Collaborations & Partnerships
Child Care Resources recognizes that its efforts on behalf of children and working families are enhanced by its partnerships with others who share the same commitment. As a result, Child Care Resources collaborates with an array of organizations and agencies on community-wide initiatives.
More At Four
More at Four is a state-funded pre-kindergarten program for four-year-olds who are not currently, and have not previously, been served in child care settings. Child Care Resources serves on the Mecklenburg and Cabarrus Counties’ More at Four Committees. Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools contracts with Child Care Resources to issue payments to community-based child care centers that host More at Four classrooms.
Kindergarten Transition
Child Care Resources also works in partnership with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) on a kindergarten transition initiative called Building Bridges to Kindergarten. Transition efforts began at the start of the 2004-05 school year and will continue through December 2007, funded by CMS’ Early Reading First grant. Child Care Resources' Kindergarten Transition Specialist leads the advisory team in designing, implementing, and evaluating a system of transitional supports for children and families starting school and their child care providers and preschool teachers.
Traveling Family & Teacher Resource Center
The Traveling Family & Teacher Resource Centers are mobile lending libraries which offers collections of parenting and child development materials and family support information for families and early care and education/school-age child care professionals in Mecklenburg and Cabarrus Counties. The Resource Centers make monthly visits to centrally-located sites across the region. All materials are available to visitors a monthly loan basis, and a Child Care Resources’ specialist is always on-hand to help with selections, talk about child-related issues and make referrals to other community resources.
TEDDY Awards
The annual TEDDY Award recognizes an outstanding child care professional from across the Charlotte region. Since 1987, Child Care Resources has convened this event as a way to offer parents and families the opportunity to recognize their child care providers for their services to children. Child Care Resources partners with local agencies, businesses and child care programs to present this award each year and raise awareness of the importance of quality child care.
National Provider Appreciation Day
Provider Appreciation Day is a special day to recognize child care providers, teachers and educators of young children everywhere. The founding organizers saw the need to recognize the tireless efforts of providers who care for children of working parents. Started in 1996 by a group of volunteers in New Jersey, Provider Appreciation Day is appropriately celebrated each year on the Friday before Mother's Day.
http://www.providersfirst.com/
The Children’s Alliance
The Children's Alliance is a collaborative of nearly 40 public and private agencies that have joined together to create approaches to human services that are holistic, accountable, participatory, and workable across systems. In 2002, these organizations created this forum with the hope that through collaboration we can streamline projects, jointly work to close service gaps, educate our community in how they can help, extend and direct resources, and organize to support No More Cuts for Kids.
http://www.meckchildrensalliance.org
Smart Start
Child Care Resources Inc. partners with Smart Starts of Cabarrus, Mecklenburg and Union Counties to fund important programs for children zero to five and their families. These programs range from family support initiatives such as Child Care Resource and Referral to CCRI’s mobile lending library called the Traveling Family Teacher Resource Center. Other programs are designed to support child care programs and professionals in maintaining and/or improving the quality of care received by the children they serve. Initiatives such as Star Guard and Training and Technical Assistance supports child care programs while other initiatives like the Directors Leadership Academy and Higher Education Advising directly support child care professionals and their professional development.
www.cabarrussmartstart.org
www.smartstartofmeck.org
www.unionsmartstart.org
Greater Charlotte Family Child Care Association (GCFCCA)
The Greater Charlotte Family Child Care Association is a professional organization dedicated to promoting high quality child care, professional development opportunities and advocy for the field of family child care through networking and supporting others in the profession of family child care.
The Breakfast Bunch
The Breakfast Bunch is an organization in Mecklenburg County comprised of 3, 4, and 5 star early care and education administrators dedicated to providing a forum for directors and other early care and education leaders to share a vision, passion and commitment to high quality early care and education through advocacy, professional development, and networking.
Cabarrus County Directors Association (CCDA)
The County Directors Association is a professional organization for administrators in licensed centers to promote high quality early care and education, professional development opportunities, advocacy for the field of early care and education and networking with other administrators to improve the quality of care for children and families in Cabarrus County
Cabarrus County Family Child Care Association (CCFCCA)
The Cabarrus County Family Child Care Association is a professional organization for family child care homes to support best practices, professional development opportunities and networking among family child care professionals in Cabarrus County.
Union County Child Care Association (UCCA)
The Union County Child Care Association is a professional organization for administrators in licensed centers to promote high quality early care and education, professional development opportunities, advocacy for the field of early care and education and networking with other administrators to improve the quality of care for children and families in Union County.
Union County Family Child Care Association (UCFCCA)
The Union County Family Child Care Association is a professional organization for family child care homes to support best practices, professional development opportunities and networking with other family child care professionals in Union County.
Union County Part-Day Pre-school Association (UCPDA)
The Union County Part-Day Pre-school association is a professional organization for administrators dedicated to promoting best practices and professional development in the field of early care and education for part-day preschool providers.