Martin-Pitt Partnership
WHO WE ARE
The Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children, a non-profit in Eastern North Carolina, funds programs in quality early child care and learning, assistance finding child care services, parent and family support, health care, child care provider training, and early literacy during the first 2,000 days of a child’s life — roughly the time between birth and the first day of kindergarten.
Our mission is to make meaningful and measurable investments in young children to enable them to achieve their fullest potential. By bringing together all the people involved in a child’s early years — parents and caregivers, teachers, doctors, child care professionals, community leaders, and so many more — we ensure that every child has everything they need to succeed.
THE FIRST 2,000 DAYS
Brains are built, not born. There are only 2,000 days between the time a baby is born and when they enter kindergarten. The first 5 years of a child’s life build the foundation on which they will learn and grow in the future. To build the best foundations, children need good health, strong families, and high-quality early learning experiences. By ensuring children build a strong foundation, we can make sure they are reading on grade level by third grade, graduate from high school, and grow into productive citizens and valued employees.
OUR PROGRAMS
LENDING LIBRARY & RESOURCE ROOM
Parents and caregivers of children birth through five can receive a membership to our Lending Library at no cost. Members are able to borrow books, toys, games, puzzles, puppets, and more for up to three weeks at a time. Our Resource Room helps child care providers create the best classroom learning environment possible by providing access to bulletin board paper, die cuts, lamination, and more. Laptops are also available for use.
COVID-19 UPDATE: We are currently not allowing items to be checked out of the lending library due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we are open to serve parents and child care providers who are members of our resource room. We are not open to the public, but we will have staff available to gather any items from the resource room needed and will provide curbside pick-up for those items to continue social distancing and protecting the health of our community and staff members. To request resource room materials, please call our office and a staff member will be able to assist you.
CHILD CARE REFERRALS
Finding quality child care can be hard. Our office maintains a list of all licensed child care facilities in Martin, Pitt, Lenoir, Green, Carteret, and Jones Counties, and can provide a free confidential list of the facilities that meet your needs based on star rating, hours of operation, transportation availability, and more.
COVID-19 UPDATE: In March, NC’s Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) consumer education and referral services issued a statewide 1-888 number to address the child care referral needs of emergency, first responders, and critical workers who are endeavoring to keep North Carolinians safe and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Help with child care assistance was made available for essential workers, who qualified, that would cover payment for the months of April and May. Once North Carolina moved into phase 2, more individuals started returning back into the workforce the 1-888 number was extended to anyone who was in need of child care, and currently still available. Parents can contact their local CCR&R if they are in need of child care assistance.
PARENTS AS TEACHERS
This evidence-based program offers parenting support, positive interactions, and child development information through play groups, one-on-one home visits, and group activities aimed at meeting developmental milestones.
COVID-19 UPDATE: With the sudden impact of COVID-19, planning was immediately in process for a new style of service delivery for our Parents As Teachers (PAT) program. We have transitioned from in-person visits to virtual and telecommunication visits to ensure the safety of all our families and staff. The changeover was not very difficult, but was still a learning process that continues to change and evolve every day. We are able to offer our families the same personalized and quality visits they are used to, just through a different avenue via Zoom, Skype, Facetime, and WhatsApp.
Our Parents As Teachers (PAT) program has also continued to offer interactive family group connections virtually to provide our little ones with the opportunity to interact with other children and their parents and a chance to engage with other parents. We have seen a positive shift in the stress levels of our families since the impact of COVID-19. Our attendance numbers have slowly increased as more and more families have begun adjusting to the virtual service delivery. Our PAT team has adapted and evolved greatly to match the needs of our families throughout this pandemic.
DOLLY PARTON’S IMAGINATION LIBRARY
Reading is an essential skill for success. Each month from birth until their fifth birthday, registered children will receive an age-appropriate book in the mail to read with their family. Participation in the program is free and open to every child in the community under age 5.
COVID-19 UPDATE: We have applications at our Greenville office and Williamston office for those who have not signed up yet to participate in the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Contact our offices if you are interested in picking up an application.
NURSE-FAMILY PARTNERSHIP [NFP]
Each year, 380,000 children are born to first-time mothers living in poverty. Beginning during pregnancy, and until the child is two, Nurse-Family Partnership pairs nurses with first-time moms through home-visits to educate them on parenting, share information on community resources, and perform health checks. For more information, contact the Pitt County Health Department at 252.902.2357.
