{"id":33811,"date":"2026-05-29T15:13:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T20:13:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/devcofi.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=33811"},"modified":"2026-06-01T12:23:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T17:23:38","slug":"lettie-30th","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cofionline.org\/es\/lettie-30th\/","title":{"rendered":"Lettie: Un vistazo al poder de los padres en East St. Louis"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhen Parents United for Change formed, we made winning transportation in the district a priority, and we did it. We\u2019re proof that parents can turn their dreams into action.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Lettie grew up moving through foster homes and learned early on what it means to navigate systems that weren\u2019t built with you in mind. But she\u2019s also learned how to fight and change those systems.<\/p>\n

Over a decade ago, Lettie heard a testimony from longtime COFI-trained parent leader Rosazlia<\/a><\/span> and was immediately moved by it. She joined COFI training and eventually joined the East St. Louis branch, which is called Parents United for Change (PUFC).<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing part of COFI taught me that I do have a voice,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

From the beginning, COFI\u2019s training was grounded in listening to parents – their goals, their visions, and their experiences. As Lettie moved through the phases, she and fellow mothers started doorknocking in their communities. As they spoke to more and more individuals and asked about their concerns in the community, they began hearing a common concern. Nearly everyone was worried about children\u2019s safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe heard about children walking through vacant parks and abandoned alleyways to get to school,\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n

Lettie and the group of parents brought their findings to the local leaders, who needed to hear about it and do something. They didn\u2019t listen at first, but Lettie and the parents persisted, returning to board meetings.<\/p>\n

Their first success was winning new crossing guards<\/a><\/span> and parking spots at the Vivian Adams Early Childhood Center. They also won busing for 200 preschoolers attending the Preschool for All program. Later, when older children continued to travel to school under unsafe conditions, they took their issues and concerns to the whole state.<\/p>\n

After traveling to Springfield to lobby, the COFI-trained group of East St. Louis parents won House Bill 5195<\/a><\/span>. It mandated that school districts had to provide transportation for students whose routes to school passed through \u201cdangerous\u201d areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Parents United for Change formed, we made winning transportation in the district a priority, and we did it,\u201d Lettie said. \u201cWe\u2019re proof that parents can turn their dreams into action.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, as PUFC and COFI look ahead to the next chapter of COFI, Lettie and the other parent leaders are taking on more projects to improve their communities, such as fighting food insecurity, expanding access to mental health care, and more. <\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” link_option_url=”\/esmeralda\/” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

<< Esmeralda’s Story: A Spotlight on the Southwest Side<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” link_option_url=”\/silvia\/” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

Silvia and Parent Power in Elgin\u00a0 >><\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.6″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lettie creci\u00f3 pasando por diferentes hogares de acogida y aprendi\u00f3 desde muy joven lo que significa desenvolverse en sistemas que no fueron dise\u00f1ados pensando en ella. Pero tambi\u00e9n ha aprendido a luchar contra esos sistemas y a cambiarlos.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":32239,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"

Meet Leah, a longtime partner and supporter of COFI!<\/p>

She partnered with COFI on a parent-led project that COFI Organizer Talibah<\/span><\/a> and other parents worked on to address the lack of developmental screenings.<\/p>

As the director of a statewide community collaboration project, Leah collaborated with seven communities, including Englewood, to boost early learning enrollment. Englewood parents, armed with training from COFI, discovered that fear of stigma and mistrust of systems led some families to avoid developmental screenings for early intervention and special education.<\/p>

Parents pitched an idea to Leah: with funding, parents could support other parents to navigate the early intervention system and the special education system to get children in their community the support they needed.<\/p>

Leah funded the project and parents did it!<\/p>

Fast forward to 2024: during a training with The COFI Center for Action and Learning<\/a><\/span>, Leah visited Parker Academy in Englewood (pictured below) and met parents who were initially part of the project and were still benefiting from it!<\/p>

\u201cI got really emotional about a dad whose son benefited from the program and thrived,\u201d she said. \u201cThe parent-led project in Englewood shows that with a little bit of seed money, families can lead and make their innovations last. It is a systems change success story. This is how things work when parent voices are at the table.\u201d<\/p>

This anniversary and Leah\u2019s dream serve as a reminder of the connections forged through parent-led efforts. Change begins with a parent\u2019s dream, and when they unite with others and partners like Leah, remarkable transformations can ripple out.<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-testimonials"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLettie: A Spotlight on Parent Power in East St. Louis | COFI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Lettie learned early on what it means to navigate systems that weren\u2019t built with you in mind. 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