SLO Child Development Center

First Annual Family Funday Sunday!

tkurczewski — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 21:59:59 +0000

1st-annual-fundraiser

Christmas Party Magic

tkurczewski — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 20:57:13 +0000

Dear families and community,

I do want to extend my deepest gratitude for all the people who made last night’s Christmas Party possible. Each year, we have an amazing collaboration of Board of Directors, community groups, and local businesses who create a very special event for our children and families. For some of the most needy children who attend our Center, this will be the time they can spend an evening with hot food, Christmas sweets, a gift of their choosing, and their very own visit from Santa. It is a Center tradition and a truly magical event.

First and foremost, I would like to thank our SLOCDC Board of Directors. Their generosity supplied enough food, drinks, sweets, and treats for all our chilren and their entire families. Several of our Board members also served in dual roles as community advocates, enlisting local organizations and individuals for the generous donations of gifts that were on each one of our children’s lists. Central Coast Funds for Children, Rotary, Estero Bay Women’s Club, and Sonic Solutions provided many wonderful gifts for our children and their siblings. Vanessa and Warren Fujimoto donated miles and miles of giftwrap. Steve Weaver was a wonderful Santa to all of our starry eyed children. And last, but not least, I would like to thank our dedicated staff, who worked through breaks and prep times to giftwrap, organize, and execute an amazing experience for all our families who could attend.

Now that I am wrapping up my first six months as Executive Director of SLOCDC, I am overwhelmed by the familial and community atmosphere of our school. Last night’s party was a shining example of how families, staff, Board, and community come together to create an environment which is much more than a school, therapeutic health facility, and family advocacy center. It really, truly is a place where magic happens for all of us.

–Terri

Press Release 12/5/08

tkurczewski — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 23:27:27 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Terri Kurczewski

(805) 544-0801 ext. 15

tkurczewski@slocdc.org

December 5, 2009

San Luis Obispo — In light of recent news stories, we would like to highlight some of our strengths and challenges over the past few years, and share the events which have led to our talks and newly signed lease with the County of San Luis Obispo. We want to convey our continued commitment to the community and the fiscal soundness with which our Center continues to operate year after year.

The San Luis Obispo Child Development Center is a nonprofit community program providing therapeutic interventions to strengthen families for the prevention and treatment of child abuse. We believe that children are best protected and nurtured when families are strong. We have provided child abuse prevention and intervention together with child development and childcare services since 1971 and have directly served over 7,440 children and families in San Luis Obispo County.

In 1997 the Center began plans for a new building and with the support of: the County of San Luis Obispo who assisted us in identifying County land to build on; the California State Department of Housing & Community Development who awarded us grants to purchase to modular classrooms; and the contractual support of the California Department of Education. To see these plans realized, many agencies, companies, individuals, and County departments worked harmoniously with the Center to create a long-term vision to see the new center built. Had it not been for the generosity of this group, we would not have been able to serve the number of families we do today. Members of this group included Department of Social Services Administrators, County staff and County Board of Supervisors.

The Child Development Center entered into a land lease agreement with the County of San Luis Obispo in 1999, which worked strategically and in tandem with newly allocated funding from the Department of Social Services to support the lease’s fiscal terms. We opened our doors to serve up to 75 children and families, which is more than double the families previously served.

After five successful years at our new location, the Center was notified by the Department of Social Services that the funding would no longer be available for the upcoming fiscal year. This notice came at the same time our Center’s board was grappling with other fiscal impacts: our primary funder, the California Department of Education issued eligibility changes that impacted enrollment of families and children into our program and the Center’s board made a leadership change with it’s executive director. Under the circumstances and challenges, the Center addressed each of these issues and instituted several strategies: We examined our fiscal component and hired a new financial director and restructured our Center’s administrative staff to add an eligibility coordinator to meet the new California Department of Education guidelines.

Simultaneously, we focused our attention towards the loss of the Department of Social Services funding. Upon receipt of the notice from Department of Social Services, the Center’s Board of Directors made immediate efforts to work with County staff to renegotiate the land lease. These efforts and negotiations were three years in development. We have successfully renegotiated with the County and all parties have worked together to see a positive outcome.

We would like to reassure funders, supporters, partnering agencies, and especially the families we serve, that despite recent news coverage, the Center remains fiscally sound and our doors remain open to serve our community.

Under the wonderful leadership of our new executive director Terri Kurczewski and together with the Center staff and the Board of Directors, we remain committed to our mission: dedicated to breaking the cycle of child abuse in our community by providing a network of prevention, intervention, and treatment services to protect children and to heal, support and strengthen families.

Sincerely,

Board of Directors for the San Luis Obispo Child Development Center

SLO Child Development Center • 1720 Bishop Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 • (805) 544-0801

Terri’s Blog

tkurczewski — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 20:01:18 +0000

November 17, 2008
Dear SLO Child Development Center Families,
    I wanted to thank you very much for your cooperation during our evacuation Friday. At about 8:00 am, a section of the hillside near La Cita caught fire and homes were evacuated. Several people called the school to let us know that there was a fire nearby. As it looked small, I went outside to look . In as little as 15 minutes, the fire had quadrupled in size, helped by the strong winds. At 8:40, the flames were visible on the next ridge over, and we called parents for a voluntary evacuation. At approximately 9:00, the fire department called and told us that our grid was under mandatory evacuation. That is when we called all our parents back, asking them to pick up the children.
    After our last student left after 10:00 am, we went back into the building to collect the files and computers. At about 11:30, all our files were packed. We could no longer see the flames, but there was still a great deal of smoke. In the early afternoon, the fire department had controlled and extinguished the fire. All 50 of our children were safe at home. All of the files, pets, and computers were safely stored. I am so grateful that our lives, our school, and our community was spared any damage from this fire.
    I want, again, to thank you for your cooperation during this emergency. We were able to contact all the families whose children were at the Center that morning. Our teachers kept the children calm and occupied during this stressful time. If there is ever an emergency of this nature, we will be sitting on the curb at the far end of the parking lot, just as we were on Friday. Because we also have a two wonderful and supportive therapists, there is always someone to talk to, should you or your child experience any lingering emotions about this event.
    Our main priority is that children are safe at all times. We practice evacuations once a month to stay prepared. Our staff is CPR and first aid trained. Above all, we want to unite families during emergencies as quickly as possible. While I hope I never see such a close natural disaster at the Center again, I do want to thank you for your partnership, cooperation, and constant communication throughout the year for the health and safety of all our children.

Sincerely,

Terri