Office of Children & Families
9830 Patuxent Woods Drive
Columbia, MD 21046
United States
About
To support the Early Child Care system so that children can reach their full potential. We do this by supporting families; training/mentoring/coaching Early Child Care professionals; providing expert consultation on Early Child Care issues; creating synergies among Early Child Care stakeholders; aligning and maximizing resources; and implementing evidence-based programming.
Want to open your own home-based business?
Apply today to become a Howard County-licensed Family Child Care provider.
We will walk you through the process and provide coaching. Benefits include legal support, access to technology and prepared curriculum.
Call 410-313-1943 for more information.
Program and Resources
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Care Line
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The CARE Line provides information and referral to local resources, linking parents and childcare providers to supportive education and behavioral interventions.
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Home Visiting
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Our home visiting programs Healthy Families Howard County™ and Parents as Teachers are evidence-based programs for parents and their children, prenatal through age five. Certified home visitors help parents enhance their knowledge of child development, health and safety to promote school readiness and family self-sufficiency.
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Family Institute
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The Family Institute, OCF’s parent education program offers parent engagement and outreach activities including informational sessions, newsletters, and training workshops on many topics.
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Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Program
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The Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Program offers early childhood mental health screening, training, consultation, and intervention services to child care professionals, children, and their parents.
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Child Care Resource Center
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The Child Care Resource Center (CCRC) provides professional development opportunities to early care and education professionals as well as capacity building and technical assistance through on-site observation, strategic management, and leadership development.
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Family Support Center
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The Family Support Center (FSC) offers free, comprehensive, family centered, community-based preventive programs for parents, caregivers, and their children ages birth to five.
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Newsletters and Publications
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The Howard County Office of Children and Families issues two monthly publications, Parent Pages and The Nest and Training Calendar. Parent Pages is a newsletter for parents, caregivers, and agencies working with families. The Nest and Training Calendar is a newsletter for family and center based providers, administrators and early childhood educators.
Quick Links
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The Family Institute
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The Howard County Family Institute is an education, information and community outreach program of the Office of Children and Families, Department of Community Resources and Services. Our Mission is to assist parents in their parenting role by providing education that enhances caregiver skills, knowledge, and behavior with a vision that all children will start life with a strong foundation.
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Launch Into Learning
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Launch Into Learning is a campaign supported by the Howard County Early Childhood Advisory Council (HCECAC). The goal of HCECAC is to highlight the importance of the early years, for parents and families in particular, but also for early care and education professionals, and other community stakeholders.
Launch Into Learning supports early learning and school readiness through initiatives such as Talk With Me, The Basics Howard County, and Read With Me.
Learn more about the Howard County Early Childhood Advisory Council (HCECAC) →
Childcare provider? Learn more about resources for Child Care Providers.
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The Basics
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The Basics movement aims to help every family help every child reach their potential. To learn about The Basics Howard County, watch this overview video for an introduction to the five fun, simple and powerful ways to boost early brain development and learning for all children from birth to age three.
Take time to explore the site, including the parent toolkit on the science behind the five Basics Principles.
The Basics uses evidence-based strategies to boost your child’s brain development and make the most of their first three years. Based on your child's birth date, the content will be sent in a developmental sequence that becomes more complex as you and your child grow together. Sign up for FREE here to receive twice-weekly information by text in either English or Spanish.
For more information, email [email protected]
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Healthy Families Howard County
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Healthy Families Howard County™ is part of the nationwide Healthy Families America® (HFA) initiative. This free and voluntary program provides eligible parents living in Howard County with family-centered, strength-based home visiting services.
Program goals include promoting positive parent-child relationships, child health, development, social-emotional well-being and safety, school readiness and family self-sufficiency. Families participate in an initial screening process to determine eligibility. Eligible families are welcomed into the program prenatally or may qualify to enroll up to three months after the birth of the baby.
Services are offered until child is 5 years of age. For more information or to make a referral, please call 410-313-1940 or email [email protected]
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Child Care Resource Center
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The Howard County Child Care Resource Center helps parents, child care professionals and the community find licensed child care by providing information and expert advice, by offering training for child care professionals, and more.
Newsletter Sign-Up
Get email updates on workshops for parents and child care providers, special events and support services from the Office on Children and Families.
