Mission
"Building Strong Families...One Child at a Time." The Florida Center for Early Childhood is a nationally-accredited nonprofit organization providing an array of comprehensive therapeutic services, clinical interventions, prevention, and early education programming to help children birth through 8 years overcome obstacles to succeed in kindergarten and beyond.
Leadership
CEO/Executive Director
Ms. Kathryn Shea LCSW
Board Chair
Mr. Larry Lawman
Board Chair Affiliation
Lawman Benefits Consulting, Inc.
General Info
Tax Exempt Status
Public Supported Charity
Incorporation Year
1979
State Charitable Solicitations Permit
Yes Dec 2017
State Registration
Exempt Sept 2018
IRS Letter of Determination
Impact Statement
The Florida Center for Early Childhood provides prevention and early intervention services to young children and their families at risk for academic, social and economic failure.
These critical services help young children achieve developmental milestones and give parents the support and knowledge they need to nurture their child’s development; thus decreasing risk factors related to child abuse and neglect, academic and developmental delay, and behavioral and mental health disorders that create added costs to society.
Needs Statement
1.) Funding is needed to provide scholarship assistance for young children from low-income families who need a range of therapies and supports not fully covered by Medicaid, private insurance or government contracts. Scholarship assistance would allow these children in our Starfish Academy preschool to receive wrap-around services on site for speech and language delays, autism-related disorders, behavior challenges, and more. Community funding will ensure children at risk for academic, social and economic
failure get these critical supports. Cost $3,500 per child for 6 months.
2.) Funding is needed to purchase testing and curriculum materials and supplies to provide
excellent early childhood education. Sponsors at all levels, from
$100-$10,000, will support the healthy development of young children at
the Starfish Academy.
3.) Funding is needed for Behavioral & Mental Health Supports: Increasingly, children under age 5 are demonstrating moderate to severe behavior and mental health problems, especially in light of the current heroin and opioid epidemic in our community.. The intensive therapeutic services provided will reduce the risk of academic, social and economic failure while increasing their potential to grow and thrive in our community. Cost $2,500 per child for 6 months.
4.) Supplies to support the basic safety needs of families enrolled in Healthy Families, child abuse prevention program including: diapers, new car seats, safety gates and other items for children under age 3. Cost $200 per family.
Background Statement
Since 1979, The Florida Center for Early Childhood has been helping our community’s most vulnerable children, and their families, by providing programs and services to help them reach their full potential. The Florida Center is a multi-service center for infants and young children at risk for developmental delay due to physical, emotional, and/or economic hardship. We have two locations in Sarasota County; one in north Sarasota and one in North Port (south Sarasota). Annually, we serve more than 2,500 children, and their families, through a variety of services including Early Education (4+ rated Starfish Academy preschool and V.P.K. classrooms), Developmental Therapies (speech and language, occupational therapy, behavior support and community outreach), Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, our Fetal Alcohol Diagnostic/Intervention Clinic, and Healthy Families, an evidence-based child abuse prevention program. We are nationally accredited by the Council On Accreditation (COA).
We advance our mission of … “Building strong families…one child at a time”
And seek to… “Prevent child abuse, prepare children for success in school, enhance their social/emotional development and healthy parent/child relationships.”
By serving... “At-risk children and their families.”
In... “Sarasota, Charlotte, DeSoto and Hardee counties.”
Through… “Quality early childhood promotion, prevention, and intervention services.”
And emphasizing our competitive advantage of… “a long-standing, wide range of early childhood expertise and well-established reputation.
We are sustainable by… “diversifying our fund development to include grants, government, corporate and individual donations.”
We envision at time when… “Every child is loved, nurtured, and empowered to reach their full potential.”
Areas Served
Areas Served Comments
The Florida Center for Early Childhood primarily serves clients within Sarasota County, as well as Charlotte, DeSoto, Hardee and Manatee counties. We also serve children in the entire state of Florida at our Fetal Alcohol Diagnostic Clinic - the first and only of its kind in Florida.
Service Categories
Primary Org Type
Human Services
Secondary Org Type
Education
Tertiary Org Type
Mental Health & Crisis Intervention
Statement from the Board Chair/Board President
"We need your help to be sure every child has the opportunity to have a successful early childhood. These economic times have negatively impacted our families and smallest children. We believe hard times can bring out the best in people and provide them an opportunity to help those who are less fortunate than themselves. I ask you to open your hearts and make a special effort to assist children and their families. I assure you, it is an investment that will last through many generations to come."
