NORTH CAROLINA PARTNERSHIP FOR CHILDREN INC

SMART START NETWORK BACKBONE, ACCOUNTABILITY & CAPACITY BUILDING (STATEWIDE SUPPORT)NCPC SERVES AS THE STATEWIDE BACKBONE ORGANIZATION FOR SMART START'S 75 LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS, ENSURING LEGISLATIVELY REQUIRED GOVERNANCE, FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY, AND PERFORMANCE STANDARDS WHILE EQUIPPING COMMUNITIES WITH SHARED TOOLS THAT REDUCE ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN AND STRENGTHEN LOCAL IMPACT. IN FY2025, NCPC SUPPORTED NETWORK STABILITY AND EFFECTIVENESS THROUGH ENHANCED CONTRACTING AND DATA SYSTEMS, STATEWIDE LEARNING AND COLLABORATION, AND TARGETED CAPACITY-BUILDING INVESTMENTS THAT HELP LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS RESPOND TO LOCAL NEEDS WHILE ADVANCING STATEWIDE GOALS.MAJOR FY2025 ACHIEVEMENTS: - IMPLEMENTED A NEW CONTRACT AND DATA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (CDMS)A MAJOR MODERNIZATION EFFORT THAT STREAMLINED CONTRACTING, IMPROVED DATA INTEGRITY, AND INCREASED TRANSPARENCY ACROSS THE NETWORK; IMPLEMENTATION ENGAGED NEARLY 1,000 STAFF STATEWIDE AND REDUCED DUPLICATIVE ADMINISTRATIVE WORKLOAD, ALLOWING MORE TIME FOR DIRECT COMMUNITY WORK. (NON-MEASURABLE ACHIEVEMENT: STRENGTHENED CONSISTENCY, TRUST, AND TRANSPARENCY ACROSS 75 ORGANIZATIONS.) - NCPC INVESTED $6.98M IN STATEWIDE CAPACITY-BUILDING AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT TO STRENGTHEN LOCAL PARTNERSHIP SUSTAINABILITY AND EFFECTIVENESS.- EXPANDED ECONOMIES OF SCALE AND SHARED SERVICES TO REDUCE OPERATING COSTS (E.G., STATEWIDE MEMBERSHIP INVESTMENT GENERATING NETWORK SAVINGS), AND EXPANDED ACCESS TO NETWORK TOOLS SUCH AS QUALTRICS, WITH APPROX. 75% OF LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS SET UP TO USE THIS SHARED SERVICE AT NO COST.- SUPPORTED RESILIENCE AND TRAUMA-INFORMED ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE THROUGH THE NC HEALTHY AND RESILIENT COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE, ENGAGING NINE LOCAL PARTNERSHIP TEAMS IN A 10-MONTH IMPROVEMENT PROCESS FOLLOWING INTENSIVE TRAINING.- COMPLETED/ADVANCED A NETWORK-WIDE COMPENSATION/WORKFORCE STUDY TO INFORM STRATEGIES THAT ATTRACT, SUPPORT, AND RETAIN THE SMART START WORKFORCE.PUBLICATIONS / TOOLS ISSUED OR MAINTAINED: -SMART START COMMUNITY INDICATORS DASHBOARD (ONGOING UPDATES)- CDMS IMPLEMENTATION RESOURCES AND STATEWIDE REPORTING TOOLS -NETWORK WORKFORCE/COMPENSATION STUDY DELIVERABLES (REPORT AND SUPPORTING MATERIALS)CLIENTS SERVED (PROGRAM REACH):- 75 LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS (DIRECT ORGANIZATIONAL CLIENTS) - APPROX. 1,000 LOCAL PARTNERSHIP STAFF ENGAGED THROUGH CDMS TRANSITION SUPPORT AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

EARLY CARE & EDUCATION ACCESS, QUALITY, AND WORKFORCE SUPPORTS (INCLUDING SUBSIDY, WAGE$, AND NC PRE-K SYSTEM SUPPORT)SMART START STRENGTHENS NORTH CAROLINA'S EARLY CARE AND EDUCATION SYSTEM BY IMPROVING ACCESS, AFFORDABILITY, AND QUALITY OF CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING, AND BY INVESTING IN THE WORKFORCE THAT MAKES HIGH-QUALITY CARE POSSIBLE. IN FY2025, LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS INVESTED SMART START FUNDING TO HELP FAMILIES AFFORD CHILD CARE, SUPPORT TEACHER COMPENSATION AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AND IMPROVE CLASSROOM QUALITY AND HEALTH/SAFETY PRACTICESESPECIALLY IN COMMUNITIES FACING THE GREATEST BARRIERS TO CARE.MAJOR FY2025 ACHIEVEMENTS:- LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS INVESTED OR FACILITATED $64.68M IN CHILD CARE SUBSIDY, HELPING FAMILIES AFFORD CARE AND REMAIN IN THE WORKFORCE; $41.6M OF THIS WAS MANAGED IN COORDINATION WITH DCDEE THROUGH SMART START'S SUBSIDY SET-ASIDE MODEL.-SUPPORTED THE EARLY CHILDHOOD WORKFORCE THROUGH WAGE$ SALARY SUPPLEMENTS, WITH 51 LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS PROVIDING SUPPLEMENTS TO 4,075 TEACHERS; SUPPORTED TEACHERS SHOWED IMPROVED STABILITY, WITH OVER 82% REMAINING IN THEIR ROLES AND A REDUCED TURNOVER RATE (APPROX. 13%).- SUPPORTED QUALITY IMPROVEMENT THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES: - 28% (1,472) OF NORTH CAROLINA CHILD CARE PROGRAMS PARTICIPATED IN SMART SOLUTIONS THAT ENHANCED TEACHER KNOWLEDGE AND TEACHER-CHILD INTERACTIONS.-392 CHILD CARE PROGRAMS PARTICIPATED IN AT LEAST ONE SMART SOLUTION TO ENHANCE HEALTH AND SAFETY (YEAR-OVER-YEAR INCREASE).- EXPANDED WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SUPPORTS REACHING APPROX. 15,000 TEACHERS THROUGH TRAINING, MENTORING, AND HIGHER EDUCATION NAVIGATION (INCLUDING 14,448 RECEIVING TRAINING AND 582 RECEIVING HIGHER EDUCATION ADVISING; MANY DEMONSTRATED STRONG COURSE OUTCOMES). SUPPORTED STATEWIDE EARLY LEARNING SYSTEMS: - NC PRE-K SYSTEM SUPPORT: LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS CO-LEAD LOCAL NC PRE-K COMMITTEES AND, IN 55 COUNTIES, 46 PARTNERSHIPS ADMINISTER NC PRE-K THROUGH SEPARATE DCDEE CONTRACTS, DIRECTING $7,652,440 IN ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR CLASSROOM OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT.- LAUNCHED NC TRI-SHARE CHILD CARE PROGRAM PUBLICLY IN AUGUST 2024 FOLLOWING EXTENSIVE PROGRAMMATIC AND ADMINISTRATIVE PREPARATION TO EXPAND AFFORDABILITY THROUGH A SHARED-COST MODEL.CLIENTS SERVED (PROGRAM REACH): - 4,075 TEACHERS RECEIVING WAGE$ SUPPLEMENTS - 1,472 CHILD CARE PROGRAMS ENGAGED IN QUALITY-FOCUSED SMART SOLUTIONS - APPROX. 15,000 TEACHERS SUPPORTED THROUGH PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND HIGHER EDUCATION/NAVIGATION SUPPORTS