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Strategic Plan
DRAFT
2007-2010

Table of Contents
3
5
6
7
13
17
19
20
23
24
Introduction
Background
Guiding Principles
Community Profile
Goals and Objectives
Current Funded Programs
Budget
Evaluation Design
Financial Accountability Framework
End Notes

The Sutter County Children and
Families Commission
Nancy Aaberg Superintendent Yuba Sutter Unified
School District
Brian Aronson Judge Sutter County
Consolidated Court
Richard Doscher Chief Yuba City Police
Department
Olga Gonzalez MD Sutter County Health
Department
Lori Harrah Assistant Director-
Social Services
Sutter County Human
Services Department
Joan Hoss Assistant Director-
Mental Health Services
Sutter County Human
Services Department
Christine Odom Chief Probation Officer Sutter County Probation
Department
Jim Whiteaker Member Sutter County Board of
Supervisors
Edmund Smith Director Sutter County Human
Services Department
Many Thanks to Our Participants
Gurmeet Chahal Maria C. Romero Gaileen Bumgarner
Iqbal Kaur Delfina Alvarado Lynne Gilbert
Jaswant Kaur Martha Oregel Ymelda Mendoza
Indera Tumber Maria Pedroza Moises Kris Welch
Satinder Baims Isabel Madrigal Angela Dahlsrud
Thelma Anaya Erica Melcher Tresia Filby
Jorgine Rogers Claudia Salcido Mil Elliott
Dave Morrow Doreen Osumi Mary Chin
Mary Rice Eva Teagarden Karen Crawford
Bill Zeller Lavena Williams Tim Moriarty
Elizabeth Engelken
Cindy Chandler
Staff and Support
Deb Coulter, Executive
Director
Bev Dal Porto, Executive
Secretary
Brad Morrison, Strategic
Planning Consultant,
Morrison Forbes

INTRODUCTION
Significant research has shown that the emotional,
physical, and intellectual world a child
experiences during the first five years will
critically influence his or her lifelong
development.
In order to address those extremely important first
five years of life, Sutter County invests over 1.1
million dollars per year into programs and
services for young children and their families.
In 2005-06, an unduplicated total of 1,910
children, ages 0-5, received services from one or
more SCCFC-funded programs, an increase of
340 children (18%) over 2004-05.
Improved Family Functioning
The Child Development Behavioral Initiative
(CDBI) served 91 children with behavior
problems in fiscal year 2005-06. Of those 91, 93%
completed at least a portion of their treatment plan
goals, with demonstrated improvements in
children’s behavior. In addition, CDBI provided
12 parent workshops attended by 310 parents.
Family SOUP provided case management services
to 68 families and additional services to another
44 families of children with disabilities and other
special needs. Parents reported a greater
understanding of their children’s needs, more
confidence, and less stress.
Improved Child Development
The Smart Start pre kindergarten program taught
basic school readiness skills to 181 children with
limited or no pre school experience at seven
school sites. Pre to post preschool assessments for
Smart Start program participants revealed
statistically significant improvement in all areas
that were tested. In addition, 63% of Smart Start
children’s parents attended parent workshops.
The School Readiness Program (SR) directly
served 709 children, 629 parents and offered
developmentally appropriate learning activities to
strengthen children’s early literacy skills in fiscal
year 2005-06. In addition, SR coordinators
distributed 792 Kindergarten and pre kindergarten
backpacks and provided 218 referrals and
assistance efforts to 122 families.
Healthy Children and Families
Sutter County Smiles, mobile dental clinic
provided dental screenings, cleanings or
restorative treatments to 700 children. Of those,
61% of their parents stated that their child would
not have received dental care this year without the
dental van.
The Bright Futures Program provided health and
developmental screenings to 400 children in fiscal
year 2005-06 and facilitated 360 referrals for 249
children.
The Initiative on Child Health Immunizations
provided 2,330 free immunizations to 633
children. Of those children, 41% had no insurance
at the time of service. Eleven percent of parents
reported that immunizations would not have been
possible without the free program.
Improved Systems of Care
Sutter County has made a continuing investment
into the evaluation of its programs and services.
This year the Commission established a database
to track the number of interactions between its
grantee agencies. They also use the database to
track outcomes for children served.
All programs showed an increased level of crossprogram
interaction from the 2004-05 program
cycle, indicating a high level of interaction has
been achieved. The data showed that 47 percent of
the children served attended two or more
Commission funded programs, compared to only
36 percent in 2004-05, an improvement of nearly
one-third. These data indicate that the
Commission is having success in getting more
intensive services to a greater number of children.
The 2005-06 program cycle data also indicated
that greater SCCFC-program contact leads to
better kindergarten readiness.

