2021-2022 ANNUAL REPORT
To assist children, birth to six, and their families by supporting collaborative efforts that ensure all children are prepared to succeed in school.
➢ By FY 23, the percentage of children directly served by York County First Steps will increase from 31% to 36%.
➢ By FY 23, the percentage of children under age 6 who benefit from York County First Steps Quality Enhancement and Training efforts will increase from 13% to 18%
The years of early childhood are a critical window of development during which much of human potential is shaped.
Families are the single most important influence on the development of their young children.
➢ By FY 23, the percentage of children who score at the highest level on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment will increase from 45.6% to 50%.
1. Expand the NFP Program to serve more at-risk families in our region.
2. Expand the county PAT capacity to serve more Hispanic/Latino families.
3. Expand available childcare vouchers in support of our parenting interventions.
4. Expand Quality Enhancement and Training efforts to reach more at-risk children.
5. Elevate our community role as early intervention expert in our community.
Street, City SC 00000 | 000-000-0000 | website OR
scfirststeps.org/county
929 Sylvia Circle, Rock Hill, SC 29730 | 803-981-5780 | www.YCFirstSteps.com
Last year, because of York County First Steps: 74% more likely to score at the highest level on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment 34% less likely to be chronically absent in kindergarten PROVEN RESULTS A 2019 study found that children who received First Steps local partnership services were: $1 = $3.00 York County First Steps leveraged $904,422 from sources outside of state government, providing a match of $2.00 for every state dollar invested 262 educators participated in First Steps training and professional development, benefitting 500+ children 2,713 parents & caregivers received services and support to be their child’s first and most important teacher 2,125 children directly served in York County
FIRST STEPS IS HERE
MESSAGE
FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
This past year was filled with opportunities to learn, challenges to overcome, and partnerships to grow. Here is a quick summary:
Opportunities to Learn
• Adapting the Parents as Teachers Model to work with families involved in Family Preservation through referrals from our County’s Department of Social Services. Our Connecting Families Program has gotten off to a great start with tremendous collaboration with our local DSS partners.
• Adapting to the “new normal” brought on by the Pandemic and its effects on our Childcare Providers and their staffing needs.
Challenges to Overcome
• Finding and retaining new staff to provide new programs being offered in York County.
• Building sufficient organizational capacity to support and manage new and expanded services being offered throughout the community.
Partnerships to Grow
• Engagements with the Rock Hill Housing Authority and United Way of York County offer additonal funding for childcare vouchers. We provide expertise by working with childcare providers and administrative oversight for their voucher programs.
• Learning how to collaborate with community partners as we collectively work to address educational gaps regardless of cause so that more children can attain their life aspirations.
We feel we advanced each of these toward long-term success and sustainability. We know our work isn’t complete, but we will carry forward our efforts with renewed commitment and passion as we look toward brighter futures for our children. We invite you to explore our Annual Report for how we worked to make an impact in York, and we also invite you to join us in our efforts.
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David W. Lisk, Sr. Executive Director
York County First Steps
Every South Carolina child will be prepared to succeed in school.
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Continuing to work closely with our Childcare Provider partners, we provided targeted Training and Professional Development to help our providers address continuing issues related to the pandemic and staffing issues. Many providers are limited on enrollment capacity due to staffing. Relevant topics included:
- Recruitment and Retention
- Nutrition: 5210!
- Dealing with Difficult People
- Challenging Behavior
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We are so glad we partnered with York County First Steps to help us with our business. The last couple of years have been difficult trying to survive with all the chaos and unknowns. Having someone to ask questions, help explain what resources are available, and at times, just be there for us, has been a lifeline.
Megan, York County Childcare Provider
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Childcare vouchers have been identified as a high priority need for families based on recent Needs and Assessments surveys conducted in York County. Partnerships with the Rock Hill Housing Authority through their Federal Grant support have earmarked additional funds for vouchers to help families move toward self sufficiency. We will continue to engage other potential partners to increase potential funding to meet a higher percentage of the community need.
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* Est. for 6 weeks at end of FY.
York County First Steps and Tri-County Pediatrics have partnered to provide the Healthy Steps Program to the families with preschool children that are patients at TriCounty Pediatrics. Their primary client base can benefit from community resources and support for their preschool children. We started this program in late FY 22 and have hosted several community events to highlight the new program.
