Early Childhood InitiativesDr. Karen Whitley, Associate Superintendent for Program Support

Dr. Rodney Thompson, SuperintendentOctober 14, 2014

Focus Areas

We will build family, community, and business support that will generate advocacy for our schools and our school district.

Community Engagement

Early Childhood - Ensure the academic success of children in later years by communicating kindergarten social, emotional, and academic readiness expectations to parents as well as public and private childcare providers.

Career Academies - Collaborate with business and community partners to effectively communicate a shared vision of career academies to parents and other stakeholders.

Provide and enhance quality programs and recognition events for stakeholders.

Capitalize on existing partnership successes and continue to expand relationships with families, parental organizations, community organizations and businesses to generate investment in student achievement.

In early childhood you may lay the foundation of poverty or riches, industry or idleness, good or evil, by the habits to which you train your children. Teach them right habits then, and their future life is safe.- Lydia Sigourney

Berkeley County School District Early Childhood Programs

CDEP First Steps

Head Start

Forty-three Classes in 16 Schools in 2008-2009

CDEPEleven Classes in 6 Schools in 2007-2008

Forty-eight Classes in 16 Schools in 2014-2015

• Orientation• Quarterly Contacts• Open Communication• Classroom Visits• Parent Teacher Agreement

CDEP

First Steps Parents As Teachers Home Visitation Program

Dollywood-Imagination Library/Early Readers Fund

ABC Child Care Scholarship Program

Directors’ Leadership Cohort

Annual Trainings

Nurse-Family Partnerships Early Identification and

Referral/Babynet

• Individualized Family Partnership Agreements

Head Start

• Parent Committee Meetings• Policy Council

• Program-wide Parent Trainings

• Volunteering• Fatherhood Initiative• Grandparent Support Group• Advisory Committees

• Early Childhood Stem Initiative

Future Events

• Read for the Record Campaign• Celebration of Directors’ Cohort

• Update and Expand Information on Website

• Early Childhood Run• Parent Café• Week of the Young Child• Child Abuse Prevention• Early Learning Council

The family seems to be the most effective and economical system for fostering and sustaining the child’s

development. Without family involvement, intervention is likely to

be unsuccessful, and what few effects are achieved are likely to disappear

once the intervention is discontinued. —Unknown