The two-generation approach: Weaving a Web of Resources for Families in Need
For families facing barriers to stability, access to the right support at the right time can change the trajectory of a child’s life.
At Early Learning Indiana, that support often comes through the work of the family engagement and resources team.
Cassie Weber has spent the past three-and-a-half years working with ELI’s embedded Early Head Start program, where her role centers on connecting families to wraparound services that meet needs far beyond the classroom. While family engagement specialists support goal-setting and regular check-ins, Weber also helps bridge gaps by identifying community partners and building direct pathways to critical resources.
“It’s nice to find other programs that fill those needs so we’re not replicating something that’s already been built. If we can’t help, there’s someone who can. We’re building a web of resources,”
That network includes partnerships with organizations like Coburn Place, a domestic violence shelter, and Dress for Success, a boutique and career coaching nonprofit. Weber works closely with these programs to complete intakes, help families secure documentation and ensure they can access the Early Head Start program’s needs-based enrollment.
A key part of her approach is what she calls a “white glove handoff” – not just giving families a phone number, but walking them through what to expect, sometimes even making the call alongside them, because they’re more likely to follow through when they take that approach.
One of the team’s most impactful partnerships has been with Second Helpings, through which ELI receives hundreds of pounds of rescued food each week. Distributed across ELI’s designated Early Head Start sites, the program functions like a rotating mini pantry, ensuring families have consistent access to fresh groceries and essential items.
In addition to community partners, ELI’s hardship fund provides another critical layer of support. Thanks to donors, this fund ensures children can remain in stable, high-quality early learning environments even when families face sudden and severe financial disruption.
For example, if a parent undergoes surgery and temporarily loses income or a family flees a domestic violence situation and needs immediate stability, the fund can help bridge the gap so children can continue their enrollment in Day Early Learning programs without interruption.
Through targeted, time-sensitive interventions and the efforts of the family engagement team, ELI helps preserve continuity of care during moments of extraordinary need, keeping children connected to safe, nurturing classrooms while families regain stability.
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