Newsletter

Early Childhood Programs

Orange Children & Parents Together administers high-quality early childhood programs, 

while providing safe and nurturing environments that promote the physical, social, emotional,

intellectual, and language development of each child.  With funding from Head Start and the

California Department of Education,  OCPT's  comprehensive school readiness programs serve

over 500 at-risk preschool age children at seven Development Centers within the Orange or

Tustin Unified School Districts.  Our child development centers are fully accredited by the

National Association for the Education of Young Children.  curriculum, programs, and services support the development of children and families.
 

Children participate in a variety of developmentally appropriate activities in the areas of cognitive, social-emotional, language, and physical development. OCPT ensures that all   children have timely immunizations and we provide developmental, health and dental screenings.

• OCPT serves 392 Head Start and 82 State-funded preschool children and families. 

• All enrolled children receive developmental screenings within 45 days of enrollment.

• All enrolled children receive dental, vision and hearing screenings for early intervention.

• Children receive breakfast and/or snack and lunch daily.

• Children participate in a dental program, which includes tooth brushing and fluoride.

Family and Community Services

We believe that parents are the primary teachers of their children. Parents are encouraged to participate in their child’s education and take an active role in the classroom, the school and their community.  

OCPT family support services offer parents opportunities for growth and support in recognizing their needs and goals. As parents identify their needs, OCPT staff nurture and support the families in pursuing their goals.  In addition to being NAEYC accredited, OCPT is honored to be one of only fifteen agencies selected from across the country to participate in Free To Grow, a national demonstration project funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation with technical assistance provided by the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University and program evaluation provided by Wake Forest University.  This project focuses on reducing family and community risk factors and increase family and community protective factors for child abuse, neglect and substance abuse

The cornerstone of OCPT’s success over the last 40 years is collaboration, both formal and informal, within the communities we serve.  Parents participate in family partnerships and personal goal setting.  Many family goals include English as a Second Language classes, family literacy, parenting classes, employment training and children’s health issues.

v    Family support staff work with families and the community to provide case management, resources, referrals, and counseling support.

v      Staff link families to needed services within the community.

 v    Parent education classes are offered to parents and community members on a wide variety of topics including; parenting skills, health issues, neighborhood/traffic safety, school readiness and kindergarten transition.

Additionally, OCPT provides comprehensive family and community support services through our FaCT-funded Tustin Family Resource Center. FaCT or Families and Communities Together is a partnership between the County of Orange Social Services Agency and Orangewood Children's Foundation. Since 1994, FaCT has provided support and services to children and families through community-based collaboratives operating family resource centers.