BACKGROUND
In November of 1998, California voters
approved Proposition 10, a constitutional
amendment that dedicated a portion of taxes
on tobacco products to the development of
the California Children and Families
Initiative.
The California Legislature followed the
direction of the Proposition and enacted the
Children and Families Act, which authorized
counties in California to create local
commissions to administer funds derived
from the tax on tobacco products. County
Commissions receive revenues generated by
the tax based upon the annual recorded
births to county residents.
According to the Act, each California
County Board of Supervisors must appoint a
Children and Families First Commission to
oversee planning and distribution of the
Proposition 10 fund in its county.
Sutter County, acting through its Board of
Supervisors, approved an ordinance
establishing the Sutter County Children and
Families Commission, appointed
commissioners, and established the Sutter
County Children and Families Commission
Trust Fund on January 5, 1999.
The California Children and Families
Initiative (Proposition 10) is based on
research stressing the importance of early
physical, emotional and intellectual
nurturing as the foundation for later
development. Investing in our children
during their earliest years, by providing their
parents and caregivers the tools necessary to
foster healthy, loving relationships, will not
only prepare these children for academic
success, it will positively impact the quality
of their later lives. To this end, the Act
identifies three focus areas for
implementation:
• Parent Education and Support Services
• Childcare and Early Childhood
Development
• Health and Wellness
The California Children and Families
Commission considers the following
dimensions of child development to be
important:
• Physical development: Meeting
children’s basic needs for protection,
nutrition and health care.
• Cognitive and social-emotional
development: Meeting children’s basic
human needs for affection, security,
social participation and interaction with
others, as well as educational needs
through intellectual stimulation,
exploration, imitation, trial and error,
discovery, and active involvement in
learning and experimentation within a
safe and stimulating environment.
Proposition 10 funds are to be used
exclusively to promote, support, and
improve the early development, of children
from the prenatal stage through age five,
through a comprehensive and integrated
delivery system of information and services.
Each County Commission must develop a
comprehensive strategic plan that outlines
how the Commission will utilize the
revenues generated by the tax. Health and
Safety Code Section 130140 (1)(C)(ii) of the
Act Requires County Commission strategic
plans to include, at a minimum, the
following components:
• A description of the goals and
measurable objectives to be attained;
• A description of the programs of the
programs, services and projects to be
provided, sponsored or facilitated;
• A description of how measurable
outcomes of such programs, services
and projects will be determined by the
County Commission using appropriate
reliable indicators; and
• A description of how programs,
services, and projects relating to early
childhood development within the
county will be integrated into a
consumer-oriented and easily accessible
system.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES
In adopting this comprehensive strategic plan, the Sutter County Children and Families
Commission identified seven basic principles to govern the planning activities and to provide
guidance on the future allocation of funds and program development.
1. Services should be designed to serve all children and families eligible under the
guidelines of Proposition 10 of Sutter County who wish to benefit from the proposed
services.
2. Proposed services should not duplicate existing community services.
3. Proposed services should provide for the maximum amount of integration possible
between existing community programs and newly established programs.
4. Proposed services should focus on service delivery at the earliest possible point of
intervention.
5. Proposed services should provide a significant impact on the lives of children and
families served.
6. Proposed services should contain measurable outcomes of all services provided for
the purpose of evaluation.

