ABC's Good Morning America Weekend Anchor Janai Norman, New York Times Reporter Erica Green, Early Childhood Development Experts headline Parents as Teachers 2023 International Conference Oct. 16 - 19 in New Orleans

Unmasking Potential theme lures home visiting experts to Hyatt Regency hotel

ST. LOUIS, July 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ABC's Good Morning America Weekend Anchor Janai Norman will join renowned New York Times Reporter Erica Green and several early childhood development and parenting skill-building experts as keynote speakers and presenters at Parents as Teachers 2023 International Conference on Oct. 16 – 19 at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans hotel in Louisiana.

Norman will serve as the Opening Session keynote speaker and touch on the maternal mortality crisis facing Black women and the stigma of mental health, while Green will lead a breakfast plenary panel discussion about maternal mortality and how important doulas are to supporting mothers' birthing experience.

"We are extremely excited to have Janai and Erica along with a host of successful experts in the field of early childhood development present at our conference because their proven accomplishments and desire to discuss some of the most important issues of our time, will inspire us to learn more and do more for the tens of thousands of children and families we serve," said Constance Gully, Parents as Teachers president and chief executive officer.

Parents as Teachers is the nation's leading research-informed evidence-based early childhood home visitation and parenting education program, headquartered in St. Louis, MO. Through a network of 1,000 affiliates and in partnership with child and family-serving organizations nationwide, Parents as Teachers matches parents and caregivers with trained early childhood professionals who make regular personal home visits with families to help them improve parenting skills during their child's earliest years in life, from pregnancy through kindergarten.

For nearly two decades, the organization convenes more than 1,200 early learning and childcare professionals, educators, and experts under one roof, to explore the critical role of parents as their children's first and most important teachers while promoting children's well-being and school readiness success.

This year under the theme Unmasking Potential, a declaration of the enormous opportunities Parents as Teachers has to provide even greater services to its customers, the conference will feature more than 80 workshops on preventing postpartum depression, conversations on diversity, equity, and inclusion, enhancing family engagement, school readiness, serving multi-cultural groups, and parenting in a digital world, just to name a few. Awards presentations, mini-plenaries, exhibits, and Zumba and Yoga classes are staples of the meeting punctuated by a fun-filled Night Out Networking session.

"Attending this conference can be a valuable investment for one's personal and professional growth and a fantastic way to learn about best practices and the latest trends and innovations in home visiting while gaining well-regarded insights and skills around strengthening families and preparing young children for entering kindergarten," said Bart Holland, Parents as Teachers' director of Marketing Communications and Events.

As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility Giving Back initiative, each year Parents as Teachers gives back to deserving charities in the cities that host its conferences through fundraisers. In addition, four early childhood professionals will receive Parent Educator of Year Awards, two groups will receive Losos Prizes for Innovation, one prominent legislator will be bestowed the coveted Tweedie Award and several staff members will be recognized with Milestone awards for years of service.

About the conference speakers
As the conference's Opening Session Keynoter, Janai Norman is a big advocate for advancing maternal health and a versatile and talented journalist, whether she is anchoring at the desk, conducting a one-on-one interview with a newsmaker of the day, or reporting in the field on breaking news. She started at ABC News as an intern at News One in 2011 and returned in 2016 to cover politics as a multi-platform reporter in the D.C. bureau before becoming an overnight anchor for World News Now and America This Morning.

Erica Green is a correspondent in Washington who covers domestic policy. She joined The New York Times in 2017 as an education reporter, focusing on the U.S. Department of Education and issues related to civil rights and educational equity in the nation's schools. Her coverage has documented how the nation's schools have navigated historic challenges in recent years, including the divisive political and social climate that arose during the presidency of Donald J. Trump and a once-in-a-generation pandemic.

Other speakers include Dr. Ron Ferguson, an MIT-trained economist whose teaching, research, and social entrepreneurship over 40+ years span topics ranging from state and local economic development to school reform, to early childhood development and parenting; David Jacobson, a principal technical advisor who designed and leads the Educator Development Center's First 10 initiative, which supports a national network of school-early childhood-community partnerships. They will speak jointly on "How Parents as Teachers Can Help Drive Community-wide Change: Two Complementary Approaches."

Serving as the Closing Session Keynoter is Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, a prominent pediatrician, and the person responsible for exposing the Flynt Water Crisis. She is a C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and founding director of the Pediatric Public Health Initiative, an innovative public health program of MSU and Hurley Children's Hospital in Flynt, Michigan.

For six consecutive years, Centene Charitable Foundation has been the conference's presenting sponsor. Other major supporters include Enterprise Holdings' Road Forward initiative, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Edward Jones, David & Cheryl Morley, Bezos Family Foundation, Jean & Mary Roy Scholarship, Moneta, Mutual of America Financial Group, and the Twiga Foundation.

About Parents as Teachers
Parents as Teachers builds strong communities, thriving families, and children that are healthy, safe, and ready to learn. The internationally recognized evidence-based home visiting model is backed by 38 years of research-proven outcomes for children and families. Parents as Teachers currently serves nearly 200,000 families in all 50 U.S. states, 115 Tribal organizations, five other countries, and one U.S. territory.

Contact: Eric L. Clark,
Marketing Communications Specialist
(cell – 314-363-1400)
[email protected]

SOURCE Parents as Teachers