Suwannee Valley 4Cs

Early Head Start serves children birth to age 3 and pregnant women. Early Head Start is a year-round service. The Early Head Start hours are from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Early Head Start Extended Day is available at our Lake City and Live Oak Early Head Start centers only. The extended day hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Slots are limited for extended day.

Head Start Services serves children age 3 to 5. Head Start is a 10-month program that closely follows local school calendars. The school day is from 8:00 a.m. to 2 p.m.

VPK (Voluntary Pre-K) is for children age 4 entering kindergarten. The Head Start/VPK day is from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. VPK is available at most of our Head Start centers

Early Childhood Development and School Readiness: Our Head Start and Early Head Start programs are intended to meet the individual needs of each child. Every child receives a variety of learning experiences that enhance his/her cognitive, social, emotional & physical growth.

Family and Community Partnerships: The Head Start program serves as a link between families and the community. The primary role of our family services department is to support families in their growth and development. Each family entered in the program is assigned a family support specialist.

Health Services: Head Start recognizes that every child must be healthy and well-nourished to learn and grow to his or her full potential. Preventative health services are central to Head Start’s comprehensive array of services. Early in their enrollment, families work with Head Start staff to ensure they have an ongoing accessible source of health care. Community partners help in this process. Head Start assists the family in making use of all available health resources and insurance.

Our program focuses on each child’s basic health needs as well as the healthy behaviors and practices that can prevent illness and enhance a child’s lifelong well-being. We recognize the importance of identifying and addressing health problems early in a child’s life so that they do not interfere with a child’s learning and development. Our program arranges comprehensive health care for every child. This includes a complete health examination with screening for chronic or disabling conditions, a vision and hearing test, a dental examination, and ensuring immunizations are up-to-date. Follow-ups are scheduled for children with any indication of problems. During National Dental Health Month (February), special training is provided to the classrooms regarding proper oral health care and each child receives a dental care package.

Disabilities: Our disabilities coordinator works with local agencies to ensure enrolled children with diagnosed disabilities receive appropriate services.

Mental Health: We have a mental health professional that works with our program to help identify children’s mental health needs. We also focus on working with the family to help the parents improve their parenting skills.

Oral Health: Suwannee Valley 4Cs networks with local dental providers to assist in increasing dental care for our enrolled children and prenatal moms and to provide developmentally appropriate oral health education to our enrolled children, their families, our staff and the community.

Pregnancy: Services to pregnant women include comprehensive prenatal and postpartum health and dental care, prenatal education, and breastfeeding education and accommodations.