COMMUNITY PROFILE
The Sutter County Children and Families
Commission embraced a three-level
approach to organize the data in this report,
soliciting and collecting information from
multiple sources in order to develop a
comprehensive understanding of the
conditions for children and families within
the county.
The Community Needs Assessment Data was
drawn from various data sources including
the U. S. Census, California Department of
Finance, California Department of Health
and other large public data systems. The
Community and Professional Survey Data
was developed from a survey questionnaire
distributed to community members and
professionals throughout the county. The
Commission distributed over 1,000 surveys
and received over 190 responses.
Additionally, they advertised the survey in
the local paper and provided access to a
web-based survey response form. The Focus
Group information is the result of specific
outreach to non-English speaking parents
and community members in addition to
groups of educators and children’s service
providers. Sutter County conducted six
focus groups and engaged 42 people in this
process.
Community Needs Assessment Data
Demographics
Sutter County is situated in the northern
Sacramento valley, covering 602.7 square
miles of farmlands and completely
encompassing the Sutter Buttes mountain
range. With a population density of 147.6
residents per square mile Sutter County is
considered a rural county, well below the
average California population density of
235.6 residents per square mile. i
Sutter County has 88,945 residents. Between
2000 and 2005, Sutter County grew steadily,
increasing its total population by 11.5%. The
area has one urban center in Yuba City, the
county seat, which is home to 58,368
people, 66% of the county population.
Outside of the incorporated City of Live
Oak, with a population of 6,785, the
county’s residents live in small communities
and unincorporated areas. ii There are an
estimated 7,533 children in the county,
ranging from birth through age 5. iii
Population Growth In Sutter County
Year
Sutter
2000 78,700
2005 88,945
5 Year Growth, 2000-2005 11.5%
Source: Cal. Dept. of Finance
Sutter County has seen increases across all
of its largest ethnic sub-populations since
the year 2000. Of all the ethnic groups
reported, people of Hispanic (22.9%) and
Asian (19.8%) descent experienced the
largest population growth. iv
Sutter County Population by Ethnicity: Changes Over 5 years
Total
White Hispanic Asian Black Amer. Indian
2000 79,464 47,688 17,483 9,694 1,467 1,011
2005 88,297 48,050 22,665 12,080 1,861 1,649
Increase 10% .75% 22.9% 19.8% 21.2% 38.7%
Source: Cal. Dept. of Finance
Family Economics
The estimated median household income of
Sutter residents was 39,633 per family in
2003, which lagged behind the statewide
average median income of 48,440.
Household income is an important measure
of community prosperity. Per capita income,
also an indicator of financial health was
25,606 per person in 2003. Both of these
numbers have historically paralleled the
growth in statewide and regional averages. v
Median Household Income, 2003
Sutter 39,633
California 48,440
Source: U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the
Census

In 2003, 12.9% of the total Sutter County
population lived below the poverty rate. The
2003 rate is comparable to the California
average of 13.8%. Both the state and Sutter
County experienced declines in the rates of
poverty over five years between 1999 and
2003. vi In 2002, 18.2% of Sutter County
children, ages 0-5, lived below the poverty
rate. This number has gradually improved
over the years. During 2002, the statewide
average was 19.8%. vii Another strong
influence on the poverty threshold is the
relative cost of housing. The cost of renting
a home in Sutter County actually increased
by 23.9% between the years 2000 and 2005.
The Fair Market Rent is now 854 dollars per
month. viii Persons Below Poverty
1999 2003
Sutter 15.5% 12.9%
California 14.2% 13.8%
Source: U. S. Census, 2000/ Economic Projections
Less than 2% of all Sutter County
households rely on Food Stamps to
supplement the family budget. ix Although
this number fluctuates annually, since 1997,
the overall number has declined in Sutter
County while increasing at the state and
national levels.
Family Health
The infant mortality rate of 3.4 in Sutter
County is below the statewide average of 5.2
and the national standard of 4.5 set by
United States Department of Health and
Human Services, Healthy People 2010
Goals. x
Infant Mortality Rate
Sutter, 2003 3.4
California, 2003 5.2
Healthy People 2010 4.5
Source: Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health
Report, 2004; Children Now, 2005; Healthy People 2010
In 2003, 10.4% of all births in the county
were from teenage mothers. This is
comparable to the California average of
9.1%. The average number births to teen
mothers less than age 15 was .06%, also
comparable to the state average for that age
group. xi
The low numbers (66%) of women
accessing prenatal care in the first trimester
continues to be a concern in Sutter County.
A number of factors including cultural
traditions, transportation and language
barriers play a part in the relatively high
percentages of women receiving no prenatal
care. The rates are unusually low in
comparison with state (87%) and Healthy
People 2010 standards (90%). xii
Prenatal Care During First Trimester
Sutter, 2003 66%
California 87%
Healthy People 2010 90%
Source: Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health
Report, 2004; Children Now, 2005; Healthy People 2010
According to data from a regional study
conducted in 2004 about 13% of households
in Sutter County do not have health
insurance. xiii
Another key area of well being for children
is the low birth-weight rate. It is a very
important measure of risk factors for infant
health. Sutter County’s rate (6.0%) is
favorable, located in the top third of the
state’s counties. xiv
Low Birth Weight Infants (3 Year
Average)
Sutter, 2003 6.0%
California, 2003 6.6%
Healthy People 2010 5
Source: Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health
Report, 2004; Children Now, 2005; Healthy People 2010
Approximately 20% of the total Sutter
County population currently lives with a
disability, which is comparable with state
and national averages. Generally, the
proportion of children with disabilities is

