Child Care Quality and Availability

CCR&R (Child Care Resource & Referral) – Provides support and information for families seeking child care options and referral services, provides technical assistance and trainings for child care providers and supports the Selma and Clayton Resource Centers

Professional Development – Assists child care professionals by drafting individual professional development plans, provides guidance on higher education options and accessing financial assistance in an effort to improve star rated license levels.

WAGE$ - Provides education-based salary supplements to qualifying teachers, directors and family child care providers, to reward teacher education and encourage continuity of care.

TIP (Teacher Incentive Program) –TIP is an incentive program which provides assistance in paying for health insurance for individuals achieving higher levels of education. TIP works to promote a more highly qualified child care workforce and reduce turn-over.

Purchase of Care (DSS) – Assists low-income families by paying a portion of their child care costs, serves Head Start Wrap-Around families and provides enhancement incentives to high quality child care programs

Administrative (DSS) – Supports the need for additional staff to administer the Purchase of Care activity through DSS

More At Four Purchase of Care – More at Four is a quality pre-kindergarten program for at risk four year olds. Our Smart Start funds are used to supplement the State More at Four Reimbursement rate and to reimburse programs for transportation services for eligible children.

Family Support

Parents as Teachers – Intensive parent education program which educates families on child development and parenting skills in order to promote child language, intellectual growth, and physical and social-emotional skills.

Health Related

Assuring Better Child Health & Development – Educates pediatricians and general practitioners of the importance of a comprehensive developmental screening process through group meetings and one-on-one site visits.

Johnston Inclusion Support Services - Provide consultation, technical assistance and training to child care providers and families of children in care when there is a developmental, behavioral or social-emotional concern.

System Support

Program Coordination/Evaluation – Ensures coordination and collaboration among Smart Start funded services and other county agencies targeting children 0-5, and to provide technical assistance to Smart Start service providers, to ensure programmatic accountability.

Community Outreach Coordination – Identifies methods to reach families that need various activities supported by the Partnership, and identify potential funding initiatives.