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A client’s baby had a stroke in utero. At around 6 months we noticed the baby's milestones didn't match up with milestones of a normal 6-month-old baby. The baby was referred to a neurologist by his Pediatrician. We also connected them to BabyNet where he is now getting physical therapy and occupational therapy. This early intervention with BabyNet will allow the client's baby to make a full recovery. The client also was referred to TEFRA to help with the baby's medical cost not covered by Medicaid.
Lou, York NFP Home Visitation Nurse
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We have expanded our use of this evidenced based program in several ways in the past couple of years. We continue our support to serve more families with our School District Partners in York, Clover, and Rock Hill. We have added a separate outreach to the Hispanic Community throughout the county and we have partnered with DSS to work with families working toward Family Preservation through our Connected Families Initiative.
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My son truly enjoyed the visits with his Kindergarten Teacher this summer. Just as importantly, he became more and more excited about starting school in the next couple of weeks. This was just the program he needed at this time! We can’t thank First Steps enough for making this program available.
Miguel, Father of Rising 5K Student in Fort Mill SD
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PUBLIC AWARENESS
York County First Steps looks to expand our messaging efforts to reach more community members through direct communications and through community events. We continue to evolve our web and social media presence to reflect how families with young children consume information. The predominant access point is through cell phones either for seeking general information or accessing programs and services. This past year we began the process to modify our website to be more parent centric and designed for phone access. We also leveraged radio and TV interviews to highlight key early childhood priorities including the importance of support for our childcare providers and how best for parents to connect with early childhood interventions.
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CHILDCARE PROVIDER PRIORITY BY THE NUMBERS 2021-2022 6 Public Interviews/Forums 1894 Individuals Reached
Addressing the needs of young children is a shared endeavor. In addition to providing services to families and support for childcare providers, York County First Steps mobilizes partners and community members to ensure all children in York County begin school ready to succeed. We serve as a:
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1519 Families Served 2201 Materials Distributed as a Community Portal
Through partnerships and collaborations, as well as financial support from grants and contributions, York County First Steps leverages state dollars to enhance and expand services to children and families.
FUNDING SUPPORT
NFP National Service Office: $178,657
Children’s Trust (MIECHV): $131,300
Sisters of Mercy NC Foundation: $50,000
Arras Foundation: $50,000
Junior Welfare League: $ 40,492
School Districts: $11,500
SC Endeavors: $2,000
Individual Donations: $2400
IN-KIND SUPPORT
York School District #1: $14,750
Clover School District #2: $15,119
Rock Hill School District #3: $12,950
JOIN US
For more information on partnership opportunities, visit our website at www.YCFirstSteps.com
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State Funding Federal Funding Private Funding In-Kind Contributions Total Parents as Teachers $132,976 $67,437 $160,128 $42,819 $403,360 Child Care Quality Enhancement $87,925 $18,227 $0 $0 $106,152 Child Care Training $36,380 $0 $800 $0 $37,180 Nurse Family Partnership $78,947 $286 $479,087 $0 $558,320 Countdown to Kindergarten 5 and 4K $27,682 $40,880 ($544) $0 $54,538 Scholarship Initiative $40,858 $0 $0 $0 $40,858 Partnerships & Community Ed & WIC $30,161 $20,971 $4,956 $0 $44,117 Administrative Support $30,492 $0 $684 $0 $31,176 Total Expenses $465,421 $147,801 $645,111 $42,819 $1,301,153 10% 90% Since inception, York County First Steps has leveraged $7,439,372 from sources outside of state government. That’s $0.76 for every state dollar. 16 Expenditures of State Funds by Program Type
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Carol Mann, Chair
Tenisha Powell, Secretary
Carolyn Greene
Jane Culp
Maya Alexander Dina Grant
Dr. Winslow Shock
Mary Chamberlain Linnie Miller Catlin Anderson
STAFF
Crystal Culbreath
Cindy Taubenkimel, Vice Chair
Sharon Grooms
Jessica Elliott
Carol Perkins Kenya Morris Beth Cooper Dina Cole Erin Ray
David Lisk, Executive Director
Susan Hagood, Program Administrator
Susan Robinson, Early Learning Specialist
Alannah Visbeck, NFP/QE
Rebeca Araya, PAT PE
Erin Paradiso, PAT CF
Rebecca Terry, NFP Manager
Karmen Barrett, NFP
Tricia Sutphin, NFP
Eusheakia Blakeney, NFP
Laura Driskell, PAT CF
929 Sylvia Circle, Rock Hill, SC 29730 | 803-981-5780 | www.YCFirstSteps.com
CONTACT US
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Total number of documents printed: 23. Cost per unit: $14.04. Total printing cost: $322.86.
