Jayd Rodrigues & Shavon Drayton
Jayd Rodrigues and Shavon Drayton for Horizons for Homeless Children Photo: Stephanie C. Olsen
Horizons for Homeless Children helps young children experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts by providing a quality, early education, safe spaces for play, and support for their family. Horizon’s early childhood educators, with trauma-informed training, know they will have an impact on the future of every child they meet. That’s a profound responsibility. Reader, let’s not forget that early education should not be a privilege
But the accessibility of high-quality, early education for every child doesn’t exist right now for ages 0 to 5. And that’s such a critical moment of brain development.
We can’t talk about this as well as Jayd Rodrigues, Horizon’s Executive Director of Early Education, and Shavon Drayton, their Director of Early Education. Our conversation begins here:
What was it in your life that made you sit where you are today?
Shavon: I am the smallest of my cousin group. There were five of usand I was always doted over to make sure I was cared for. Being the smallest one of the five, as I grew I had thoughts of being a caring nurturer and what that might have looked for me. You see I have a chronic medical condition, Sickle Cell Disease (https://sicklecellhope.org/). I actually wanted to be a pediatric hematologist. With the dream of being a pedictric hemotologist having to wait until I was old enough for college, I was happy with any opportunity I got to be a caregiver. I always did camp counseling in the summer with school-aged children, and that was awesome. But my passion was really to be in medicine. And then when I found that anatomy and physiology was more than I bargained for, I said, well, let me go teach. [laughing] I knew I did not like middle school ages, and I had this inate feeling that learning must begin before grade school so I went into early childcare and became an infant teacher. After eleven years in the classroom, Sickle Cell took me out of the classroom, which was a big change. But I was able to recognize what I could no longer give to the youngest minds of our future, I can now help to better the people who are in the classroom molding young minds. In 2017 I became an assistant director at Horizons and have been truly blessed ever since.
Jayd: I’m one of five children. I was an immigrant from Cape Verde Islands when I was two and a half. I’ve always been raised with both parents, but it didn’t dawn on me until high school that my parents hardly really saw each other. I got the privilege of seeing them—my mom in the morning, my dad at night. When I was around 12 years old we had some kids all of a sudden at our house. And these kids are now my parents' godchildren. I thought, “That’s strange, I had never known them.” Come to find out, they were in foster care. I was very naive, I think very sheltered. They weren’t living with their parents and I thought that was odd. “You don’t live with your parents? Who do you live with?” They shared that they lived in different homes and that the people caring for them mistreated them. Innocently, I asked, “Why don’t you just tell an adult?” From my experience, an adult is the person who keeps you safe. They had told adults and nothing was done. So, in my young mind, I was like “I’m going to be a good foster parent one day!”
When I was leaving high school, I started doing research on the internet—the internet just came out—and I read all these horrendous stories of children who were abused in the foster care system. So that was the start of becoming an advocate for children. Like Shavon, my first job was also at a summer camp. It wasn’t supposed to be my job, but it became my job because I spoke English and my cousin, who was of age, didn’t speak English. It was a natural thing for me, honestly.
Also like Shavon, I wanted to be a pediatrician, but I didn’t know the nuances of being a pediatrician outside of a medical setting. I had this very fairy tale idea of what it was like to become a doctor. So when I came to find out that’s not true, I went into this program called Jumpstart, which is an AmeriCorps program, and I started working with preschoolers. I was mentoring a child and the focus was on literacy. And it really took. I went to Suffolk University. There, I was among folks who I thought went to better schools and I felt like I was not as bright or as smart. They were so articulate and this and that. It took one person to say, “Gee, you actually have a lot to contribute. You have a natural ability to understand children.” The rest is history.
I graduated college and was recruited as an early preschool classroom teacher. I did that for a little bit, but the pay was not a livable wage. So I left the field for five years to become a nanny. I was getting paid more, but it was boring and I wanted to learn more. I am a lifelong learner. So I came to Horizons. Horizons kept me here because not only do they focus on the families and children, but they put a lot of emphasis on staff. The folks who are doing the direct service need to know what trauma-informed practices are. Horizons kept feeding my brain. I was a teacher for ten years and now I’m a director. I love what I do. I enjoy coming into work each day.
Shavon, what brought you to Horizons? What called you to their mission?
Shavon: Jayd did. When was this? Maybe 2007 or 2008.
Jayd: When you were at Urban College?
Shavon: Yeah, that was a long time ago.
Jayd: That’s when I first met you. Yeah. And you left a lasting impression on me.
