Smart Start

The Smart Start Investment Generates Significant Dollars for that State

The North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc. (NCPC) and the 77 Smart Start local partnerships bring millions of dollars into the North Carolina's early childhood system. The state's annual Smart Start appropriation further yields the following:

Leveraged Federal Funds

Many federal programs require that the state contribute a certain amount of funding in order to receive the federal dollars. Therefore, leveraged federal funds are the dollars that North Carolina is able to pull down from federal funding sources because of the documented use of Smart Start state dollars.

For example, legislation requires that Smart Start spend $52 million on child care subsidy. These dollars serve as required funds for the Maintenance of Effort for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the match for Child Care Development Block Grant. In addition, the expenditure of $4.4 million in Smart Start funding has been used for the past several years to draw down $14 million for Community Based Child Abuse Prevention, Promoting Safe and Stable Families and Family Violence Prevention Programs in the state Division of Social Services.

Legislative Match Requirement

Smart Start is required by legislation to annually raise 10% of it appropriation in cash and in-kind contributions. There must be at least 75% raised in cash and no more than 25% as in-kind contributions. In keeping with the legislation, the majority of these contributions go directly to the local service providers to strengthen their programs. This legislative requirement is audited annually by the state auditor.

Grants and Contributions

In addition, to the legislative match requirement, NCPC and Smart Start local partnerships raise millions of dollars in private or direct federal funding. These are funds that would otherwise not be available in local communities if not for the long term investment of Smart Start and the existence of a local partnership with capacity to manage programs and dollars. Examples of such funding include:

Competitive Federal Grants (e.g. Early Head Start, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
Federal Dollars via State Agency. These are dollars that require a network on the ground like Smart Start's local partnerships. (e.g, Child Care Resource and Referral, Family Support Programs, Domestic Violence, and Crime Control)
Competitive Foundation Grants (e.g, W. K. Kellogg Foundation, Robert Wood Johnston Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation, Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, and Community Foundations)
County and Municipal Funds. (e.g., County Agency Grants)
Community, Private, Business Funds. (e.g, United Way, Fund raisers, Business Donations)

Children

Smart Start has improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of children. As a result of our work:

More children attend high quality care. 63% of all children in early care and education attend high quality (4- and 5-star) programs in 2009 as compared to 33% in 2001.
Children have teachers with higher levels of education. In 2009 alone, 10,733 teachers participated in Smart Start-funded programs that helped them to study early education at the college level impacting to approximately 124,503 children. And 6,011 teachers received assistance so they could attend early childhood college courses impacting approximately 69,728 children.
More working families are receiving help to afford high quality care. In 2009, 47,213 children in working families received assistance from Smart Start to pay for child care. 74% of children whose families received help paying for early childhood care and education attended 4- and 5- star centers (compared to 30% in 2001).
More children with disabilities are being identified at a younger age and are referred to early intervention services. In 2009, 6,169 children with special needs or at risk for developmental delay received Smart Start health-related enhanced services. In participating Smart Start medical practices, 99% of children received recommended developmental screenings at their most recent well-child visit.
More parents are engaged in positive parenting practices. In 2009, 97% of parents in Smart Start parent education programs said they are more competent and confident in their parenting abilities after participating in the programs.

Accountability

Smart Start has an incredible record of programmatic and financial accountability.

Smart Start has been heavily evaluated. Since 1993 there have been 34 independently conducted evaluations. These studies have been conducted by groups as diverse as Coopers and Lybrand (1996) and the NC State University (2009). In addition, Smart Start implemented the Performance Based Incentive System (PBIS) in 2001. PBIS is a comprehensive collection of 24 population-level indicators that track healthy conditions for young children. All data used to measure PBIS have come from community and state sources external to Smart Start. Smart Start has produced nine annual PBIS reports to date.
Smart Start is a trusted public partner. Smart Start is a trusted public partner. In the past ten years, NCPC and Smart Start local partnerships have been audited more than 450 times by State and/or independent auditors hired by the State. NCPC has had no audit findings for the past eight years and has twice been awarded the North Carolina State Treasurer's Award for Excellence in Accounting and Financial Management. Smart Start partnerships are generally audited on a biennial basis. For the past two years, of the 74 partnerships audited, none had findings.
78 Boards of Directors provide programmatic and financial oversight. NCPC and Smart Start local partnerships are independent, nonprofits with their own boards of directors who are responsible for programmatic and financial oversight.

Jobs

Smart Start is vital part of the state's economic engine.

The early learning industry sustains tens of thousands of jobs. The industry as a whole employs almost 50,000 North Carolinians, allowing 380,000 North Carolinian parents to work. In total, these families earn almost $12.5 billion annually.
The early learning industry strengthens the economy now by generating billions of dollars in sales of local good and services. In North Carolina, early care and learning generates $1.7 billion.
Smart Start is an effective and cost-efficient model. Smart Start local partnerships employ nearly 1,000 North Carolinians who earn an average salary of $36,749.