2020 ANNUAL REPORT Dear Friends and Supporters, There’S Something Special About Episcopal Children’S Services
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2020 ANNUAL REPORT Dear Friends and Supporters, There’s something special about Episcopal Children’s Services. We are an organization that rises to challenges and creates impact for thousands of children and families every year. This year has been even more challenging, as COVID-19 has brought more demands for services and new needs. The harsh reality is that the children we serve are facing extreme challenges – poverty, trauma, disabilities, homelessness, and more. What makes our work even more important is that the stress of these challenges actually alters the brain architecture of these babies, toddlers, and preschoolers, making learning even more difficult. Without intervention, the negative effects of these challenges will last a lifetime. That’s why our Strategic Plan for 2020 – 2023 intentionally embraces bold goals because our work makes a difference – young children are making tremendous learning gains, parents are engaged in their child’s education, and families are improving their financial stability. We are proud to present this report showcasing the incredible impact of our work. We are so grateful for every friend, supporter, employee, and part of Episcopal Children’s Services. It is only with your help and commitment that we can change the lives of thousands of children every year. Connie Stophel Vicki Adams Chief Executive Officer Board President 2 Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report 3 2020-2023 STRATEGIC PLAN BOARD OF TRUSTEES An agency overview of our goals, strategy and roadmap. Vicki Adams TO CREATE OPPORTUNITY SO THAT THE CHILDREN Board President WE SERVE CAN ACHIEVE THEIR FULL POTENTIAL. MISSION Clay County Sheriff’s Office BUILD THE WHO WE ARE Thabata Ford Increase awareness of ECS brand in our BRAND Vice President local communities. Wolfson Children’s Hospital Strengthen the awareness of ECS services and programs to The Reverend support the needs of the community. Canon B. Wiley Ammons Secretary Episcopal Diocese of Florida QUALITY ENHANCEMENT STRIVE FOR Destinee Disher Achieve CDA Gold Standard Status. EXCELLENCE Treasurer Implement Trauma-Informed System of Care. Grant Thornton Become a National Head Start Program of Excellence. Malachi Beyah Ensure quality of all services meet the highest standards. Head Start Policy Council Liaison M & M Maintenance Plus, Inc. Yared Alula PROGRAM EXPANSION EXTEND THE PGA Tour, Inc. Continue to pursue agency growth and REACH geographic expansion opportunities. The Right Reverend Samuel Johnson Howard Expanding services to meet people where Bishop of Florida they are and address community needs. Bob Ohrablo Jacksonville Icemen DEVELOPMENT INCREASE Increase non-federal match dollars. FUNDING Sara Leutzinger Pomposo Grow existing fundraising streams and Jacksonville Business Journal identify new appeals to support ECS at all levels. Christine Smith Strengthen and cultivate relationships and partnerships in Baptist Health new and existing grant areas. Karen Estella Smith TECHNOLOGY ENHANCE Karen Estella Strategy & Communications Enhance tools and systems to improve SYSTEMS efficiency internally. Susan Wildes Florida Blue Foundation ECS WILL BE A RECOGNIZED LEADER IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND A 501(C)(3) Christian Winterbottom, Ph.D. WITH A STRONG ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT THAT USES RESEARCH AND BEST PRACTICES TO VISION HELP FAMILIES ENSURE THEIR CHILDREN ENTER SCHOOL READY TO LEARN. University of North Florida COVID-19 The pandemic created a host of challenges, but the Episcopal Children’s Services team sprang into action with creative approaches to support our children and families. Our teaching staff quickly created virtual educational environments so our young learners would continue to grow and develop. Our mental health team proactively reached out to families, offering comfort, support, and care for emotional health needs. As our centers were forced to close for a few months until we could safely re-open, our low-income families needed immediate assistance with diapers and wipes, which are both essential and expensive. Our community partners, including United Way, First Coast Relief Fund, and the Community Foundation for Northeast Florida, rallied with generosity with funding to provide these needed supplies for our families in need. Our staff organized drive- up plans at our centers to safely distribute diapers for our children. The Office of Head Start also responded with new funding so that we could offer summer Of course, we could not do this work without learning for our children who were entering the support of amazing community volunteers. kindergarten for additional learning support. Despite