Building a Strong Early Childhood System
Since our inception, First 5 Alameda County has worked to build a strong early childhood system that sets every child on a path for success.
We have also worked to prioritize children and families who have historically been on the margins, including Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) and neighborhoods that have faced decades-long disinvestment.
First 5 has developed an organizational infrastructure, which includes flexibility in procurement and contracting and a strong foundation of relationships built on trust with our community partners.
This infrastructure put us in a unique position, among local, state, and federal agencies, to pivot quickly and respond to the immediate needs of the community when the pandemic struck. Learn more about how our programs and community initiatives pivoted to support children, families, and the early childhood community.
BUILD 01
Centering Equity:
Neighborhoods Ready for School (NRFS)
Centering Equity for Children's Health and Development
Our Neighborhoods Ready for School (NRFS) program is driven by parents and community members working to support child and family well-being, kindergarten readiness, and resident-led local policy advocacy.
Our grantees in East Oakland, West Oakland, Union City, and Oakland's San Antonio neighborhood provided a vital link to communities that were among the hardest hit during the pandemic.
NRFS sites intensified focus on meeting the increased needs of families, including accommodating the growing number of families seeking assistance, and expanding their navigation services to ensure new families were offered wraparound support, from food to links to housing services and stipends for unexpected needs. NRFS sites did this work in a culturally affirming way, in collaboration with parents and other volunteers who are committed to ensuring families in their communities are supported and have what they need for health and well-being. Our commitment to these neighborhoods has also extended to fund a grant writer who is helping research and apply for additional funding opportunities.
Neighborhoods Ready for School (NRFS)
These sites were able to respond quickly to families’ needs and pivoted to become supply distribution hubs, equipping families with food, diapers and wipes, educational materials, face masks, and more.
This was possible in part because of the ongoing resources and technical assistance that First 5 provided pre-pandemic around infrastructure, programming, and capacity building.
Hear from Union City Family Center
“What has been refreshing about working with First 5 is they aren’t just a funder, they’re an active partner.”
– Nancy George, Executive Director, Union City Family Center
NRFS Service Areas
BUILD 02
Supporting Families in Alameda County
Community Programs
Before and after the COVID-19 pandemic began, First 5 programs, including Help Me Grow Alameda County; Healthy Teeth, Healthy Communities; and DULCE at Highland Hospital, played a vital role in helping families navigate systems and care coordination, with a focus on child-centered resources and family-focused support.
Connecting Families to Care & Support
Care coordination and family navigation through our programs proved more important than ever for helping to connect families with an array of services. These programs included:
- Help Me Grow's phone line
- Developmental Understanding and Legal Collaboration for Everyone (DULCE) at Highland Hospital
- Healthy Teeth, Healthy Communities
- Home Visiting
- Perinatal Health Outreach Coordinators (in partnership with Alameda County Public Health Department and Social Services Agency)
- Developmental Screening Program
Services included access to concrete needs (food, diapers/wipes, and more); support for children’s behavior and learning; medical, dental, and mental health services; and links to public benefits and legal supports. First 5 programs also conducted outreach in a variety of languages through web, social media, and print materials to reach as many families as possible.
5,800
children
served by programs that promote health and development
3,280
children
served by Help Me Grow
2 out of 3
children
served by Help Me Grow were linked to at least one service
BUILD 03
Supporting Alameda County Dads
Alameda County Fathers Corps
Alameda County Fathers Corps, a collaborative effort between First 5 Alameda County and Alameda County’s Health Care Services and Social Services Agencies, celebrated its seventh anniversary in 2020.
Fathers Corps brings providers, advocates, and fathers together to help dads meaningfully engage with their children and promote father-friendly services.
Dad-scussions
In 2020, Fathers Corps launched Dad-scussions, a virtual forum for fathers and providers to stay in touch, support one another, and identify unmet needs amid the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dad-scussions has featured community leaders, including Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson and national activists, such as Shaka Senghor.
The Fathers Corps also continued to offer resources and support to practitioners and dads during the pandemic through webinars, such as Exploring How Providers Foster Healthy Co-Parenting Relationships.
97%
of participants
in the final session of the Dad-scussions series expressed a desire to continue
Hear from Dad-scussions Participants
"It was therapeutic being in the breakout rooms speaking to everyone about what is going on."
– Dad-scussions participant
Fathers Corps on the National Stage
Fathers Corps’ profile grew nationally in 2020, with a presentation as part of the National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement's webinar series Engaging Parents as Advocates and Leaders.
300+
audience members
tuned in, including providers, policymakers, and advocates
BUILD 04
Promoting Early Care & Education
The Role of Early Care and Education
Our flagship research on kindergarten readiness in Alameda County consistently shows the importance of early care and education (ECE) participation for children’s kindergarten readiness. Affordable child care is also an effective strategy for disrupting cycles of poverty because it allows parents/caregivers to work and go to school.
In support of quality ECE in the county, First 5 provides coaching and professional development to child care sites participating in Quality Counts. We also support Oakland Unified School District’s summer pre-K program for children without previous ECE experience. In 2020, we became the named administrator for Alameda County Measure C, a new initiative to improve quality, increase wages for the ECE workforce, and expand access to child care for families positioned vulnerably due to race and class.
Virtual Support for Quality Counts Participants
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, our Quality Counts program worked online with providers, including family child care sites, to provide the following supports in multiple languages:
- Coaching and training to implement quickly evolving health and safety guidelines
- Help navigating gaps in information about business, fiscal management, and human resources
- Facilitation of funding to ECE staff and family, friend, and neighbor caregivers
- Remote support for reporting, demographic surveys, and ratings from assessments completed prior to shelter-in-place.
360
child care providers
supported by Quality Counts
Alameda County Measure C:
Children's Health & Child Care Initiative
Measure C’s passage by Alameda County voters in 2020 represented a major victory for children, families, and providers. Even more critical since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting instability inflicted on the child care field, Measure C will help save this critical support to families. It will also support the rebuilding of the local child care infrastructure and the local economy more broadly.
BUILD 05
Training @ First 5
Training & Capacity Building
Our Training @ First 5 program builds core early childhood competencies and capacity in the early care and education workforce and related fields, including pediatrics, social work, and mental health. Training @ First 5 also works with community partners to offer trainings to parents and caregivers.
Topics are presented with an intentional focus on equity, socio-economic issues, racial justice, policy, and other pressing issues. We seek opportunities to center parents, caregivers, and community from a strengths-based perspective.
Virtual Training During the COVID-19 Pandemic
When the pandemic made it impossible to gather in person for events and trainings, our Training @ First 5 team moved quickly to make trainings accessible online.
The team also began uploading recordings to YouTube, giving our community’s ECE workforce, other family-serving providers, and parents/caregivers more flexibility in how and when they access training opportunities.
70+
training events
8 out of 10
participants
reported their learning goals were met
2,000+
unduplicated attendees
2x
more attendees
compared with Fiscal Year 2018–2019
Watch a Virtual Training Event
Addressing Elephants in the Room: Equity & Racism Panel Presentation, Part 1
This webinar included a panel of equity and anti-racist professionals:
- Tarah Fleming presented Equity Literacy, Allied Behavior, and Centering Anti-Racism in Our Lives
- Zelica Rodriguez-Deams presented Equity Lens vs Equity Mirror - Creating Authentic Community Engagement
- Patricia Nunley presented Helping Children Through A-Up African Ubuntu Pedagogy: Equitable Practices and Interactions
