The family workers made her feel like
[she] was somebody and made [her] want to start something new,
volunteering in classrooms, helping out community meetings. In 1991, while
in the Delegate Agency Parents’ Committee (DAPC), she was asked if she
wanted to work at the school.

33. Parent Involvement
One challenge that exists is that many parents do not speak English well. To
combat the lack of English, the program offers ESL classes. Being bilingual
allows parents to maintain their culture but also navigate through American
society. The latter is important to the health mission of the program
because parents are encouraged to ask for information about the foods
they buy.
Nilsa feels that low-income parents with a lot of children may struggle to
buy healthy foods and keep up with the nutrition. Some of the parents do
not receive forms of public assistance other than Food Stamps and perhaps
Medicaid, though she believes that most parents in the program are on
public assistance and may make $200 a week. ‘Parent coordinators
advocate for parents to get healthy food with the food stamps.”

34. Parent Involvement
Celina describes, “Parents get excited about bringing cooking ingredients
and helping out with the classrooms or customs.” She gives the example of
the Senegalese costumes that a parent ordered for the African-American
culture celebration.

35. Visions for the Program
Nilsa hopes to see more computers at the program. There are “good
computerized programs [they kids] could benefit from. 10 Minutes each
day would get them even more focused and interested.”
Celina hopes for more one-on-one contact with the children- the wish of
every teacher, she says- but believes that the program addresses all aspects
of their students’ lives. They make sure that parents are comfortable
enough to voice their needs to Rita Prats or other administrators who then
work towards implementing workshops, services, or activities targeted
towards these needs.

36. Conclusion
 There is a wealth of information that we can obtain from this program. It has created
many initiatives to help its families and has shaped their views on health while also
retaining the cultural aspects of food.
 It has provided outcomes because teachers and parents understand the balance between
healthy foods and sweets. Furthermore, children, as well as teachers and parents, are
given health literacy, as opposed to being forced to change habits without any
understanding of why and how. By doing so, and by making healthy food available to
families, the program targets the different factors that create “food deserts.” A question
remains as to the supermarket affordability of healthy foods- there was disagreement
among interviewees on this issue. More research needs to be conducted as to who can or
cannot afford these foods.
 This program provides a community solution to the health problems among residents,
problems that are occurring nation-wide. Archiving the program highlights these
accomplishments and gives it a different platform. The interviews and photos will be
archived at Hunter’s Centro for Puerto Rican studies where people from the community
can access the documents and learn more about the program’s activities.