Craven Smart Start was awarded a $20,000 grant from the Harold H. Bate Foundation, earlier this year to fund a project which will help to open three new Family Child Care Homes (FCCH’s) in Craven County. For some time, Craven Smart Start has seen a continuing decrease in the number of FCCH’s, creating a shortage of licensed facilities in Craven County. With a number of home providers approaching retirement age, the trend seems likely to continue.
“There is a real need for these in-home facilities, “according to Kelly Shaw, a Quality Enhancement Specialist for Craven Resource and Referral (CCR&R). “Family childcare homes provide long-term continuity and relationships with a primary caregiver, sometimes for decades”. But opening an FCCH can be expensive and cost prohibitive to many families, who would like to provide licensed childcare in their home. Recognizing the importance of in-home childcare and the cost involved in opening a licensed family childcare home, CCR&R staff decided to pursue grant funding to develop some new family childcare homes to help replace FCCH’s that have been lost since the Pandemic. Executive Director Cassandra Bennett submitted a grant proposal to the Harold H. Bate Foundation last fall and earlier this year she was notified that Craven Smart Start had received the grant. Bennett shared, “We were thrilled and immediately began to recruit prospective FCCH providers for the project.”
On February 23, after a review of the applications and interviews conducted, CCR&R staff announced the names of the grant participants. They are Annissa Raynor from Havelock; Shante’ E. Jackson from Vanceboro and Tamasharay Bryant from New Bern. Quality Enhancement Specialists have purchased materials and equipment for the new FCCH’s and are working closely with each recipient to help them meet licensing requirements.
According to Ms. Bennett, “The Bate grant has enabled our CCR&R quality enhancement staff to work with and help these three grant participants in opening new FCCH’s by providing them materials and resources. Each grant participant will create a Family Child Care environment that is safe and developmentally appropriate for young children. This environment will maintain all rules and regulations required by the North Carolina Division of Child Development. We are excited that Ms. Bryant’s FCCH will be opening soon. Many thanks to the Harold H. Bate Foundation for making this project possible. We are very appreciative of their support for making this project a reality.”
Craven Smart Start, Inc. is a 501(c)3 public-private partnership that administers the funding and programs of Smart Start, North Carolina’s early childhood initiative, in Craven County. For more information about Craven Smart Start and CCR&R visit cravensmartstart.org.
By Pinkie Moore