Early Childhood Mental Health Changing Our World, One Family at a Time... Tiffany Straus, M.Ed. Executive Director Early Childhood Mental Health

 Parents, teachers and community advocates came together in 1974 to start Therapeutic Nursery for mostly Richmond families and then all of West County  In 1983, Early Childhood became incorp0rated as non- profit and began offering “play therapy”  In 1994, took over mortgage of 4101 Macdonald in Richmond  2015, bought a 14,000 sq. ft. building at 24 th & Bissell From Church basement to 14,000 Square Feet...

 Each day we serve an average of 40 families  Each year we serve close to 500 families  Over 50% of families are Spanish-speaking  Over 85% of families are of color  100% of families living at or below the poverty level Who Do We Serve?

 Individual and family therapy ages birth to 6  Preschool for ages 2 – 5 – “last stop” multiple expulsions  Consultation to preschools  Wraparound services  Parent support groups – women’s domestic violence  Continuing Education for Early Childhood Professionals What Do We Do?

 92% Medi-Cal funded through Contra Costa Behavioral Health Services  Annual Letter Writing campaign – Thank you!!!  Grants and Foundations  Rotary of Richmond – Thank you!!!  Martin Family Foundation  San Francisco Foundation  Soroptimist of Richmond Where Does our Money Come From?

 2 year old on her 4 th foster home  4 year-old expelled from multiple day cares  3 year-old, homeless, domestic violence The Stories...

 Trauma-informed early childhood care works!!!!!  “Desiree”  “Maria” The Successes...

 Research shows that the achievement gap appears long before children reach kindergarten – in fact is can become evident as early as age nine months. And at-risk children who don't receive a high-quality early childhood education are:  25% more likely to drop out of school  40% more likely to become a teen parent  50% more likely to be placed in special education  60% more likely to never attend college  70% more likely to be arrested for a violent crime  Early childhood programs are the most cost-effective way to ensure the healthy development of children in poverty and offer the greatest returns to society.* *Information from theounce.org What Happens When We Don’t Invest?

 Donate to our annual campaign – thank you to those that do!  Donate to our Capital Campaign to raise $750,000  Volunteer How Can You Help Make a Difference?

Tiffany Straus, M.Ed. Early Childhood Mental Health 4101 Macdonald Ave Richmond, CA Thank you for your service to Rotary!