Tillie Allgood
Tillie Allgood is stuck, and she’ll tell you so herself.
But it’s not a bad thing.
Tillie is a teacher for Head Start at the South Central
Community Action Program in Bloomington, where she provides a classroom
experience for 3- to 5-year-old children of low-income families.
She’s been involved in the program since she herself was in
school, serving in almost every role there is.
As a teenager, Tillie put in countless hours of volunteer
work while her own brother was involved in the program. When it came
time for her own children, Patricia and Patrick, now 19 and 20, to
become enrolled in school, she said the choice to start them at Head
Start was only logical.
Tillie then served on the Council of Involved Families and
worked as a sub for three years. She has been able to get her
certification to drive a bus, her Associates degree, her Child
Development Associate certification, and she is working on her
Bachelor’s degree, all things she said she probably
wouldn’t have been able to do without the help of Head Start.
After
her own children graduated from the program, Tillie took a full-time
position. She hasn’t left for 14 years.
In that time, Tillie has seen a lot of kids pass through.
She’s even had a future State Spelling Bee champion start out
in her class.
She
said some families need a little more guidance than others, and when
that’s the case, Head Start works to connect the family with
resources that will help support them through the years.
Other times, she said, parents just aren’t sure
how to get what their kids need and need a little guidance. Tillie
recalled one family of young parents who had six kids at the time. She
said they knew they needed to get their children in school, but they
weren’t sure exactly what to do.
They found Head Start, and Tillie had every one of their
kids in class. She said as each kid passed through, they were more and
more prepared, picking up on things from those that came before.
“The growth of that family was
astounding,” Tillie said. “The support that we were
able to deliver within that poverty…was just an amazing
thing.”
She said the kids are now entering high school and are involved in a lot of main stream activities like sports.
Yet, she said the relationships with the family don’t end when kids graduate from the program and move on.
“Even
after each child left, we were able to provide support just by being a
safe place to ask questions,” she said.
But
the kids in Tillie’s class aren’t the only
successful aspect of Head Start in Tillie’s life.
She’s seen this deep connection to the program in her own
kids, who she said support the program “210
percent.”
They
were both involved in Head Start as kids and have spent time
volunteering and supporting their mom as they’ve gotten older.
She
said her son, Patrick, spent a lot of time helping out with the
playground. “One minute he’d be shoveling mulch, and
the next he’d be in here lying on the floor and playing with
the kids,” she said. “I think that shows the kind of
belief they have in this program.”
This
is a good example of how Tillie says the Head Start program forms a
tight and lasting bond—a family. As her son was preparing to
move out of the house after graduation, she said he told her not to be
sad because she “still had her Head Start kids, and they need
you”
This
attachment is exactly what Tillie says makes the Head Start family
unique: Once you’re in, and once you believe in the program,
you’re stuck.
“Those friendships and those relationships are long-lasting,” she said.
She encourages those who don’t know about the program to come in and experience the classroom for themselves.
“There’s
something here for everyone,” Tillie said.
“Regardless of the need or level, there’s something
here for everyone.”
Tillie Allgood is stuck, and she’d tell you so herself.
But it’s a good thing.
