| Summary of South Carolina's Work as Part of the Initiative (2003-2004):
South Carolina completed the plans and the curriculum to offer a statewide infant/toddler credential through its higher education system and also focused on the marketing of the credential to the early care and education field.
South Carolina's Child Care and Development Fund Quality Infant/Toddler Earmark:
FY 2006:
The Federal CCDF Quality Infant and Toddler Earmark is $1,815,424.
The Lead Agency supports infant/toddler services from an infrastructure development perspective, utilizing staff from colleges and universities, state agencies, Head Start, SC First Steps, and CCR&R statewide. These staff completed graduate course work coupled with WestEd Certification for Modules I, II, III, and IV of the Program for Infant/Toddler Caregivers (PITC).
- An undergraduate/graduate course targeted to county and regional level staff providing direct technical assistance to child care programs and scholarships to support participation (this effort is the next phase in continuing to build infrastructure capability).
- Two days of West Ed training for state child care licensing workers to develop a consistent level of expertise among all staff working with young children.
- A library of video clips to assist staff in providing training and technical assistance to providers.
- A new round of infant and toddler grants targeting quality improvements in ratios and providing a variety of options to the provider, including the purchase of new materials, the provision of salary supplements, and financial incentives to serve younger children.
- Children's Center at USC (formerly the USC/Gateway Child Development and Research Center or Center of Excellence).
- A three-hour graduate level course with field experiences for early childhood faculty within the technical college system to increase their expertise for teaching the Inclusive Care course, which is part of the Infant/Toddler Credential.
- Child care for families who are victims of domestic violence, specifically for young children with a parent who is living in a shelter to escape domestic violence situations and who is transitioning into independent living arrangements.
The funds are used in the following ways to enhance the South Carolina infant and toddler child care system (additional funds may be used to support these activities):
FY 2004:
The Federal CCDF Quality Infant and Toddler Earmark was $1,800,924.
The funds were used in the following ways to enhance the South Carolina infant and toddler child care system (additional funds may have been used to support these activities):
- Infant and Toddler Quality Improvement Grants for improving quality, expanding and implementing infant/toddler environments and programs, or improving ratio quality. Facilities must participate in the Advocates for Better Care (ABC) program (i.e. voluntarily agree to meet quality standards beyond child care regulatory requirements) to qualify for the grants.
- “Plan a Room Guide for Infants and Toddlers,” which provides an extensive list of appropriate materials and equipment.
- Infant and Toddler Leadership Initiative, which has built a cadre of 45 WestEd certified individuals that can provide training statewide.
- Children's Center at USC (formerly the USC/Gateway Child Development and Research Center or Center of Excellence), which includes a child development center with model indoor and outdoor environments for infants and toddlers, and a research center with a distance education classroom.
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