Grant to help WAGES expand
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on December 29, 2014 1:46 PM
WAGES Community Action Agency is one of 240 organizations nationwide, nine in North Carolina, awarded an Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership grant, which will fund expansion of the local child care program for infants and toddlers.
WAGES, or Wayne Action Group for Economic Solvency Inc., has operated Head Start in Wayne County since 1966 and Early Head Start since 1998.
The recipients were named recently at the White House Summit on Early Education in Washington, D.C.
Earlier in the year, the federal funding opportunity was announced, with "high-need communities" especially encouraged to apply. The U.S. Department of Education later reported that 35 states and Puerto Rico had responded.
The emphasis of the grant is on enhancing the quality of child care for infants and toddlers, using the Early Head Start model. Officials have called the Early Head Start program a quality model because of its emphasis on family engagement, teacher education, developmentally appropriate environments and low child/staff ratios.
In the WAGES Early Head Start program, there are currently more children on the waiting list than there are in the classroom.
There are challenges providing child care among the youngest segment of the population, said Patricia Beier, WAGES director of children and families division.
"It's very costly to serve infants and toddlers," she said. "This (funding) means that more parents will be able to work because they'll have placement for their child. It's something that's very, very, very needed, throughout the country but particularly in Wayne County."
The lack of resources for infants and toddlers was likely one reason Wayne County was chosen as a grant recipient, she said. The agency is scheduled to receive $1.1 million a year.
"Right now I think it was for three years but hopefully it will become part of our indefinite funding," she said. "It's to serve 72 additional children."
WAGES will partner will three child care centers to implement the initiative -- Antioch Missionary Baptist Church Child Care Academy, Trinity Child Care Center and Joyful Play Child Care.
"WAGES staff will provide intensive support, coaching, mentoring and monitoring to the centers to ensure that the model fidelity for Early Child Start is maintained and that children and families receive the highest quality child and family development programming," she said. "Seventy-two additional children will be served as these centers, bringing the total Early Head Start enrollment in Wayne County to 260.
"There are currently more than 250 children on the wait list for Early Head Start in Wayne County."
Twenty-four slots will be added at each of the child care centers, she explained. The sites were chosen based on recommendations, plus the fact that they serve infants and toddlers.
The 72 children will be primarily chosen from the existing list of applicants, she said.
"We'll go through our waiting list, looking at our children who are currently being served," she said.
Parents are also encouraged to apply for the slots.
"We're constantly recruiting," Ms. Beier said. "Priority goes to the children with the greatest need."
The funding will also be used to hire staff to accommodate the additional children and to meet the program's ratio, which is one adult for every four children. Maintaining that ratio requires higher standards than the typical child care licensing, she said, which equates to additional training and technical assistance resources.
"I can imagine that the centers may be hiring a total of about 12 to 15 new positions," she said. "And we're going to hire six new people at WAGES."
Ms. Beier said she anticipates getting more information on the implementation of the grant funding after the holidays.
"I'm hopeful that we'll hear about the openings around the first of February and we'll be able to start," she said.
Meanwhile, the WAGES office will be open this week, with the exception of New Year's Day, for inquiries or more information.
"We're excited that this opportunity has come to Wayne County, to expand high quality child care," she said. "It's a big thing. It's an important thing, something that's much needed in our community."
For more information on Early Head Start, call 919-734-1178, ext. 283.