Statewide Promising Practices

YMCA Reads

Root Cause Focus: Child & Family Care

The mission of YMCA READS! is to enable at-risk and disadvantaged children in grades K-3, regardless of their race, economic status, or capabilities, to increase their reading skills through structured after-school reading instruction and mentoring. Currently, the program operates in 17 public schools, and 9 participating YMCAs in 13 counties in Florida. YMCA READS! is implemented in partnership with the Florida State Alliance of YMCA Foundation, Inc. and the local YMCAs in Florida.  Click here to learn more.

T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood

Root Cause Focus: Job Opportunities

The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program offers a strategy for systematically improving the education, compensation, and retention of the early childhood workforce. Working work with 48 colleges, universities, and vocational-technical schools throughout the state as well as 14 community-based training institutions, the Florida T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program serves as an umbrella for a variety of educational scholarship opportunities for people working in early care and education programs including family child care homes. Since 1998, more than 37,000 scholarships have been awarded. Click here to learn more.

 

Bosses for Babies – The Children’s Movement of Florida

Root Cause Focus: Education, Child & Family Care

Bosses for Babies is an initiative that brings together business leaders in Florida who are ready to take action in support of early childhood—understanding that this is an investment both in their bottom line and in community-level prosperity. The initiative highlights the many ways Florida businesses are taking action and enables more businesses to get involved. This initiative contributes to The Children’s Movement’s partnership with the Florida Chamber of Commerce Foundation. It allows businesses to support the goal of 100% K-readiness by 2030 and drives engagement with the Business Alliance for Early Learning, leading to more business-led advocacy for greater investment in early care and education.  Click here to learn more.

 

Children’s Forum: Help Me Grow

Root Cause Focus: Health

Help Me Grow Florida promotes early identification of developmental, behavioral, or educational concerns, then links children and families to community-based services and supports at no cost to parents and caregivers. Help Me Grow serves Florida families with young children from birth to age eight. Click here to learn more.

 

Feeding Florida

Root Cause Focus: Food Insecurity

Feeding Florida, formerly the Florida Association of Food Banks, is the state’s network of food banks working to solve hunger. The statewide network unites 12 member food banks to provide a healthy, adequate, and consistent food supply to every community every day. Feeding Florida member food banks support more than 2,200 local charitable agencies, which provide food directly to individuals and families in need to ensure a hunger-free Florida. Each year, the Feeding Florida network provides food to the 2.8 million Floridians facing hunger, including over 850,00 children. Click here to learn more.

 

Fresh Access Bucks

Root Cause Focus: Food Insecurity

Fresh Access Bucks (FAB) is a USDA-funded statewide nutrition incentive program that encourages SNAP recipients to redeem their benefits at farmers’ markets, produces stands, CSAs, and mobile markets to purchase healthy produce directly from Florida farmers. At participating locations, FAB matches or discounts what a SNAP cardholder spends with FREE Fresh Access Bucks every day to spend on Florida- grown fruits & vegetables. Click here to learn more.

 

FutureMakers Coalition

Root Cause Focus: Job Opportunities

A collective impact initiative working along the cradle-to-career pathway to create a skilled and sustainable workforce pipeline. The pathway begins with early childhood learning and ends with post-high school credential attainment and career connections. The coalition focuses on systems change to connect untapped workforce potential with the education and training to fill in-demand jobs by removing attainment barriers and creating a culture of career exploration and aspiration from an early age.  Click here to learn more.

 

Rebound and Recovery – Florida State University College of Social Work

Root Cause Focus: Education and Health

Rebound & Recovery is an evidence-based cognitive behavioral intervention comprised of professional certifications and curriculums that focuses on early childhood through adolescence. Rebound & Recovery is a three-prong approach where the focus is placed on building teacher skills in the classroom, supporting caregivers at home, and removing common barriers for vulnerable young populations through the use of cognitive behavioral skills. Click here to learn more.