851 Case Street.
PO Box 542
Hendersonville, NC
28793
ph: 828-693-1580
fax: 828-693-9659
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Smart Start of Henderson County believes the future of every child begins at birth.  In providing funds to various agencies, organizations, and institutions who provide needed services to children, ages 0-5, and their families, Smart Start is helping to ensure a better, brighter future for Henderson County.

CHILD CARE PROGRAMS

Child Care Subsidy
Child Care Subsidy provides funds for eligible families to help cover or reduce the cost of child care. Funding is also available to assist families with child care needs in short term crisis situations or for work search/employment training. Eligibility is based on family income and extenuating circumstances. This program is administered through the Henderson County Department of Social Services. The Smart Start Subsidy office is housed at the Children and Family Resource Center.

For more information contact:
Amelia Cox
Henderson County Dept. of Social Services
851 Case Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Phone: (828) 698-4440

Website:  Henderson County Department of Social Services

Child Care Resource and Referral
This activity is designed to improve the accessibility, quality, and availability of child care in coordination with other community agencies. For parents, CCR&R provides information on availability and quality of child care in Henderson County. For child care providers, CCR&R provides training and technical assistance to improve the quality of child care programs and to assist providers in reaching higher levels of licensure. CCR&R also provides staff support for the Early Learning Cooperative (ELC), a childcare material lending library and resource center parents and early childhood professionals.

For more information, contact:
Noah Wood, Program Coordinator
Child Care Resource & Referral
851 Case Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 698-0674

Website::  Children and Family Resource Center

Child Care Health Consultant
A qualified consultant from the Henderson County Department of Public Health provides health and safety training and technical assistance to child care providers to address health compliance issues towards improving the health status of all children in child care. 

For more information, contact:
JoAnne Danielson, 698-4450
Henderson County Dept. of Public Health
1200 Spartanburg Highway
Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 694-6092

Website:  Henderson County Department of Public Health

Quality Assistance and Assurance

This activity includes a comprehensive approach incorporating quality program enhancement, professional development, and quality improvement plans to assist child care centers and family child care homes with less than a three star rating.  Project staff will assist directors, teachers, and home providers with designing and implementing  professional development and quality improvement plans which will improve learning environments, reduce staff turnover, and increase star licensure.

For further information, contact:

Noah Wood, Program Coordinator

Quality Assistance and Assurance
851 Case Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 698-0674

Website:  Children and Family Resource Center

More At Four

One-Hundred and Thirteen eligible Henderson county four-year-olds will be eligible to attend a quality pre-kindergarten program from August 2006 to May 2007.

Services are provided at no charge to qualifying families.  The program is funded through the North Carolina More At Four program and administered by the Henderson County Public Schools.  The goal of the program is to support kindergarten readiness for children who might not otherwise be successful. 

All programs will meet strict guidelines for high quality preschools. Classes meet a full day (six hours) and follow the public school schedule.  Students must be four years old on or before October 16, 2006 and meet More at Four eligibility guidelines. Priority will be given to four year olds who are not currently enrolled in a pre-kindergarten program. 

For more information, contact:

Henderson County Public Schools

Laura Ross

Bruce Drysdale Elementary

834 N. Main Street

Hendersonville, NC 28792

(828) 698-5039

Website:  Henderson County Public Schools

Infant Toddler Initiative

This activity will provide a monetary award to licensed 4 and 5 star centers and family child care homes serving infants (birth to 12 months) in order to make it financially feasible for these facilities to continue to provide infant care.  Licensed child care facilities in Henderson County can apply and may receive the award if they show documentation of infant enrollment for at least half of a given month based on the group size of the classroom. 

For more information, contact:

Noah Wood, Program Coordinator
Child Care Resource & Referral
851 Case Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 698-0674

Website::  Children and Family Resource Center

Smart Start Rewards

This Professional Development Program will provide technical assistance to child care providers regarding educational attainment, provide a professional development supplement to eligible child care providers based on educational level, and provide a longevity incentive to providers to reduce staff turnover.  Child care educators who work in Henderson County and meet all eligibility requirements may participate in the professional development supplement and the longevity incentive.  Assistance with professional development planning and linkages to resources will be available to all staff in licensed facilities regardless of whether they are eligible for the professional development supplement or longevity incentive. 

For more information, contact:

Noah Wood, Program Coordinator
Child Care Resource & Referral
851 Case Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 698-0674

Website::  Children and Family Resource Center