Ayrshire Foundation - Featured Grants: Mothers' Club

Mothers’ Club Family Learning Center
980 North Fair Oaks Avenue, Pasadena

Mothers’ Club is a 50 year-old Pasadena non-profit agency that serves parents who want a better future for their children, but are isolated by poverty, lack of education, language barriers and inadequate social support. The agency’s free, intensive programs teach mothers the skills they need to help their children in school and to maintain a healthy, stable household. While parents are learning and building relationships with other moms, their children are thriving in the care of professional early childhood educators.

When families complete the program, children are ready for kindergarten and their parents are ready and capable of supporting their children’s education, as well as their own personal development. The Center’s two-generation learning model is a proven way to help families break the cycle of poverty because when you increase the education level of a mother, you significantly increase the future educational success of her child.

Over the last ten years, Mothers’ Club has emerged as a model recognized for its best practices in parent engagement and education, for its two-generation learning strategies for at-risk parents and children, and for its high-quality early childhood environment and curriculum. The agency’s most recent award came in September 2009 when the California Community Foundation and The Eisner Foundation honored Mothers' Club with a top award in education for its innovation, resilience and impact in improving the quality of life for low-income L.A. residents.

Mothers' Club - four of the classrooms in the child development center use glass movable walls to create flexible spaces and allow for natural light from the above clerestory.

Four of the classrooms in the child development center use glass movable walls to create flexible spaces and allow for natural light from the above clerestory.

In fall 2007, Mothers’ Club received a grant from the Ayrshire Foundation to support the purchase and renovation of its first permanent facility. The Family Learning Center opened its doors in October 2007, after a $6.6 million capital campaign. The Center is designed specifically for two-generation learning programs, and is LEED Certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) at the Gold Level by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Mothers' Club - a mother enjoys a warm morning reading to her two young children.

A mother enjoys a warm morning reading to her two young children.

Mothers’ Club Family Learning Center has garnered a number of awards for its facility’s design, including: Best Overall Award, Flex Your Power, 2008; AIA California Council, Savings by Design Energy Efficiency Integration Citation, 2008; Learning By Design Citation of Excellence Award, 2009; Southern California Concrete Producers Cornerstone Concrete Excellence Award, 2007; and Design Share Awards, Merit Award, 2008.