Council Update: CSCPBC continues strong investment in local grassroots nonprofits

Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County’s board this month approved up to $979,078 in total funding for 23 local nonprofits through its Great Ideas Initiative (GII). The GII is a unique funding opportunity for Palm Beach County nonprofits working closely with the community that have operating budgets of less than $1 million. Using under-expenditures, this funding extends CSCPBC’s reach into the community by supporting grassroots, creative nonprofits doing meaningful work to ensure our children grow up healthy, safe, ready for school, and ready for life.

This year, CSCPBC received 77 GII applications. Of the 23 funded, nine are focused on educational success, seven are focused on mental health, and four are focused on economic stability – all application categories specifically identified by local youth as priorities in the Birth to 22: United for Brighter Futures’ Youth Master Plan. The Council has supported the GII since 2016.

This year’s GII recipients are:
•    Art for Smiles
•    Bigger than Sports Corporation
•    CareBag
•    Empower Healthcare
•    Florida Justice Center
•    Impact Achievement Learning Center
•    KR8TIV Justice
•    Lakou Lokal
•    M&S Community Stars
•    Miracle League of Palm Beach County
•    Moms In The Muck
•    New Beginnings Community Outreach
•    Parianna Precious Hands
•    Rohi’s Liberation Station
•    School of MoneyMo
•    Sea Turtles Adventures
•    Snapshots by Leilani
•    Solomon Institute
•    Spady Cultural Heritage Museum
•    Teaching Seniors Tech
•    The Farmworker Coordinating Council of Palm Beach County
•    The Giving Closet Project
•    West Palm Beach Center for Arts & Technology

In other business

GII Capacity Building: The Council approved an additional $20,000 in capacity-building funding for six former Great Ideas Initiative recipients. This initiative is a two-year investment in the effectiveness and future sustainability of select nonprofit organizations. Recipients of GII Capacity-building Pipeline funding are: Family Resource Center of Palm Beach County, Friends of Foster Children of Palm Beach County, Hands and Feet, Inner City Innovators, Interactive Community Alliance and Ser-Kallai.

Juvenile Advocacy Project: CSCPBC Evaluation staff shared with the council their study on the impact of the Juvenile Advocacy Project, administered by Legal Aid Society of PBC and funded by CSCPBC, in supporting youth involved in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Overall, the evaluation underscored that legal advocacy plays a pivotal role in supporting educational progress, reducing deeper justice system involvement and improving long-term outcomes for youth facing overwhelming challenges.

The evaluation also outlined several priorities for future consideration:
•    Close the 18–22 transition gap through structured advocacy and navigation. 
•    Expand trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate training across systems. 
•    Begin life skills preparation early and standardize independent living supports. 
•    Improve communication and transparency, ensuring youth understand their legal cases and available services. 
•    Strengthen placement quality and oversight. 
•    Expand structured, pro-social opportunities that support youth development and prevent system involvement.

Car Seat Funding: The Council approved an additional $17,000 for car seats, as part of a program administered by Safe Kids Coalition of Palm Beach County. Over the years, CSC’s annual allocation for car seats has grown to $60,000 to address significant increase in demand. The majority of referrals for car seats since fiscal year 2023-24 have come from Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition of Palm Beach County. Since the first quarter of 2023-24, Safe Kids has distributed 2,114 seats to Healthy Beginnings clients with 66 percent (1,402 seats) going to HMHB clients. HMHB has identified a number of reasons for the increased demand, including the rise in the cost of living, increased awareness of car seat safety and the need to replace seats involved in a car crash.

For the first three quarters of the 2025-26 fiscal year, Safe Kids has distributed 626 car seats with 464 going to HMHB clients. With Safe Kids buying the infant car seats at a bulk wholesale value of $89, they are poised to run out of CSC-allocated funds for seats before the end of the fourth quarter. The increased funding will ensure Safe Kids can meet demand through the end of the fiscal year.

Literacy Initiative: The Council approved up to $50,000 for the Unhoused Children and Literacy Initiative Pilot in partnership with the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County, which will act as the fiscal agent. The initiative is a collaborative, cross-agency effort to improve literacy and school success for students experiencing homelessness. The initiative brings together several community stakeholders – including CSCPBC, the School Board of Palm Beach County, the Carl Angus DeSantis Foundation, the Lost Tree Foundation, the Palm Beach County Board of Commissioner’s Youth Services Department (Youth Services), and the Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County, Inc. (ELC) – to address homelessness and literacy as interconnected challenges rather than isolated issues.

The pilot will launch at two elementary schools, West Gate and South Grade. The schools will prioritize up to 30 unhoused children at each site for an enhancement to each school’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program. The pilot will include additional academic supports such as a reading teacher, an enrichment instructor (counselor) and supplies. The annual cost to support this pilot is $40,000 at each site for a total of $80,000. The program will run for 170 days during the school year and 23 days during the summer. Both Youth Services and ELC have offered to prioritize these same students for supplemental summer care. The program will begin at the start of the school year this month.