Wayne County Partnership for Children Service Providers

Funded Activities

The Partnership for Children of Wayne County, Inc. works with many different local agencies who provide services to children and families and works to identify needed programs and services, as well as resources, to meet those needs.

By blending and leveraging existing resources and providing funding through Smart Start, the programs below are made possible to young children and their families in Wayne County.

WAGE$ Professional Development Incentives are provided through the Child Care Services Association to supplement salaries of child care providers who continue employment in the same setting and acquire educational advancement.

Parents as Teachers provides parent educators from Wayne County Cooperative Extension who visit homes of young children. This program offers child development information and enhances parenting skills primarily through modeling; inspirational playgroups and parenting classes are also offered several times per year. This activity currently serves approximately 120 families each year and enrolls new applicants on a first-come first-serve basis. For more information on this program contact Jill Howell at 580-4072.

Intensive Intervention is provided through the Wayne Action Group for Economic Solvency (WAGES) and extends the First Steps program to thirty additional families. The program is designed to prevent child abuse and/or neglect. Family Service Workers, under the supervision of a psychologist, make weekly home visits to assist parents of at-risk children with child development issues, resources, and support systems. For more information contact Patricia Colon at 734-1178 ext. 283.

Child Care Subsidies are provided through the Wayne County Department of Social Services and assist parents in defraying the cost of child care if they are working and income eligible or in an education or job training program. For further information contact Vickie Jackson at 731-1070.

Comprehensive Health Services provides a team of health professionals available for screening children. The team also consists of qualified Child Care Health Consultants who can assist with improving the health and safety aspects of child care facilities. For more information on this program contact the Wayne County Health Department at 580-4020.

Child Care Resource and Referral is provided through Wayne County Partnership for Children, Inc., and provides parents with information regarding available child care options; offers child care providers additional training and technical assistance; promotes community awareness of child care issues and provides advocacy for young children and quality of care. For more information contact Valerie Wallace at 735-3371 ext. 231.

More at Four provides a high quality pre-kindergarten program for at-risk four-year-olds in North Carolina to prepare them for success in school. Participation is voluntary. Currently, the Partnership provides More at Four Services to over 400 children in private child care facilities, Head Start and select Wayne County Public Schools. For more information contact Valerie Wallace at 735-3371 ext. 231.

Extended Day Scholarship Program supports families that need child care for more hours than Head Start/Early Head Start provides. An extended day allows children continuity in the same quality care and parents the opportunity to work or continue their education. For more information contact Patricia Colon at 734-1178

Every Child Ready to Read delivers early reading initiatives reaching children ages 2-5, their families and caregivers, including child care staff training on developmental levels, providing early reading experiences, family educational sessions, story hours, sharing book collections, and collaborating with other entities to emphasize early reading. This pre-literacy program is provided through the Wayne County Public Library. The Family Literacy program also supports the nationally acclaimed "Reach Out and Read" (ROR) program through volunteer coordination and by providing age-appropriate books. The ROR program offers parents guidance on reading aloud to their children and choosing developmentally and culturally appropriate books. For more information contact Donna Phillips at 580-4014.