Help ensure that Pierce County’s children are ready to learn upon entering school.
OUR GOALS:
1. Annually increase the number of children enrolled in early child development programs.
2. Annually increase the number of children who receive childcare from providers who include developmental activities as part of their service.
WHAT'S NEW...IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Watch our Early Learning video!
United Way, Partners Launch Progressive Plan to Increase School Readiness The United Way of Pierce County, working in collaboration with several community partners, has written a comprehensive plan to increase the quality of early learning in Pierce County. The overall goal of this plan is to make Pierce County the most progressive early learning community in the country.
The plan is based on the idea that there are several community organizations currently doing tremendous work in the areas of early learning and early child development. The plan simply identifies ways to expand and enhance existing work and gain synergy from the combined efforts of key community partners. Community partner who have already committed to collaborating on this plan include the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, Puget Sound Educational Service District, the Tacoma-Pierce County Child Care Resource and Referral Network, KBTC Public Television, Boys and Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound, the City of Tacoma and Pierce County.
We have also discussed the plan with representatives from the Washington Department of Early Learning, Thrive by Five Washington and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. All have commented favorably on the potential of this collaborative effort.
The next step, which has already begun, is to take this plan and generate the necessary activity in our community to increase the school readiness of our children. We will continue to work diligently with our community partners toward the goal of ensuring that one day all Pierce County children will be ready to learn upon entering school.
Early Learning Initiative Strengthening Supports for Early Learning in Pierce County The mission of this grant is to support everyone who impacts children ages 0-6 and improve programs that will lead to continued quality of care and resources for young children. Full story »
Childcare Resource and Referral Joins Effort The Child and Youth Development Learning Team selected Childcare Resource and Referral as a partner in achieving the community goal of annually increasing the number of children enrolled in early child development programs. Research has shown that for every $1 a community invests in children at the earliest of ages, the payback can be well over $7 in savings from things like criminal justice and remedial education programs. Some of what Childcare Resource and Referral of Tacoma-Pierce County does, is help parents find child care, and trains child care providers to improve the quality and management of their business. Child Care Resource and Referral, the Puget Sound Educational Service District and the Pierce County Library System, have partnered together to begin a program called Pierce County Linkages (sometimes also called School Linkages). Pierce County Linkages is an initiative that is working to help connect parents, childcare providers and school staff to improve school readiness and transitions for children entering kindergarten.
Visit their website at: http://www.cityoftacoma.org/34childcare
