Children’s Resource & Referral of Santa Barbara County
History:
Children’s Resource and Referral of Santa Barbara County (CRR), was established in 1970 as a mobile parent/ child workshop delivered at local parks in the city of Santa Barbara. Through the Adult Education Division of the Santa Barbara City College, a teacher and teacher’s aide offered an Outdoor Preschool experience to Latino children while parents participated in parenting classes. Speakers were invited to provide information on Early Care and Development as well as information on community resources that support strengthening families.
In 1971, CRR utilized church space to continue the program and a highly innovative parent/child preschool program was formally developed and implemented with funds from a Federal Demonstration Grant. The resulting program incorporated and grew into the existing Children’s Resource & Referral of Santa Barbara County, literally a “grass roots” nonprofit organization.
Today:
CRR serves hundreds of Child Care Providers in starting up their own child care programs and serves the community through subsidy programs that support thousands of low-income and at-risk families in paying for their children to access high-quality child care programs, providing them the opportunity to enter kindergarten confident and ready!
Mission Statement:
The mission of Children’s Resource & Referral of Santa Barbara County is to develop strong and healthy families by providing education, care, and resource systems to children, their parents, and caregivers, with a special emphasis on low income and under-represented children and families.
Current short-term needs:
CRR seeks to support all eligible families in accessing child care and increasing parental choice to accommodate the individual needs of the family through the Alternative Payment and CalWORKS programs, providing financial assistance to families in need.
Current long-term needs:
All Children will have access to high-quality, safe, nurturing and inclusive environments that build a foundation for life-long learning.