Statement from the CEO/Executive Director
President & CEO, Kathryn Shea, LCSW states: "Almost daily, new research is presented on the wisdom of investing early. A recently released brief from the Partnership for American's Economic Success shows that an investment of $6,692 in quality Pre Kindergarten for disadvantaged children yielded a lifetime societal return of up to $67,937; a return on investment of great than 10:1. This research supports the importance of reaching children at a young age. We can positively impact the course of history for one child, and we can change the course of history for our communities and nation."
CEO/Executive Director
CEO/Executive Director
Ms. Kathryn Shea LCSW
CEO Term Start
2008
CEO/Executive Director Email
kathryn.shea@thefloridacenter.org
Experience
Kathryn is currently the President & CEO of The Florida Center for Early Childhood, Inc.dedicated to the healthy development of young children, their families, and communities. Kathryn is a licensed clinical social worker with over 35 years of experience working with young children with serious emotional and behavioral disorders, fetal alcohol and drug effects, and early childhood special education needs. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and her Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Kentucky. Kathryn is a national trainer in infant and early childhood mental health and responsive early childhood preschool environments. She currently chairs the Community Alliance of Sarasota County, is past president of the Florida Association for Infant Mental Health, and is the recipient of many awards recognizing her advocacy on behalf of children with special needs.
Former CEOs/Executive Directors
Staff & Volunteer Statistics
Full Time Staff
83
Part Time Staff
13
Staff Retention Rate %
92
Professional Development
Yes
Contractors
4
Volunteers
55
Management Reports to Board
Yes
CEO/Executive Director Formal Evaluation
Yes
Senior Management Formal Evaluation
Yes
Non-Management Formal Evaluation
Yes
Collaborations
The Florida Center for Early Childhood values its community partnerships and collaborations with respective child care organizations, corporations and foundations. Key collaborations exist with various local organizations including but not limited to Jewish Family and Children Services, Children First, The Safe Children Coalition, Gulf Central Early Steps, the Early Learning Coalition of Sarasota and Sarasota County School Board.
External Assessments and Accreditations
Risk Management Provisions
Government Licenses
Organization Licensed by the Government
Yes
Plans
Fundraising Plan
No
Communication Plan
No
Strategic Plan
Yes
Strategic Plan Years
4
Strategic Plan Adopted
July 2014
Management Succession Plan
Yes
Continuity of Operations Plan
Yes
Policies
Nondiscrimination Policy
Yes
Whistle Blower Policy
Yes
Document Destruction Policy
Yes
Directors and Officers Insurance Policy
Yes
Policies and Procedures
Yes
Board Chair
Board Chair
Mr. Larry Lawman
Company Affiliation
Lawman Benefits Consulting, Inc.
Board Term
July 2017 to June 2020
Board Chair Email
larry@lawmanconsulting.com
Board Members
Constituency Includes Client Representation
Yes
Board Ethnicity
African American/Black
0
Asian American/Pacific Islander
0
Caucasian
12
Hispanic/Latino
0
Native American/American Indian
0
Other
0 0
Board Gender
Male
6
Female
6
Unspecified
0
Governance
Board Term Lengths
3
Board Term Limits
2
Board Orientation
Yes
Number of Full Board Meetings Annually
8
Board Meeting Attendance %
80
Board Self-Evaluation
Yes
Written Board Selection Criteria
Yes
Board Conflict of Interest Policy
Yes
% of Board Making Monetary Contributions
100
% of Board Making In-Kind Contributions
100
Fiscal Year Projections
Fiscal Year Start Month
July
Fiscal Year Start Day
01
Fiscal Year Begins
2017
Fiscal Year End Month
June
Fiscal Year End Day
30
Fiscal Year Ends
2018
Projected Revenue
$5,670,312.00
Projected Expenses
$5,670,312.00
Total Projected Revenue includes "in-kind" contributions/ donations
No
Organization has Endowment
Yes
Endowment Value
$612,467.00
Capital Campaign
Currently In a Capital Campaign
No
Campaign Purpose
Campaign Goal
Campaign Dates
0 to 0
Amount Raised To Date
0 as of 0
Audit/Financial Documents
Historical Financial Review
CEO/Executive Director Compensation
$100,001 - $125,000
Tax Credits
No
Solvency
Short Term Solvency