Mission, Philosophy, & Goals

MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to empower families to achieve life goals, support the development of infants and toddlers; impact the community by setting a standard of high quality childcare; and provide parental, school, and community support for the growth of very young children.

PHILOSOPHY

Vulnerable children benefit from participating in safe, nurturing, developmentally appropriate early childhood development programs. With parents and the community working together, we can ensure that children will be healthy, safe, and ready to learn!

GOALS/OBJECTIVES

Objective 1: Development & Education.
Expand Early Head Start services to eligible families in the primary service region as well as the cities of Poplarville, Carriere, McNeil, and Lumberton, MS through expansion opportunities.

Objective 2: Family Engagement.
Assess the needs of the fathers in order to overcome the barriers which interfere with participation and communication. Some schools and communities do not fully understand the problems parents, particularly fathers, encounter and the importance of reaching out to them in order to build the kind of relationships that engage parents as true, active partners early in their children’s education.

Objective 3: Family Support Services.
Provide an array of family services that promote the safety and well-being of children and their families. This includes empowering families to achieve or sustain independence and self-sufficiency through partnerships with PSD EHS and other community programs.

Objective 4: Transportation.
Provide reliable, affordable transportation services so EHS families may travel to and from service-related appointments, including but not limited to dental, medical, WIC, employment services, and agency events.

Objective 5: College / University Partnerships & Staff Credentialing.
Establish partnerships with colleges/universities to serve clients who may qualify for agency programs. Such partnerships will also allow agency staff to receive specialized training, input and guidance from college/university staff and faculty. Lastly, partnering with colleges/ universities will allow the agency to utilize the talent of internship, work-study and field placement students.

Objective 6: Workforce Development.
Establish an annual training calendar to schedule the attendance of families and the community at local workshops and other informative events. Provide training plans all interested parents in order to enhance employment stability and advancement.

Objective 7: Dual Language Learners.
Develop strategies to identify, hire, and train bilingual staff members in order to better serve culturally and linguistically diverse children and families.

Objective 8: Parent Education.
Increase the number of EHS parents who enroll in GED programs via partnerships with the WIN job center and the Picayune Family Resource & Education Center.

Objective 9: Data Driven Reporting.
Assure all programs continue to operate efficiently and effectively, achieve program goals, and meet intended outcomes.

Objective 10: School Readiness.
Assure that all participating children are ready for school, families are ready to support their children’s learning, and schools are ready for children.

Objective 11: Oversight & Accountability.
Develop a Pearl River County EHS-Child Care Partnership Strategic Plan.

Objective 12: Community Engagement.
Develop more formal working agreements among providers and other community service agencies to tackle the issue of access to resources for PSD EHS children and families.

Objective 13: Staff Training / Professional Development.
– Hire and Train Mentor-Coaches and enhance teacher capacity and to promote developmentally appropriate practice is through mentoring.
– Utilize the Accreditation Plan to ensure that all CCPs achieve a MS Quality Rating System rating as a “Comprehensive Center.”
– Expand Training/ Educational Opportunities of EHS and Early Childcare Partnership Staff