The Florida Center for Early Childhood Receives $30,000 Grant from the Bank of America Client Foundation, Bank of America, N.A., Trustee

The grant will expand the organization’s ability to provide autism screenings and support programs that help individuals with autism receive specialized services.

(February 16, 2024) The Florida Center for Early Childhood Education is pleased to announce the receipt of a $30,000 grant from the Bank of America Client Foundation, Bank of America, N.A., Trustee. This grant will support an initiative aimed at providing vital language, occupational, and infant and early childhood mental health therapies to uninsured and under-insured families in southwest Florida.

Kimberly Treharne, chief programs officer at The Florida Center, emphasized the significance of this program, stating, “Our goal is to ensure that families with young children, ages six weeks to 5th grade, receive the support they need to help their children develop strong relationships, manage their emotions, behave positively, and achieve important developmental milestones. This lays a solid foundation for future learning.”

Treharne adds that this grant will provide funding to serve 150 children within a 12-month period. Entitled “Recipe for Success: Multidisciplinary Approach to Developmental, Educational, and Trauma Informed Care for Young Children,” the initiative is a multidisciplinary approach to developmental, educational, and trauma-informed care for young children. This includes offering essential language, occupational, and infant and early childhood mental health therapies to families who may otherwise lack access to such services.

Treharne further elaborated on the initiative’s scope, noting that funding will also facilitate mentoring for teachers in early care and education settings. This mentoring will enable both typically developing children and those with special needs to learn together in inclusive environments, preparing them effectively for kindergarten and beyond.

“The Florida Center extends its deepest gratitude to the Bank of America Client Foundation for its generous support of this critical initiative, which will undoubtedly have a profound and lasting impact on the wellbeing and development of young children and their families in our community,” says CEO Dr. Kristie Skoglund. She adds that the Bank of America Client Foundation has been a longtime supporter of The Florida Center’s multidisciplinary efforts.

Photo captions: Two young students in the Sensory Garden at the Starfish Academy campus in Sarasota.

About The Florida Center for Early Childhood
For more than 40 years, The Florida Center for Early Childhood has been the leading provider of therapeutic services, early education, and healthy development for young children in southwest Florida, offering a seamless delivery of services for the whole child and their family.
Today, the agency is nationally recognized for its early childhood expertise in various specialties. The Florida Center provides developmental therapies, mental health counseling, Starfish Academy preschool, the Healthy Families home-visiting program, and the state’s only Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Clinic, with locations in Sarasota and Orlando. For more information, visit TheFloridaCenter.org.