Family Connections announces the 2011 Carolyn Grossman Award winner

Annie Lopez, executive director of the Redstone Schoolhouse, was presented with the 2011 Carolyn Grossman Award by Family Connections of Northeast Ohio (formerly Heights Parent Center) at the organization’s Fiesta benefit on May 7 at Hiram House Camp.

Lopez holds a doctorate in developmental and educational psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. Lopez has been actively involved in both research and applied settings, and her work has focused on breaking the cycle of poverty through education. She ties this focus in part to her personal experiences growing up in the South Bronx neighborhood of New York City, after emigrating from Cuba as a child. When she received the Carolyn Grossman Award, Lopez acknowledged that her strong family and their focus on education were the foundations upon which she has built her career and life’s work. 

"My family spoke only Spanish when we arrived from Cuba," she said. "Isolated and alone, my parents relied on the resources around them to make sure we were able to access a good education. All families deserve this access."

Lopez developed and operated several successful family literacy programs, including the Waltersville Family Resource Center in Bridgeport, Conn. and Even Start Family Literacy program in Cleveland Heights. 

She delivers parenting and teacher training sessions, and has provided training to more than 300 early childhood teachers through the Greater Cleveland Literacy Cooperative. She also provides program development consultation to early childhood and family literacy providers throughout Northeast Ohio. 

Lopez founded, and continues to supervise, the Redstone Schoolhouse in Ashtabula County. This child development center provides needed services in a low-income rural area, including specialized autism services. In addition to offering high quality educational services to children up to 12 years of age, Lopez provides a parenting lending library and monthly family literacy events.

The Carolyn Grossman Award honors individuals who demonstrate an extraordinary commitment to strengthening families and preparing young children for success in school and in life. Recognizing that parents often need support in making the most of their children’s critical early years, Carolyn Grossman cofounded Heights Parent Center in 1982. Now known as Family Connections, the organization provides education, resources and support for families with children, from birth through elementary school. Grossman’s children established this award in her honor in April 2003. 


Ellen Barrett

Ellen Barrett is a family support specialist and parent educator at Family Connections and a lifelong resident of Cleveland Heights.

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Volume 4, Issue 6, Posted 12:22 PM, 05.24.2011