much lower than that of the total population,
as the rate increases with age. Sutter County
with 5.8% of children, ages 5-15 living with
a disability is higher than the statewide
average of 4.8% children in the same age
group.
Early Care and Development
Comparatively, the average cost of fulltime,
licensed childcare is significantly lower than
other areas in California, although it still
represents a significant percentage of total
family income. Across the different agegroups
(under 2 and 2-5) of the children and
the type of care (Family Care or Centerbased)
the cost of fulltime licensed childcare
within Sutter County is 30% to 45% less
expensive than the statewide average. xv
In Sutter County, there are gaps in the
availability of affordable, quality childcare.
According to a 2005 data report, there were
36 Center-based programs and 112 Family
Care Centers, which was only enough
licensed childcare for 30% of the children of
parents in the labor force. xvi This gap
combined with the large numbers of
households with working parents creates a
situation where many of the families rely on
other family members, including siblings
and elders, regardless of their ability to
provide for the children in their care.
In 2000, slightly less than half (47.8%) of all
children were enrolled in preschool
compared the state average of 56.6% of all
children. xvii
Approximately 30% of all Sutter County
households speak a language other than
English in the home. xviii Across all three of
the schools in the School Readiness
Program, the participants averaged 46%
English Language Learners and 90%
enrollment in Chapter 1, free and reduced
lunch programs. The primary languages
spoken at home were Spanish, English and
Punjabi. xix
Community and Professional Survey
Results
The Sutter County Children and Families
Commission surveyed community and childserving
professionals in order to assess the
unmet needs of children. The Commission
received 190 responses. The aggregated data
is presented in the following table.
4.60
4.40
4.204.12
4.00
3.80
3.60
3.40
3.72
Community And Professional Survey
4.434.44
4.27
4.14
4.014.00
3.91
4.26 4.32 3.79
4.05 4.12
3.20
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Preference
Community Survey Preferences Key
(Refer to Survey Chart Above)
1 Free Children’s
Books
8 Medi-Cal
Assistance
2 Literacy
Backpacks
9 Web Listing of
Childcare
3 Literacy Classes 10 Free Classes
(Nutrition,
Obesity, Activity)
4 Improved Parent
–Teacher
11 Parent Skill
Classes
Communication
5 Summer 12 Arts Activities
Kindergarten
6 Pregnancy/Pren 13 Library And
atal Classes
7 Breastfeeding
Info
Storytelling
14 Safety Info
When all the surveys were combined, the
top five community needs were; parent and
teacher communications, child literacy,
parent skill classes, summer prekindergarten
and free classes for parents
(nutrition, obesity, activity).

