Efforts get kids ready to learn: Boone County Schools / Kentucky.

A program to help get children ready to succeed in school led to Boone County Schools in Kentucky being named the winner for Kentucky in the 2007 National Civic Star Award competition. The school district and its partners started the program in response to statewide data that indicated school readiness was an area where Boone County was lacking.

The program, begun to address the problem, is called Boone County Success by Six[TM] and is affiliated with the United Way-based Success by Six[TM] program operating in more than 330 communities nationwide, including Lexington and Louisville, Ky.

The program was launched originally in 1988 in Minneapolis. In Boone County, the program began in 2002 in cooperation with United Way of Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky. The program was identified as a model to emulate by a committee representing seven entities--the Boone County Cooperative Extension District, Boone County Fiscal Court, Boone County Library District, the school district, Boone County Sheriff's Department, Northern Kentucky Independent Health District and Walton-Verona School District.

These partners started meeting once a month to review the statewide data collected annually in a survey called Kentucky Kids Count, which had indicated where Boone County was falling short. The group became known as the County Needs Assessment. United Way joined the original seven entities, and then various companies decided to become program partners. They included Bank of Kentucky, Citigroup, Delta Airlines, Fifth Third Bank of Northern Kentucky and Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America.

A leadership council was organized with representatives of all the program partners. The council meets regularly and is charged with setting a vision for improving the lives of Boone County's young children. The council's mission statement says the partners will "work together to ensure all children are healthy, safe, nurtured and prepared to succeed in school."

The program has four main strategies:

* Increase community awareness about quality child care and early education.

* Increase the capacity of service providers.

* Improve the delivery of childhood and family services.

* Build the capacity of families.

A Success by Six committee to design the screening process for the program was established including district-level administrators from Boone County and Walton-Verona school districts, guidance counselors, principals, preschool and kindergarten teachers. The committee sought advice from medical and university personnel, psychologists, early-childhood educators, various specialists and evaluators. They reviewed screening tools and designed the screening process, time line and learning area. They determined staffing, equipment, material and supply needs and established a tentative budget.

In 2003, the two school districts in the county, Boone County and Walton-Verona, began an ambitious yearly countywide assessment of all Boone County children enrolling in kindergarten in the fall who would be age five by Oct. 1. The assessment was the first of its kind in the region. The screening provides two important tools: baseline data by which the success of early childhood learning programs can be measured in the future and identification of any geographic areas within the county where particular problems such as obesity or language deficiencies are prevalent. These tools help in planning the delivery of services where they are most needed. The screening staff includes teachers, teacher aides, district administrators, guidance counselors, speech therapists, school psychologists, educational diagnosticians, school nurses, clerical staff, custodians and the Boone County Parks and Recreation Department. A facilitator from Boone County Student Services Division is a member of each school's screening team.

The home visitation aspect of the program has served 163 families with 219 children. The Community Center on wheels has delivered 850 programs to more than 5,000 children and family members since September 2005. Library cards have been issued to 400 children and parents, and more than 8,000 library items have been checked out of the mobile unit.

Program leaders have helped increase public awareness of early childhood programs through more than 350,000 pieces of direct mail, weekly advertisements in local newspapers and ads in other media, through a new interactive Internet site and through posters and brochures in community places.

The assessments help teachers prepare for their students. They enable the school district to identify developmental delays and take appropriate action. They also help parents to understand their children's development and begin getting involved with their education early.

For more information, contact Superintendent Bryan Blavatt at [phone] or by e-mail at bryan. [e-mail]. Blavatt's mailing address is Boone County Schools, 8330 U.S. 42, Florence, KY 41042.