Shavon: In 2007 or 2008, I took a class to become Director One certified, and I met Jayd at Urban College of Boston in the same course. We worked on a group project together and became Facebook friends after the course ended. This is again when Facebook was just coming out. So, for ten years, we were just Facebook friends and didn’t talk much. When she became a Director, she called me at the perfect time when I was looking to move from my corporate childcare position. She said, “Hey, I remember how we worked together, and I would love for you to be my Assistant Director.” And so I jumped on it. Horizons’ mission truly spoke to my spirit. Racial inclusivity with its staff, wanting children to thrive through play. It all just made sense to me. I am fulfilled by being in a workplace where I know I am affecting my communty in a positive way.
Jayd, you had mentioned before feeling naive to the ways of the world when you met these foster kids. Shavon, with your educational background in childhood development, were either of you ever paralyzed or overwhelmed by what these kids are going through?
Jayd: Quite honestly, my naivete continued on for some time. My sister used to work at Horizons in the finance department, so she used to come home and talk about Horizons. Even though I grew up in the community in Dorchester, I had this vision that children experiencing homelessness looked different from the children I interacted with. Believe it or not, I thought—and I am kind of ashamed to say this, but I think it’s important to voice it because there are many people who hold the same assumption—that homeless children are tattered and torn. I was blown away when I actually came in for a work interview, and I was like, “They could be my nieces and nephews.” For me, that was a big shock. It broke down the walls of my ignorance, and I was able to not treat the children in my care as special cases. I started working with infants first, and I put my all into working with them in the way I would outside of Horizons. Treating the families as regular folks and not putting them in a category.
Have there been times when you wanted to throw your hands up and say, “I can’t do this anymore!”? And have there been times when you saw a measurable impact on a family that excited you?
Jayd: Bridget, in my experience, there’s never been a moment, believe it or not, where I’ve put my hands up. There’s been many moments where I’ve seen ruptures in terms of how, maybe, a parent might come in, but it’s part of my training to understand the stressors affecting families. So I really try not to ever take things personally. Because I live in the community, sometimes I bump into people and sometimes forget their faces, but they don’t forget me. So, I know that we’re making a great impact on families. I was having a conversation with a parent who didn’t want to leave. Even when they’re faced with the fact that their child needs more than what we can give them, they still want to stay because they’ve built a community here. It’s gratifying to see so many of our families succeed as a result.
Shavon, have there been moments of triumph and helplessness for you?
Shavon: Never helpless. How could I give up on a child? Right? Have I been far into the trenches? Absolutely. Have I had to have conversations that I never would have thought I’d need to have if I stayed in corporate childcare? Yes. But never have I wanted to give up. I had a wonderful success today. I overheard a parent use trauma-informed care language with their own child. I was simply getting coffee and I was walked back to my office, a parent was dropping off their child who was having a bit of a meltdown. The calmness of that parent, the the gentleness, the ease of language, the clear boundaries that were offered by the parent–it was so satisfying because I know where they got that language. That is the language parents hear our teachers use every day. This success confirms that our teachers’ trainings are helping them use this trauma-informed language to build a skill set within themselves that ultimately gets modeled to and then actually used by our families.
That’s incredible. There’s a high burnout rate amongst men and women, especially women, doing the work you two are doing.
Jayd: Bridget, burnouts do happen. Even though I’ve made it look easy in the classroom, it’s hard work, especially at Horizons compared to other programs, because you’re getting families who are experiencing hardship, they can’t pay their rent, or they can’t buy food or, you know, their basic needs are not being met. That teacher is not just working with that child. That teacher is working with the child and parents. That makes us different. It is a harder job, even in urban setting than any other child program in Boston.
Our readers need to understand the very special needs you are helping them meet and the different hats that you wear. What does a typical day look like for you both? What do you prepare for on a typical day when you walk into the office?
Shavon: Oh, goodness. The day begins with a smile and a “Good morning” to everybody. This morning, my day started with a kid. I’m walking to my office and hear the pitter-patter of some feet behind me. I stop in the doorway of my office and feel a brush against my jacket. And then a little child comes flying past me and into my chair. “Oh, are you working today?” {laughing]My day began with joy. So, I just let the kiddo finish their “work”, and I’m like, “You go right on ahead. I’m going to go get some coffee.” After that, there are check-ins with the staff to ensure they are in a good place and a good space to be able to receive children and families and tackle the day ahead.
Jayd: My day starts before I get here. Looking at my calendar, and if there are no serious meetings, then I’m walking to work to decompress. Today, I was listening to an attachment theory podcast. Sometimes I have to rewind it because I go deep into other thinking all over the place. But like Shavon, it’s really about the relationship. The most important moments in any human being’s life are the early relational moments they build and cultivate through interactions. So every moment in here, whether with a staff or with a child or a baby or a parent, you’re building on that relationship. To get to anywhere, you have to have that trust. Because a parent will not open up to you if they don’t even see you say hello or be pleasant. So those little moments matter. Let’s say I need to have a hard conversation with the parent, I would have had that relationship with that parent to make it much lighter and more welcoming. Regardless of the meetings that take place, we’re looking at the staff and securing their well-being. We’re constantly looking at what else we can do to support the staff who is doing the arduous work of being a classroom teacher. I didn’t get burnt out as a teacher because I didn’t understand that back then.
