Originally published on SCNow.com.
By: Jamie Rogers, Morning News Reporter
FLORENCE — Young children in Florence and Marion Counties are set to benefit from a new project created by federal stimulus funds.
First Steps, a nonprofit group aiming to prepare children for the first grade, received $146,104 in funds for the counties through the state Department of Social Services from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
The funds are to be used to implement a child care initiative that enhances how pre-school children are taught in small child-care facilities, said Spencer Scott, executive director of the Florence and Marion County First Steps programs.
Scott said the funds will help the nonprofit create a network comprised of family child-care facilities, businesses that provide care to six or fewer children.
Group child-care facilities are those that care for 12 or fewer children and are targeted for the network, as well, he said.
“Families and groups are small settings. They have a small ratio, so it’s better for educating children,” Scott said.
The funds will help the children who are educated at the small facilities get ready for kindergarten, he said.
Many are the children of single parents who don’t have the time to prepare their children for school and teach them things that will keep them on a level playing field with their kindergarten classmates, Scott said.
The funds from the stimulus will provide training and technical assistance for facilities in the network and help them apply for and receive grants. The stimulus money will fund the project for two years, Scott said.
The funds became available at a good time, Scott said. Many of family and group child care centers had to close last year because of dire economic situations.
But one such child care facility, Carolina Kids, actually flourished to grow from a group to a full child-care center. Carolina Kids now cares for about 32 children during the day, Scott said.
Sue Rex visited the center Monday on behalf of her husband, Dr. Jim Rex, state Education Superintendent and Democratic candidate for South Carolina governor.
After touring Carolina Kids, Rex said the facility was impressive.
“You can tell (the owner) is dedicated 100 percent,” she said.
The facility educates and cares for children whose parents work first and second shift.
“It starts with our babies,” Rex said. “We really need to make sure our kids are reading on grade level by third grade. Otherwise, they spend the rest of their education days trying to catch up.”
Licensing data indicates the Pee Dee, particularly Florence County, has the largest concentration of family and group child care facilities, Scott said.
“Sometimes we think the stimulus money isn’t working but it is. A lot of places would have had to shut down if not for those funds,” Rex said.
Tags: First Steps, Stimulus Funds, Sue Rex