Newsletter | May 2025

All About Our 2025-2030 Strategic Plan

We are excited to share the launch of First 5 San Mateo County’s new Strategic Plan, a bold roadmap to address the critical needs of children from birth to 5 years old and their families. Developed through extensive community input and data analysis, this plan reflects our commitment to equity, resilience, and collaboration.

Developing this Strategic Plan was a deeply collaborative effort, informed by diverse voices and perspectives from across San Mateo County. Over the past year, we engaged in a series of deliberate activities to ensure the plan reflects the needs and aspirations of the community we serve. To every member of our community who shared their story, a sincere thank you!  

Our strategies, desired outcomes, and core domains are focused on a few key goals:

• Focus on systems change: Prioritizing partnerships that achieve both direct impact and long-term systemic improvements.
• Meeting community needs: Addressing access to quality early care and education, mental health services, and basic family supports like housing and food.
• Supporting families and providers: Amplifying family voices in policymaking and investing in workforce development to address service gaps.

Read more about our vision and strategies for creating a stronger, more equitable future for San Mateo County.

Standing Up for Head Start

At First 5 San Mateo County, we believe every child deserves a strong start. Head Start, the only federally funded early childhood program, is in jeopardy. Head Start is essential to building a better future for all families. Supporting Head Start means supporting families and children to receive high quality learning along with essential health and community services. It enables parents to work, and has lasting positive outcomes on children.

Read more about the importance of Head Start and the significant negative impact that cuts to this program are already having in San Mateo County.

Protecting our future: Why Head Start matters to every child in San Mateo County



‘I Know the Power of Head Start’: Laid-Off Worker Fears for the Program’s Future

Do you have a story about the impact of Head Start? If so, we’d love to hear it. Email us! 

You can also add your voice to those standing up for Head Start.

Investing in a Stronger Early Childhood Mental Health System

May is Mental Health Awareness Month - a time to reflect on the importance of caring for our mental well-being, especially as parents and caregivers. When we prioritize our own mental health, we’re better equipped to nurture and support our children’s mental health. 

Infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) is the developing capacity of the child from birth to 5 years old to form secure adult and peer relationships; experience, manage, and express a full range of emotions; and explore their environment and learn—all in the context of family, community, and culture (via Zero to Three). 

The mental health of each member of the family plays a key role in shaping parenting approaches, family dynamics, and the earliest stages of a child’s development. Parents’ and their children’s mental health needs must both be supported.

At our April Commission meeting, First 5 staff, parents, and partners shared research and learnings from the past two years of our work to better understand the local early childhood mental health landscape, and what services are accessible to parents and children. View their presentations here. 

Do you want to better understand what infant and early childhood mental health means and how it’s supported? Read our blog post.

Thank you for all you do for children and families in San Mateo County.