Background

History
"Fostering the Strength, Pride & Respect of Aboriginal Children and Families.”

AHS in BC is a Public Health Agency of Canada-funded, early intervention strategy for First Nations, Inuit and Métis children and their families who live in urban centres. Aboriginal Head Start projects typically provide structured half day preschool experiences that help prepare young Aboriginal children for their school years, by meeting their spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and physical needs. All of our Aboriginal Head Start sites are licensed pre schools. The AHSABC is also funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada as a Support Project for the AHS programs in BC. 

AHSABC Vision Statement:

The Aboriginal Head Start Association of BC is a Leader in Aboriginal Early Childhood Education

We provide support to Aboriginal Head Start sites to support excellence in programming

AHSABC Mission Statement:

We are dedicated to the development of Aborignal children and their families, and we work in collaboration with other organizations and government to ensure consistent quality standards.


Statements of Belief

We believe:

• That children and families come first;
• In involving parents at all levels;
• In honouring Aboriginal community uniqueness and cultural diversity;
• In continuous learning to improve quality;
• In the value of promoting Aboriginal Head Start;
• In respecting diversity while striving for unity;
• In open and respectful communications at all levels.

Goals and Objectives:
What do we do? The Aboriginal Head Start Association of British Columbia provides support to the Urban AHS site in BC.  We do this in a variety of ways including, but not limited to:

• We provide a professional link between the Public Health Agency of Canada and the AHS sites in BC
• We provide and promote culturally relevant training and resources
• We support building the capacity of AHS staff and parents/caregivers
• We host an annual Cultural Retreat for AHS staff and parents
• We work in partnership with the Public Health Agency of Canada and other resource organizations
• We assist our AHS programs in accessing training and professional development
• We access other resources and programs to support site's developmental needs
• We support parental and community involvement
• We plan and coordinate conferences and training events
• We facilitate AHS workshops
• We create and develop resources to support the curriculum needs of AHS programs, these resources foster the continued expansion of the 6 AHS components in our sites
• We represent our membership by providing a voice at provincial tables, organizations and community committees