4.5
4.45
4.4
4.35
4.3
4.25
4.2
4.15
4.44 4.43
Top 5 Survey Preferences
4.32
Improved Parent Literacy ClassesParent Skill
Teacher
Classes
Communication
Preference
Community Focus Group Themes
4.27 4.26
Summer Pre- Free Classes
Kindergarten (Nutrition,
Activity)
The Commission held six focus groups
organized in conjunction with its School
Readiness re-application process. From
these focus groups, several common themes
emerged as people spoke about the issues
facing children and families in the county.
Parent Education
The most common theme expressed in all of
the groups was the need to address parent
education. There were many variations of
this one theme but overall, the direction was
very clear. The following topics were
variations upon that theme.
• Nutrition: The need to address poor diet
habits, increasing dental problems
among young children and childhood
obesity all pointed towards the area of
nutrition education for parents and care
providers. Many were concerned about
young children being given soda and
sugary juices in baby bottles.
Focus Group Theme:
Parent Education
Nutrition
Child Development
Skill Development
Low Literacy Among Parents
Positive Discipline
Family Communication
• Child Development: There was also
significant interest in the area of child
development. Parents and service
providers thought there should be more
information and resources out in the
community about normal child
development patterns and advice and
techniques for parents to know more
about their child’s needs at any given
period in the development process.
• Improved Parenting Skills: There were
multiple suggestions for skill
development including appropriate
discipline, taking instruction from
adults, recognizing authority figures,
becoming more involved with the
child’s school, learning how to involve
fathers in raising children and learning
how to read to the children and guidance
about appropriate decisions around
television and video games. There were
also suggestions about providing parents
more opportunities to network together.
In general there was recognition that this
is a generational problem in that many
parents have not been taught the basics
of child rearing nor have they had good
role models.
• Skill development: The need to help
children develop more cognitive and
language skills was an emphasis in
many of the focus groups. Many parents
were interested in having their children
learn more of these basics prior to
attending preschool.
• Low Literacy Levels Among Parents:
The level of literacy among some of the
parents was a concern, particularly for
the educators and service providers. A
small percentage of the parents are not
literate in their native languages. This
creates a challenge when it comes to
preparing your children for school,
reading important information from the
school and developing fluency in
English.
• Positive Discipline: There were
concerns expressed both by parents,
educators and service providers about
the need to provide some instruction on
parenting techniques to learn more
appropriate and effective ways to
discipline their children.

• Family Communications: The
participants noted a general decline in
the quality of communication in
families.
Language: As part of the effort to include
community members in the data collection
process, three focus groups were conducted
in alternate languages; Spanish (2) and
Punjabi (1). The topics of language and
language gaps were universally addressed in
all of the focus groups.
Focus Group Theme:
Language
Awareness and Understanding
Willingness to Learn
Learning Delays
• Awareness and Understanding: In
particular, there was a general need cited
that parents need to know “what is going
on”. Some made mention of the fact that
many parents who did not read English
often had to find a friend to interpret the
(daily to weekly) messages from school.
Many of the parents expressed their
appreciation for the efforts to provide
native-language translation for the
important documents or the provision of
bi-lingual staffing. They also indicated
that bi-lingual staff made them feel
more comfortable and more welcomed.
• Willingness to Learn: Many of the
parents expressed their willingness to
have their children learn English. Many
parents also indicated a willingness to
learn as well, especially when it came to
the safety and well-being of their
children.
• Learning Delays: The educators and
service providers articulated the need for
additional work to offset the limits of
parents who may not speak English or
may have additional literacy challenges
as these factors can slow the
development of young children and
delay their readiness for school.
General Issues for Families:
There were several themes that did not rise
to the level of a category but stood out as
significant topics.
• Navigating the System was a common
theme in all of the focus groups. There
were general concerns about the ability
of people to get services and resources
and know how to effectively access the
resources available for their children.
Making connections with the school
personnel and other parents were also
key strategies that parents use to keep up
with current information.
Focus Group Theme:
General Issues for Families
Navigating the System
Childcare Issues
Behavioral Issues
Transportation and Access
Safety and Security
Media Influence
Workplace Issues
• Childcare Issues: The data indicates that
many parents are now working parents.
These individuals and families, now
absent from their homes, have to make
arrangements for the care of their
children to the best of their ability. The
quality of that care was the major
concern in many of the focus groups.
The participants in the childcare group
suggested a variety of interventions to
provide information and training on
child development, particularly
addressing “mediocre” providers. As far
as family care, there were additional
concerns expressed (in all of the groups)
that the people providing the care for the
young children needed to get the
information directly, including
grandparents, aunts and siblings. One
example given was that many elders use
the television to calm the children down.
• Behavioral Issues: There were two
themes concerning the behaviors of