We have a mental health consultant who’s been coming to Horizons for 20+ years, and they actually support the classroom teacher, supporting the early relational health of the child and the teacher. And so there’s all this comprehensive work that we do with them. When I was in the classroom, a consultant told me I’m different from the other teachers. I never quite understood that until I became a director and I started hearing things from our own staff. I’ll share one thing: A staff member said they had no money for food. And I said, “What do you mean you don’t have any money for food? Maybe tap into your savings?” And the person was like, “I don’t have the savings.” And for me, that was a big shocker on so many levels. This field is comprised of a majority of women of color. And so, alongside that, you have the systemic racism that is also a stressor for our people who are doing this already very stressful work. So it’s like a cycle, right? I feel like I’m talking in circles, but my work is not simple to describe. It’s really focused on relationships, and then it’s based on policy and understanding that there’s more for us to do.
Shavon and I both have been engaged in advocacy work because we know that there’s a disparity in the field of early education. There’s not enough respect. There are a lot of people that just think it’s childcare. For a long time, my parents were saying, “Oh, you changed diapers!” It’s something that a lot of people do think; that it’s all about taking care of their basic needs, and then that’s it. But there’s so much more. We do STEM, we do coding. Our curriculum is really rich. We’re not trying to give them just the bare minimum, because we also know that once you give children work that can stress them out it will also build resilience. So, we’re very focused on ensuring that our children are not getting the least just because they’re going through a moment in time. We don’t want that moment to really depict who they are and what they will be.
How does the trust you’re building and teaching the parents translate when they find some stability and resettle into a place they can call that their new community? And, what can they can teach us?
Jayd:A couple of things. We’re not teaching them. We’re listening to them actively about what they want for their family. So I’m unsure if you know our two-gen model. The parents have a coach upon entry to Horizons. They’re paired up with a family advocate and they are sharing what their hopes are for their families. We are looking at the strengths of the families coming in because they do come in with assets, they do come in with strength. And so we want to build on that and capitalize on the fact that they are coming in with something. So that’s the difference. We want them to be the leaders of their family unit and what their hopes are for their family. So I just want to make sure that’s echoed through this publication. I think oftentimes, families experiencing homelessness sometimes are looked down on as, how did you get here? Did you choose the wrong partner? Did you not finish high school? We do have some families who do have an education, or they immigrated here. It can’t be a silo because there’s so many issues that are causing these families to be in this predicament right now that sometimes it’s beyond what we can control. I think advocacy and highlighting some of these things is very key and poignant.
What can we do to in the communities these families are coming to? What is our responsibility to keep them lifted up?
Jayd: I think housing is a big thing. There’s this cliff effect. So even when they are placed in housing, there’s this possibility that they might end up back to square one. I think education is a big piece. Having access for folks. I think fairness in pay in different fields has to be looked at.
Shavon: I can say that’s a heavy question. I wonder if you are speaking of the “we” as a community member or as an advocate trying to demystify and increase levels of equity within various sectors. Either way when families enter communities under strained circumstances or by choice, community members should be welcoming and patient. Recognizing housing equity and access is key to healthy communities. What could a community member, a legislator or even a reader possibly do? The easiest thing to do is send an email or call your state representative to support and back a housing bill the increases and opens access to housing opportunities. This is what I would say the everyday person could do.
Jayd: Let’s say, by chance, they were having conversations and they found out that this family experienced homelessness. It’s important for the readers to understand that’s a small piece of their experience, their story, and it shouldn’t depict who they are and who their family is. To understand that this could happen to any person. That’s what I would want some of the takeaways to be and to understand that our families have strengths. Sometimes it’s easier for folks to look at the deficits as opposed to the strength.
BE A CATALYST
Inspired by Jayd and Shavon? Here are ways you can get involved with her mission:
BE A PAL Spend 2 hours each week with kids as a Playspace volunteer in a shelter near you
GET TO CLASS and assist a teacher at our Early Education Center in Roxbury neighborhood of Boston.
P.L.A.Y as a Young Professional and commit to take the lead in organizing in-person and virtual events, fundraising, advocating, and creating awareness
We operate primarily on financial gifts from individuals like you. Donate today to keep our programs running.
$25 towards Play-Doh and other crafts that enhance children’s sense of touch and inspire creativity
$50 for a set of puzzles that will build children’s problem solving skills
$150 towards dramatic play costumes and props to spur imagination
$500 for a play kitchen to inspire the next famous chef
$2,500 brings music and art lessons to 175 children in our early education centers for one month
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