Northwest Indiana United Way Success By 6 is an initiative designed to create optimal community conditions to meet the developmental needs of children under age six and their families.

Success By 6 engages key community stakeholders in developing a formula for school readiness and that will ensure that all children have the opportunity to succeed by:

• Identifying at risk families and children
• Identifying gaps in programs and services
• Identifying barriers to success
• Initiating programs and services to fill the gaps and remove the barriers

Our Focus

NWI Success By 6 focuses on four key areas affecting early childhood development:

1. Home Environment
2. Childcare providers & caregivers
3. Health, safety, & physical development
4. Social & Emotional development

Our Goals

NWI Success By 6 is a preventative and proactive initiative that will change the status quo by creating sustained changes in community conditions. We will:

1. Enhance the quality of education in Northwest Indiana
2. Increase economic development potential
3. Ultimately reduce the number of social issues
4. Raise awareness
5. Improve access to information and services concerning early childhood education
6. Provide training and education to parents and childcare providers

Our Objectives

Environments that promote health, safety and physical development

1. More mothers will seek prenatal care in their first trimester.
2. There will be a lower incidence of child abuse and neglect and domestic violence.
3. All children will live and be cared for in environments that are free of smoke, drugs and toxic chemicals.
4. All children will have regular well-child checks, be fully immunized and have been screened and provided intervention for health and developmental challenges.
5. Improve health and fitness of children in North West Indiana. 

Experiences that foster social and emotional development

1. Parents will consistently model healthy social and emotional skills for their children.
2. Children will enter school with emotional and social skills to succeed in school and relationships.
3. Incidents of challenging behavior and expulsion in child care and preschool settings will decrease.
4. Stakeholders will have increased knowledge and understanding of the importance of social emotional development and mental health. 

High quality opportunities for cognitive development, including early intervention

1. All children from low-income families will have the cognitive and academic skills necessary to succeed in school.
2. All children of working and student parents will be in high quality early care and educational settings while their parents work or attend school.
3. Success By 6 will advocate for the development of a strategic plan for early childhood education in Indiana .
4. Children in Family, Friend and Neighbor Care or who stay home with parents will begin school with essential school readiness skills

Stable, nurturing and supportive families.

1. Parents/guardians will have the resources to meet the needs of their families.
2. Parents and children will have strong, healthy attachment relationships
3. Parents will know about typical health and development and how to apply effective parenting practices
4. Parents and trusted supports will know when and how to access support services
5. There will be greater consistency between school and home expectations of children

Our Strategies

Northwest Indiana United Way Success By 6 will utilize the following general strategies to achieve the desired outcomes. The strategies fall into four general categories:

1.  Increase parent knowledge and competence regarding:

• Importance of early prenatal care
• Typical development
• Positive parenting
• Healthy attachment
• Promotion of social and emotional development
• Promotion of cognitive development
• Daily care of a child
• What to look for in child care
• Importance of nutrition and exercise
• Importance of a healthy environment
• Importance of consistent health care
• Community supports

2.  Increase family access to and use of:

• Early prenatal care
• High quality child care and education
• Developmental screening and intervention
• Consistent health care for child
• Mental health care for child
• Formal and informal supports

3.  Improve the quality of child care in all settings:

• Increase access to behavior support for child care
• Coordinate and increase training opportunities
• Facilitate networks of Family/Friend/Neighbor Care
• Facilitate networks of Licensed Child Care Homes and Ministries

4.  Advocate on behalf of young children and their families:

• Quality, accessible health care
• Increase public awareness of importance of social emotional development
• Support national, state and regional efforts to increase access to high quality early learning opportunities