Omaha, Neb. — The Buffett Early Child Institute has produced a video about the North Omaha Building Brains in Barbershops program, a school-community literacy effort supported in part by the Superintendents’ Early Childhood Plan.

 The program is a collaboration between several Omaha barbershop owners and staff at two Omaha elementary schools that begin in 2017. The barbershop program—inspired by a New York City-based effort—promotes literacy among young black boys. One way is stocking bookshelves with culturally relevant books for boys at the participating schools and barbershops, which include Cross Cuts, Transitions Barber and Beauty, and Lyle Stylez and Cutz.

 The two schools, Mount View and Pinewood Elementary Schools, are a part of the Superintendents’ Plan, an innovative, groundbreaking approach to reducing income- and race-based achievement gaps. The plan impacts more than 3,500 children and more than 500 educators and other early childhood professionals in the Omaha metro area. The Buffett Institute facilitates implementation of the Superintendents’ Plan, which is largely funded by the Learning Community of Douglas and Sarpy Counties.

“North Omaha Building Brains in Barbershops is a wonderful example of how school-community connections can support children’s learning and development,” said Chris Maxwell, director of program development at the Buffett Institute. “We were thrilled to bring additional support to the great work the barbers and teachers were already doing.”

Watch the video