CHILD CARE SUBSIDY
Administered by the Department of Social Services, the Child Care Subsidy assists eligible families with child care expenses. For more information, contact Pitt County DSS at 252.902.1164, or Martin County DSS at 252.809.6403.
REACH OUT AND READ
Reach Out and Read makes literacy promotion a standard part of pediatric primary care, building upon the relationship between parents and health care providers. At regular pediatric check-ups, parents receive books appropriate for children from birth to five years old, helping children build a love of reading and a library of their own.
QUEST [Quality, Education, Support, & Training]
Our specialists work with licensed local child care facilities to promote quality care experiences through one-on-one consultations, quality improvement plans, and professional development trainings. Specialists can also assist educators with understanding and implementing the licensing requirements for opening up a child care center or family child care home.
COVID-19 UPDATE: We are still providing services to our programs during Covid-19. We are communicating however the provider feels most comfortable. Some of the examples may include traditional phone conversations, email, text messaging, Zoom, or face to face while implementing social distancing protocol. We continue to assess the needs of providers and work to locate and provide resources to them. Contacting providers on a weekly basis gives our QUEST staff the opportunity to provide laminating or copy services at the Partnership and drop the items off with little to no contact at all. Whenever the Partnership receives applications that our centers can fill out for grant money to use for their center, our QUEST staff will be sure all centers receive an application and provide any assistance for submission.
RAISING A READER
Promoting a love of reading is as important in child care facilities as it is in the home. Raising A Reader partners with eligible child care providers to encourage early literacy skills by providing a book sharing program that not only encourages families to read together, but also provides training to parents and encourages them to visit their local library.
COVID-19 UPDATE: Child care centers apply to participate in Raising A Reader each year during the summer. In the fall, accepted sites begin hosting it in their participating classrooms with children 1-5 years of age. Each week, children in the participating classrooms take home a Raising A Reader bag with 4 high-quality children’s books inside; this happens for 25 weeks. By the end of the program, each child in the class has exposure to 100 different books! Prior to COVID, Raising A Reader program events were face to face, so this year we are altering our teacher trainings/meetings and our family storytime events to be delivered virtually. The Early Literacy Coordinators used to make in person visits to the participating classrooms for storytime bimonthly; these storytime experiences included songs, skill-building activities, and a visit from a puppet “friend.” This year, the Early Literacy Coordinators are creating storytime experiences with similar structure, but the teachers will implement those with the children. It will certainly look and feel different, but we are excited to continue to offer such an enriching literacy program to the sites in Martin and Pitt Counties.
CHILD CARE HEALTH CONSULTANTS [CCHC]
Local CCHCs work together with child care providers to promote healthy and safe environments for young children through technical assistance, on-site trainings, and professional development opportunities. For more information, contact the Pitt County Health Department at 252.902.2357.
COVID-19 UPDATE: One of our Child Care Health Consultants (CCHC) provided an update: Kristi Hassell, RN CCHC — Prior to COVID-19, my program dealt with a lot of face to face and it has been difficult adjusting. I have been in contact with my childcare facilities via email, mail, and phone. If it is too difficult to answer via those methods, then I can enter the centers following social distancing guidelines and hand hygiene. We are working on getting more trainings approved to provide in an online format. I have successfully provided one training online via Zoom that went very well. I have been working on different ways to do my lessons like handwashing and dental hygiene, which is a work in progress at the moment, but will be announced on the Martin-Pitt Partnership for Children training calendar page, as well as our social media pages.
CHILD CARE WAGE$
Administered by the Child Care Services Administration, WAGE$ provides education-based salary supplements to eligible low-paid teachers, directors, and family child care providers who work with children birth to five.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TRAININGS
The most important factor contributing to a student’s success in school is the quality of teaching. Our staff is committed to supporting our children through professional development opportunities for early childhood educators, students, and community members. Trainings are offered on a rotating basis, and we are continuously offering new trainings.
COVID-19 UPDATE: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have moved many of our trainings to an online platform. We will be gradually easing back into in-person trainings. These will be solely for trainings in which DCDEE requires to be taken in person.
LOCATIONS AND HOURS UPDATE AMID COVID-19
111 Eastbrook Drive
Greenville, NC 27858
Phone: 252.758.8885
Fax: 252.758.2627
Monday-Thursday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC
415 East Boulevard
Williamston, NC 27892
Phone: 252.789.4911
Fax: 252.792.0005
Monday & Wednesday: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC
SOCIAL MEDIA
Facebook: @mppfc
Instagram: @mpp4c
Twitter: @ mppfc
Website: www.mppfc.org