children. One theme addressed the need
for additional interventions (beyond the
current level of CDBI service). The
other theme suggested that a big part of
the problem stemmed from the lack of
parenting skills to effectively address
those behaviors at home.
• Transportation and access to services
for people in the outlying communities
and even within the Yuba City limits
were issues that were universally
recognized across the groups but there
were no follow-up suggestions for
improvement.
• Safety and security were also on the
minds on several of the participants as
they expressed concerns for their
children to be safe in their own
neighborhoods.
• Media Influence: There was also some
concern around the passive nature of
children’s entertainment particularly
television and video games and that
these diversions do little to stimulate
imagination and physical activity.
• Workplace Issues: There were also
suggestions to contact and provide
information to employers to make
workplaces more family-friendly.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Goal
Improved Family Functioning
Through education, information and support services, all Sutter County families will have
opportunities to learn parenting practices that promote safe, nurturing and understanding
environments for their children.
Objectives
a) Increase the number of families accessing and utilizing the services of the
children’s behavioral health specialist
b) Increase the number of families and children accessing and utilizing special
needs services
Current Funding Strategies
Child Development Behavioral Initiative, Special Needs Program
Intended Results
A greater number of children will benefit from improved family functioning as a result of
their utilization of behavioral and special needs services.

Improved Child Development
Goals
A greater number of Sutter County children will have quality early care and education
experiences that promote appropriate physical, social, emotional and cognitive
development.
Objectives
a) Increase the number of children that have access to quality early care and
education programs which provide a foundation for learning prior to entering
kindergarten
b) Increase the number of families that receive developmentally appropriate
educational backpacks
Current Funding Strategies
School Readiness, Smart Start, Early Development Backpacks
Intended Results
A greater number of children will be able to access early education services, resources
and support so that they are able to enter kindergarten ready to learn.

Healthy Children and Families
Goals
Sutter County children and families will have opportunities to access health and wellness
services that address prevention, intervention and treatment to optimize family wellbeing.
Objectives
a) Increase in the number of children that are fully immunized at the appropriate
developmental stage
b) Increase in the number of children that receive health screenings
c) Increase the number of children that receive dental examinations and treatments
Current Funding Strategies
Sutter County Smiles, Bright Futures, Free Immunization Program
Intended Results
A greater number of Sutter County children will be able to access screenings,
immunizations and dental care to improve their overall health and development.

Improved Systems of Care
Goal
Encourage the integration and coordination of services in order to improve systems of
care for families and children.
Objectives
a) Increase the frequency of interaction and cooperation between the core funded
programs in Sutter County (Proposed)
b) Increase in the number of hours of training on child development topics provided
in Sutter County
c) Increase the quality of early childhood informational television programming
provided in Sutter County
d) Increase the amount of targeted mini-grant funds to improve children’s services
and systems of care
Current Funding Strategies
Program Integration Evaluation/ Community Education / Outreach, Mini-grants
Intended Results
The community will be better able to access early child development information and
resources through specialized training, informational television programming and
targeted funding provided by the Sutter County Children and Families Commission.

