Barancik Foundation Grant Helps Local Professionals Attend Child Abuse Prevention Conference

The $7,500 grant supports scholarships for 27 local professionals to attend a statewide event focused on child abuse prevention.

(July 26, 2025) The Florida Center for Early Childhood has received a $7,500 grant from Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation to fund scholarships for 27 area-based professionals, including educators, mental health counselors, social workers, and child welfare advocates, to attend the 2025 Prevention Convention (PCON), a statewide conference focused on child abuse and neglect prevention. This year’s event will be August 21 and 22 at The Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort – Bonnet Creek in Orlando.

Now in its second year, PCON is co-hosted by Prevent Child Abuse Florida, the Ounce of Prevention Fund of Florida, and The Florida Center. The two-day event brings together regional and national experts to explore emerging trends, programs, and data-driven strategies aimed at strengthening families and preventing childhood trauma.

“The conference showcases innovative early childhood and family support initiatives happening across Florida and beyond,” says Dr. Kristie Skoglund, CEO of The Florida Center. “It’s a chance for professionals to learn from one another, connect with peers, and take home tools they can put into practice.”

In addition to keynote presentations and breakout sessions, PCON includes a resource exhibition where service providers host booths and share materials to support children and families.

Barancik Foundation’s grant covers full registration costs for 27 professionals from Sarasota and surrounding counties. This year’s scholarship recipients represent a range of organizations, including Children First, Department of Children and Families, YMCA Southwest Florida, Healthy Start Coalition of Sarasota County, First 1,000 Days Suncoast, The Twig, Sarasota County Health and Human Services, Bridge A Life, NAMI Sarasota-Manatee, and Safe Children Coalition. Presenters include the national speaker, author and president of Early Childhood Solutions, Dr. Dan Wuori, and a breakout presentation by locals Tamra Cajo, statewide director of FASD services at The Florida Center, and Nathan Scott III, child and family wellbeing system coordinator of Sarasota County Health and Human Services. Attendees come from diverse fields—early education, child welfare, mental health, and the court system.

“These scholarships ensure those who work most closely with children and families have access to timely research and best practices,” Skoglund adds. “We’re grateful to Barancik Foundation for making this opportunity possible again this year.”

Photo captions:

• Dr. Kristie Skoglund, CEO of The Florida Center for Early Childhood, says a grant from Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation makes it possible for local professionals to access vital training at the statewide Prevention Convention.
• Dr. Dan Wuori, president of Early Childhood Solutions and a featured keynote speaker at this year’s Prevention Convention, is a nationally recognized advocate for early childhood education.

About Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation

The Charles and Margery Barancik family has long believed in the power of philanthropy to shape our world and enrich the lives of all people. It was the expression of this belief that led them in 2014 to establish Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation—a private, family foundation located in Sarasota, Florida. Barancik Foundation creates initiatives and awards grants in Sarasota and beyond in the areas of education, humanitarian causes, arts and culture, the environment, and medical research. For more information, visit barancikfoundation.org.

About The Florida Center for Early Childhood

For more than 45 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, Orlando and Pensacola.