Child Well-Being

about the child well-being group

Quality care and education are essential for child well-being and have important implications for children’s success later in life. Children who are not on reading level by 3rd grade are four times less likely to graduate from high school on time, and access to quality child care is a proven indicator of reading performance later in a child’s education. 

Almost 40% of Georgia students begin school without a high-quality early educational experience. 

Clearly, getting young children into affordable, quality child care situations is in all of our best interests, particularly for employers who have trouble filling jobs. When parents can afford child care, more can join the workforce today. When that child care includes cognitive skill development for early learning, the community gets more on-time high school graduates and more high-skilled, college-educated workers. 

Access to high-quality early childhood education and care is a barrier to many families in North Fulton. Capacity is a major issue: only 19 of the 126 state-regulated child care facilities in North Fulton possess a quality rating, providing only 2,784 openings for a need of 21,133, as of 2019. Additionally, transportation and cost keep families from being able to place their children in such programs. 

Apart from child care, children are a significantly vulnerable population in North Fulton. In 2018, 11.4% of North Fulton children were in poverty, with even more experiencing financial instability and housing burdens. The percentage of children who qualify for free or reduced lunches at school has spiked in the past two decades, and Fulton County Schools reported in 2019 that 619 North Fulton students had experienced homelessness in the past school year. 

The child well-being group at NFIN works to set our community’s children up for successful lives through enhancing their early childhood experience. By gathering research and showcasing innovative solutions, we are engaging the community in the effort to increase access to this much-needed support and to increase awareness of the need for and benefits of quality child care and education. 

We meet on the third Wednesday of each month. We would love to have you join the conversation by contacting us here.

Check out our research and work: The 2019 Our Invisible Neighbors Report. 

Goals

1. Address the lack of information regarding available resources for low-income families and perform a gap analysis of what is missing. 

2. Reduce food insecurity for children. 

Co-Chairs

Maggie DeCan
Children’s Development Academy

Fireside Chats

In November of 2020, the child well-being work group hosted a panel on the Value of Quality, Affordable Child Care to Companies, Employees, and Our Community. Our guests included Stephanie Blank and Mindy Binderman of GEEARS, Maggie DeCan of the Child Development Academy, and Michele Harris of Wellstar.