Caldwell County Smart Start

Smart Start is North Carolina’s nationally recognized and award-winning early childhood initiative designed to ensure that young children enter school healthy and ready to succeed. Smart Start funds are used to improve the quality of child care, make child care more affordable and accessible, provide access to health services and offer family support.

Caldwell County Smart Start hosts multiple different programs supporting positive childhood development including:

• Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
  • Click here to register 
• The Child Care WAGE$ Project
• Quality Initiatives
• The Purchase of Care (Subsidy)
• Positive Parenting Program
• Growing up Safe Program
  • Car seat and swim safety

At Redwood Park, just a trail away from the HUB Station is Caldwell County Smart Start’s StoryWalk! These programs are a wonderful family-friendly activity that promotes early literacy development and outdoor adventures. Using pages from a deconstructed children’s book, a story is displayed along trails or walking paths on encased in outdoor frames. Pages are accompanied by activity prompts and are updated to a new story quarterly. Check out one of their recent stories!