Child Care Subsidy
Bladen Smart Start partners with the Bladen Dept. of Social Services to serve families who are eligible for Child Care subsidy to help pay for child care expenses in Bladen County.
For eligibility requirements and how to apply, call 910-862-6800 or visit Bladen DSS, 208 McKay St., Elizabethtown, NC 28337.
Family Support
Bladen Smart Start is committed to helping families do their best.
To meet the diverse needs of Bladen County's families, Family Support programs promote school readiness by increasing the stability and involvement of parents in their children’s lives. These programs increase parents’ confidence and competence in their parenting abilities and empower them to create supportive environments for their children. Smart Start connects families to the information and resources they need to support their children's emotional, intellectual, and physical development.
Go NAPSACC
Go NAPSACC works with child care providers to improve the health of young children through practices, policies, and environments that instill habits supporting lifelong health and well-being. Bladen Smart Start offers modules on the topics of healthy eating and physical activity.
NAPSACC is an evidence-based program for improving the health of young children by enhancing child care programs’ practices, policies, and environments.
For more information on Go NAPSACC and healthy living, contact Carolyn Cromartie, Healthy Living Coordinator, at 910-862-3335, ext. 202 or by email healthylivingcoord@bcpfc.org
Raising a Reader
Raising a Reader: Classic Red Bag Program (RAR) supports families to build, practice, and grow reading routines at home. RAR is an evidence-based program, award-winning program that helps parents and caregivers build the supports for success and an early love for literacy. RAR achieves this by helping families create shared reading routines, fostering positive social interactions, healthy family relationships, and learning skills they need to thrive in school and beyond.
For more information about Raising a Reader, contact our RAR Coordinators, Wanda Mitchell & Carra Osborne at 910-862-3335.
Resilient Bladen
Resilient Bladen's mission is to educate, empower, and support communities on effective adverse childhood experience prevention to build resilient, trauma -informed communities. Our vision is that all children in Bladen County grow up in a safe, stable, nurturing community where families are resilient and thrive.
Resilient Bladen is funded through grant funds from the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust since 2021.
Resilient Bladen offers resources to the community through trainings and resources. Trainings include, Connections Matter, Protective Factors, Community Cafes, Community Resilience Model, Welcoming Families to the Table, Special Connections and more.
The Resilient Bladen Coalition meets monthly. If you would like to attend a Resilient Bladen meeting or present to the Coalition, please contact Carra Osborne at 910-862-3335 or by email at progmanager@bcpfc.org.
Child Care WAGE$
The Child Care WAGE$® Program provides education-based salary supplements to low-paid teachers, directors and family child care providers working with children between the ages of birth to 5 in participating counties.
More information on how to qualify, apply, and more here on the Early Years website: https://www.earlyyearsnc.org/programs/wages/