not being able to host volunteers in our center, our team creatively responded with Once we were able to open our centers, our staff virtual volunteer opportunities. One of our most quickly adapted to our new environment, with popular volunteer opportunities was ECS Reads strict observance of health and safety protocols. where volunteers read books for our children. Pictured Left: Tennikka Hughes from Action News Jax on Reading Wednesday 4 Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report 5 The Children’s Champion Award was established in 2006 by Episcopal Children’s Services to recognize individuals and organizations who work passionately on behalf of children to elevate their welfare to the highest priority in our community. Our 2020 Children’s Champions Martha Frye Baker Peggy Bryan Julia “JuJu” Taylor Despite COVID-19, forcing us to quickly shift from an in-person event to a virtual event, our 2020 Children’s Champion was our most successful ever, raising over $170,000 in net proceeds! This success was a direct reflection of our community’s pride in our 2020 honorees as well as a recognition of the incredible impact of Episcopal Children’s Services. PAST HONOREES Michael Aubin, FACHE Connie Hodges John D. Baker, II Helen Lane Black Knight Betsy Ross Lovett The Boselli Foundation Melissa W. Nelson J.F. Bryan, IV Mr. & Mrs. Russell B. Newton, Jr. Edward E. Burr Davalu Parrish, DPA Gary Chartrand Pamela Y. Paul The Hon. John A. Delaney The Hon. John Peyton Florida Blue Dr. Richard G. Skinner, Jr. The Jessie Ball duPont Fund Delores Barr Weaver Dr. Nathaniel Glover Dr. H. Warner Webb Deborah Gianoulis Heald Wells Fargo EARLY LEARNING SERVICES In partnership with the Early Learning Coalition of North Florida, we provide 13,851 families with needed financial assistance, so 13,851 their children can learn in quality care through the following: FAMILIES FINANCIALLY • Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten: Episcopal Children’s Services ASSISTED provides four-year-olds with free, high quality educational program using professional curriculum and staff to prepare our young learners for success in kindergarten. • School Readiness: We help low-income families pay for childcare so their parents can earn income with the assurance that their children are thriving in high-quality care. 14,335 PARENTS & In addition, our Early Learning Services Program operates the CAREGIVERS Child Care Resource and Referral Program, where 14,335 parents PROVIDED WITH FREE CHILDCARE and caregivers are provided with free information on local childcare REFERRALS providers to meet their family’s specific needs. 6 Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report Episcopal Children's Services | 2020 Annual Report 7 COACHJAX! By leveraging our expertise in early learning, we provide over 76 childcare centers with coaching to improve their quality of care to improve the outcomes for the 2,900 children they serve. To provide the best education for all the children in our communities, teachers must be equipped with tools and knowledge to nurture child development. Ongoing coaching ensures that educators are provided with ongoing feedback on the quality of their work. In partnership with the Early Learning Coalition of Duval and the Kids Hope Alliance, teams of certified coaches and technical staff work directly with childcare facilities in Duval County to improve children’s outcomes. Our comprehensive approach includes environmental quality, teach effectiveness and use of quality curricula to help centers improve their quality and educational outcomes. EARLY LEARNING CENTER AT GOOD SHEPHERD With small class sizes and individual plans for each child, we are fostering childhood development in the Riverside area of Jacksonville. Because research has clearly identified the impact of early activities on brain development for young children, our center is equipped with environments that encourage exploration and playthings that engage young imaginations. We believe that the potential for learning is greatest during the early years of a child’s life, so we strive to provide children with learning opportunities at the earliest possible age. Our learning experiences support children’s continuous physical, social, emotional and intellectual growth and development. We encourage parent involvement because parents are the first and primary educators of their children. HEAD START/EARLY HEAD START Our Head Start/Early head Start program provides comprehensive education, health, and nutrition for our community’s most vulnerable infants, toddlers, preschoolers, pregnant women, and their families. Early education makes sense for our community. When children enter school armed with skills and knowledge, they are more likely to graduate high school and attend college, be employed with a livable income, engage in