Frequently Asked Questions

As part of North Carolina's nationally recognized early childhood initiative Smart Start, Durham's Partnership for Children is working to ensure that every young child in Durham County is healthy and ready to succeed in school. We are accomplishing this by focusing on 3 areas of a child's development:

. Early Childhood Education
. Child Health
. Family Support

The Partnership provides very few direct services to children and families. We do have 3 programs that we administer directly:

1. More at Four
2. Community Awareness and Education
3. Program Coordination and Evaluation

Our main purpose is to serve as a catalyst for bringing together agencies and individuals that serve children birth to 5 years old and their families. By bringing everyone together, agencies can collaborate their services and resources to provide better solutions for families in Durham County.

The office of Durham's Partnership for Children receives lots of specific inquiries regarding child care and programs in the community. Below are a few of the most frequently asked questions:

"Where is the Smart Start child care center?"

This is perhaps the biggest misconception that we run into! Durham's Partnership for Children, a Smart Start Initiative, does not provide any type of child care, nor do we fund child care centers or homes. Through the Quality Enhancement program, we do provide centers with technical assistance, teacher training, consultation and planning, all designed to improve the overall quality of care in Durham County.

"How do I enroll my child in Smart Start?" or "How do I get vouchers to help pay for child care?"

The Smart Start Subsidy Program is actually administered by DACCA ( Durham's Alliance for Child Care Access). To find out if your family is eligible and to receive an application, you will need to contact DACCA at (919) 560-8300. DACCA will assist you through the process of determining eligibility (based on family size and income). They also have a database of licensed child care providers who accept the subsidy vouchers.

Are subsidy funds available for my child yet?" and "Is there still a waiting list for subsidy funds for my child?"

These questions can only be answered by the agency that manages the subsidy program (see above).

"I'm going to have a baby in a few months. Can I get my baby on the waiting list for subsidy funds now?"

A baby must be born before he or she can be added to the waiting list.

"Can you give me money to start my own child care center or home?"

We don't offer start-up money for child care. What we do offer to child care centers and family child care homes is a quality enhancement program. One of Smart Start's major goals is to improve the quality of available child care, and increase the average star rating of centers and homes in Durham County to 3.50. If you are interested in participating in the Smart Start Quality Enhancement Program, please contact Juliellen Simpson-Vos, Child Care Services, at (919) 967-3272.

"Do you have emergency money for families who need help paying their bills?"

Smart Start does not have funds for family emergencies, but some local women's shelters, churches and community service organizations do. For more information contact United Way's Information Line by dialing 211 or click here for a list of resources in Durham County.

"Does Smart Start only help poor kids?"

No, not really. The goal of Smart Start is to ensure that the children most at risk for failure or difficultly in school and later in life receive the quality child care, health care and family support needed for success from birth through age 5. Children can be at-risk for a number of reasons, including family income (or lack thereof), health concerns or illness, identified developmental delay or disability, parent education level, parent employment status, family composition, housing instability and lack of English proficiency to name a few!

"Is Smart Start a part of Head Start?"

The programs are completely separate. Smart Start is funded by the State of North Carolina and through private contributions; Head Start is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (federal program). The two programs serve slightly different populations as well. Information about the Head Start program in Durham County can be found at the web site of Operation Breakthrough as well as at the web site of the National Head Start Association.

"Durham's Partnership for Children is a part of Durham County government, isn't it?"

No, Durham's Partnership for Children is a non-profit organization that operates within Durham County and very often works along with different persons and departments in Durham County government. However, we are not a part of Durham County government. 

Have a question you didn't find listed here? Email it to us at mail@dpfc.net!