Early Learning Coalition of Polk County

School Readiness: even before children attend pre-kindergarten, they gain from experiences that help them be ready for School. That is why School Readiness is such an important part of Early Learning. The Florida legislature recognized that when they passed the School Readiness act to help children from low-income families get the support they need to be successful in School. While helping children prepare for School, the program provides child care so a parent can work or attend a training or education program.

Voluntary pre-kindergarten: prepares Early learners for success in kindergarten and beyond. Children must live in Florida and be 4 years old on or before september 1 of the current School year to be eligible. The program helps build a strong foundation for School using educational materials that are geared to various stages in a child's development.

American rescue plan act (arpa): the the purpose of this funding is to implement an Early Learning discretionary grant program for the following purposes:- increasing/building the supply of child care- training, professional Learning activities, and workforce initiatives- local initiatives/pilot projects to improve kindergarten Readiness- community outreach and family engagement- equipment, supplies, classroom materials- supplying and supporting curriculum- business administration computer software- Early Learning software and technologythrough the arpa funding, the Coalition offered a social emotional Learning conference and other professional development opportunities to 300 Early Learning educators and Coalition staff in Polk County, created and implemented business support training and coaching for approximately 20 providers, provided steam (science, technology, engineering, art, math) kits for approximately 150 vpk classrooms to promote problem solving and critical thinking skills, piloted a coaching software system for elc coaches and pre k teachers (approximately 400) with the goal to interact, track goals, store and share data, offered book sets to 1,000 families throughout Polk County in order to support Early literacy and family connections, distributed 15,000-20,000 family engagement kits for preschool families throughout Polk County in order to support Early Learning and kindergarten Readiness.

The maternal infant and Early childhood home visiting (miechv) initiative funded the nurse-family partnership (nfp) program in Polk County. Nfp is a national program that provides education and support to first-time mothers in low-income communities using specially-trained nurse home visitors. Families receive services starting in pregnancy through the child's second birthday. Through the miechv funding, the nfp Polk program served 103 first-time pregnant mothers throughout their pregnancy and up to the first 2 years of the child's life.

Polk County grants: the Coalition accepts the america rescue plan (arp) funding awarded by the Polk County board of County commissioners. The Coalition will utilize the funds in accordance with the scope of work as described below to support the efforts of the coalition.scope of work: the Coalition will use arp funding to purchase program supplies including, but not limited to, those listed below as part of our program recovery and support efforts. As indicated in the budget, the Coalition will also use 10% of the funds for administrative costs.- client support materials including health and safety items- educational items and supports for children and families- Early literacy support materials- training supplies

Early Learning Florida program: in 2014, the Florida legislature approved a special pilot project to see whether specific training approaches improve how well children do in School Readiness programs. The project is now voluntary and gives eligible child care providers and their instructors an opportunity to earn additional compensation for improving School Readiness program outcomes. The Coalition verifies that participants meet the requirements for completion and pays stipends to the participants in accordance with the contract.