SAN ANTONIO — Enrollment in the City of San Antonio's Positive Parenting Course has more than tripled since the start of lockdown last year. Jenny Hixon, a public health administrator with San Antonio, says the course offers practical advice for children of all ages. 

“Things like setting appropriate boundaries, setting yourself up for success by communicating expectations before something happens. That’s a skill that’s effective whether your child is 2 or whether your child is 20,” said Hixon. 

New mom Desiree Newton joined the Positive Parenting Program.

“Very, very informative. Stuff I didn’t know, of course, being a first-time mom,” said Newton. 

Her daughter is 17 months old. She’s becoming more and more active and the PPP course gave her advice on how to handle playful hitting. 

“We’re not going to do that, your hands are for this. We’re going to praise. Just to have an alternative things to do with her hands,” said Newton. 

Parents across the city have benefited from the sense of community the course provides, too. 

“Parents are not meant to parent in isolation, you’re always supposed to be part of your community in raising your child and having support for your child. That’s been the real challenge of COVID,” said Hixon. 

During lockdown, Newton was comforted by a newfound online community through the courses, but also parents willing help in other ways. 

“In the middle of COVID, they said, 'Hey, how are you and Silver? Do you need anything?' When there was no bleach somebody from another program text me and said, 'Hey, we’re on our way to bring you some bleach' when I was at the store and couldn’t find any. It was amazing that I have something to help keep me positive,” said Newton.