Early Connections 2017-18 Annual Report
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Erie's Future Fund<br />
Preschool Scholarship program<br />
administered by <strong>Early</strong> <strong>Connections</strong><br />
for economically-challenged<br />
families throughout Erie County<br />
Look at what we built! All the while we were<br />
learning about problem solving, cooperation,<br />
math, creativity and so much more.<br />
150 scholarship opportunities for qualified<br />
children from low-income families<br />
● Scholarships accepted at 40+ highquality<br />
early care and education program locations in Erie<br />
County ● Part-time summer scholarships offered for up to 50<br />
scholars over an 11 week period ● Scholarship options: 3 or 5<br />
half days a week during the school year ● Open enrollment<br />
deadline allows families to access the program beyond the start<br />
of the school year ● Provide educational resources and support<br />
during the application process ● Scholarships are funded from<br />
within Erie County through individual<br />
donations, Pre-K Earned Income<br />
Tax Credits, and cause-related<br />
marketing<br />
Erie’s Future Fund was created in 2011,<br />
an outgrowth of the Erie Community<br />
Foundation’s <strong>Early</strong> Childhood Advisory<br />
Panel in partnership with United Way of<br />
Erie County, Success By 6, members of the<br />
<strong>Early</strong> Learning Investment Commission<br />
and Erie Together.<br />
United Way Success By 6<br />
(SB6)<br />
Success By 6, United Way of Erie<br />
County's <strong>Early</strong> Care and Education<br />
initiative, is a community<br />
collaborative of professionals from a<br />
wide range of organizations.<br />
Sack races! Just one of the many fun activities to try during the 9th<br />
annual Pre-K Counts Awareness Day event<br />
Celebrated 15 years serving the Erie Community and helping prepare their children for Kindergarten ● Focuses<br />
on the needs of young children and their families through the work of several SB6 committees: Maternal Child<br />
Health Task Force, Erie County <strong>Early</strong> Learning Professionals, and Pre-K Counts, as well as in partnership with the<br />
Erie County Local Inter-agency Coordinating Council ● 12th <strong>Annual</strong> Success By 6 <strong>Early</strong> Learning Expo: 65<br />
families including 112 children, 35 local agency exhibits, hands-on activities, live entertainment, and educational<br />
materials. Each child received a book courtesy of Hooked On Books for Kids Erie ● 9th <strong>Annual</strong> Pre-K Counts<br />
Awareness Day: 700 preschoolers and their teachers from Erie County Pre-K Counts programs took part in a<br />
variety of educational activities and games at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center<br />
● Children Do Come with Directions booklets: 5000+ booklets have been distributed<br />
in the past 2 years. We plan to update the booklet for reprinting in 2019.<br />
United Way<br />
Erie Free Taxes<br />
Free tax preparation services through the<br />
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance<br />
Program (VITA) to assist eligible low and<br />
moderate income wage-earners to claim<br />
the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).<br />
Free tax preparation service provided by IRS-certified volunteers<br />
at numerous locations throughout Erie County<br />
20<strong>18</strong> FILING SEASON RESULTS<br />
● Federal VITA Returns: 6,248<br />
● Claims (incl in above total): 2,136<br />
● Returns: 616<br />
● Total Returns: 6,864<br />
● Refund Total: $10.9M<br />
● Tax Filer Savings (est.): $1.8M