Smart Start Review

smartstart-nc.org

Smart Start: The North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc. is North Carolina’s award-winning, nationally recognized early childhood initiative whose goal is to ensure that young children are ready to succeed when they enter school.

A public-private initiative, Smart Start provides funding to all 100 counties of North Carolina. Seventy-eight nonprofit, local organizations called Local Partnerships administer funds at the local level. Currently working with $203.6 million in state funds, Smart Start has had great results in improving the quality of child care, making child care more affordable and accessible and providing access to health services and offering family support. Smart Start continues to strive to reach the needs of all children in North Carolina.

The site offers a wealth of information both about the results Smart Start has achieved in the areas of school readiness as well as resources for families. Browse the Smart Start’s Results section for information about how Smart Start has assisted children with school readiness and health care needs, or read about Smart Start Legislation and Funding, as well as how to get involved as an advocate or make a donation in the History and Get Involved sections.

Learn about Smart Start’s technical assistance grants program and National Smart Start Conferences in the site’s National Technical Assistance Center section. This section also includes a list of publications such as “Child Care & Parent Productivity: Making the Business Case” and “Smart Start in Action: Stories of Success from Three Communities Smart Start in Action.”

The Family Resources section offers a vast number of tips, articles, questions and answers, and links for many aspects of child development, including raising an intellectually healthy child, brain development, health and safety, the importance of reading, a checklist for quality child care, and a section on school readiness.

Check out the Smart Start Media Center for press releases, speeches, speaker information, and the organizations’ copyright and privacy policies.

For NC residents, you can easily find a link to the Smart Start in your area by browsing the county-by-county listing of local partnerships.