ICS is pleased to announce that Darnell McPherson, of Darlington County, and Liz Winer, of Charlotte, have agreed to join our Board of Directors.  Darnell and Liz have been powerful advocates for early childhood success in the Carolinas, and they bring a wealth of expertise and enthusiasm to our efforts.  We are delighted to have them both as new members of our governing board.

Darnell McPherson - Darnell is a graduate of Boylan Haven Mather Academy and Southern Wesleyan University.  In 2008, she was selected to serve as executive director of Darlington County First Steps. During her tenure, First Steps has become a partner agency of United Way of Hartsville and earned the support of the Eastern Carolina Community Foundation, the Byerly Foundation, Bi-Lo Charities, the S. C. Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, Duke Energy Foundation, and most recently, the Children's Trust of South Carolina.  Darnell was recently recognized by the Region IV Head Start Association as the "Humanitarian of the Year" for her work in championing early childhood education, parent services, and community collaboration within the Head Start program in South Carolina.  In 2011, she completed the S. C. Education Policy Fellowship Program, a 10-month intensive professional development program for leaders in education.  In 2012, the Hartsville Kiwanis selected her Kiwanian of the Year.  For the past year, Darnell has served on the ICS Advisory Council and has worked with ICS staff to lead the ICS Early Childhood Rural Communities initiative.

Liz Winer - (with a placeholder image) Liz is a graduate of American University in Washington, DC.  Liz is very active in the philanthropic community of Charlotte, NC.  She currently serves as Chair of the Mecklenburg County Community Advisory Board for Nurse-Family Partnership, as a member of the Board of Directors of CareRing, and as a member of the North Carolina state advisory board for Nurse-Family Partnership. With her husband Brad Winer, a managing director with Deloitte Corporate Finance, Liz and Brad co-founded the Winer Family Foundation. For the past year, Liz has served on the ICS Advisory Council.  In March 2014, Liz hosted a joint ICS/ReadyNation reception in her home, bringing together many funders from the Mecklenburg area to learn more about strategic investment in early childhood.  In October 2014, Liz assisted ICS in hosting and planning a Donors' Forum held at the Duke Mansion in Charlotte. 

The Institute for Child Success (ICS) was pleased to see the Legislative Audit Council's recently released audit report on Child Welfare Services at the Department of Social Services. Members of the General Assembly requested the audit in 2012 due to growing concerns about the health and safety of children involved in South Carolina's child welfare system. Over the past two years, the LAC has collected and analyzed data to provide evidence-based recommendations to the General Assembly about the problems faced by DSS and the services that it provides to South Carolina's most vulnerable children.

To learn more, visit our blog post on the report here.

ICS is pleased to join the Children's Hospital of Greenville Health System and South Carolina Leadership Education to Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (SC LEND) in sponsoring the 2015 Nurturing Developing Minds Conference.  This regional conference will be held on Friday, February 27, 2015 at the Greenville Memorial Hospital in Greenville, SC.  Keynote speakers will include Marshalyn Yeargin-Allsopp, MD, Chief, Developmental Disabilities Branch, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Jeffrey Brosco, MD, PhD, Director, Pediatrics Program & Professor of Clinical Pediatrics, Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami.

For more information, please click here.

Pew Reports on Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)