CURRENT FUNDED PROGRAMS
The Sutter County Children and Families
Commission has identified several core
programs that fill gaps and provide direct
and needed services to the County’s
youngest children and their families. Below
is a listing of each program and their
function.
Core Programs
Sutter County Smiles
Sutter County Smiles is a mobile dental
clinic that provides dental screenings,
cleanings, restorative treatments, and dental
health education services.
Smart Start
The Smart Start pre kindergarten program
provides basic school readiness skills to
children with limited or no pre school
experience at seven school sites.
School Readiness
The School Readiness Program provides
developmentally appropriate learning
activities to strengthen children’s early
literacy skills, parent child activities, pre
kindergarten services and resources,
referrals to community services, lending
libraries and parent education. These
services are provided at Family Centers
located in three elementary school sites in
Yuba City. In 2007 a pilot program will be
created at the Luther Burbank School in the
Live Oak community.
Family SOUP
Family SOUP provides case management,
individual and family counseling, facilitated
referrals, parent education and training,
parent liaison and support services to
families of children with disabilities and
other special needs.
children have no insurance at the time of
service.
Child Behavioral Specialist
The Child Development Behavioral
Initiative (CDBI) funds a child development
behavioral specialist, who provides
screening and intervention for children with
behavior problems. In addition the
Behaviorist provides workshops for with
parents to support the behavioral change
process.
Bright Futures
The Bright Futures Program offers health
and developmental screenings and facilitated
referrals for all children in Sutter County
Backpacks
Sutter County provides free educational
backpacks filled with early literacy supplies
to all eligible children in the county through
its School Readiness Program.
Community Education/ Outreach
Sutter County provides weekly television
broadcasts on the Comcast community
television channel. The program includes a
variety of early development, family health
and parenting topics. Sutter County provides
a number of workshops for professionals
and community members on the leading
topics in early childhood development.
Mini Grants
The Sutter County Commission funds a
small grant program (2,500 dollars and less)
to encourage community action and
initiative in behalf of young children. One
example of an initiative was an early
learning grant process that sought requests
to improve literacy and learning in
preschools, childcare centers, service centers
and other community locations.
FREE Immunizations
The Initiative on Child Health
Immunizations offers free immunizations to
all children in Sutter County. Many of the

BUDGET
Revenue
THREE YEAR BUDGET
2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010
State Prop 10 funds $1,068,170.00 $1,046,260.00 $1,023,949.00
School Readiness $100,000.00 $100,000.00 $100,000.00
Admin/Travel Augmentation $66,297.00 $66,297.00 $66,297.00
Interest earned (estimate) $168,000.00 $164,500.00 $161,000.00
Commission Reserve Funds $108,502.06 $167,211.16 $222,516.77
Total Revenues $1,510,969.06 $1,544,268.16 $1,573,762.77
Administrative Expenses
Salaries & Employee Benefits $170,522.10 $179,048.21 $188,000.61
Services & Supplies $103,032.96 $106,123.95 $109,307.66
Total Administrative Expenses $273,555.06 $285,172.16 $297,308.27
Evaluation Expenses
Duerr Evaluation Contract $75,000.00 $75,000.00 $75,000.00
Total Evaluation Expenses $75,000.00 $75,000.00 $75,000.00
Program Expenses (core
programs)
Sutter County Smiles $150,000.00 $150,000.00 $150,000.00
Sutter Co. Smiles PTC $30,000.00 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
Smart Start $220,000.00 $220,000.00 $220,000.00
School Readiness $284,053.00 $299,146.00 $310,496.00
Family SOUP $124,361.00 $125,000.00 $125,000.00
FREE Immunizations $30,000.00 $30,000.00 $30,000.00
Child Behavioral Specialist $100,000.00 $100,000.00 $100,000.00
Bright Futures $65,000.00 $66,950.00 $68,958.50
Backpacks $60,000.00 $60,000.00 $60,000.00
Community Education $17,000.00 $19,000.00 $21,000.00
Outreach $22,000.00 $24,000.00 $26,000.00
Mini Grants $60,000.00 $60,000.00 $60,000.00
Total Program Expenses $1,162,414.00 $1,184,096.00 $1,201,454.50
Total Expenses $1,510,969.06 $1,544,268.16 $1,573,762.77

EVALUATION DESIGN
The Sutter County Children and Families
Commission has emphasized outcome
evaluation since its inception and developed
clear and consistent evaluation
methodologies for all of its funded
programs. The Commission contracts with
Duerr Evaluation and Research (DER) of
Chico to provide comprehensive evaluations
on eight programs and one separate review
of cross program integration. The complete
evaluation design consists thirty-three
measures, four databases and one set of
focus groups. Listed below are the measures
studies at each of the funded programs.
BRIGHT FUTURES EVALUATION
COMPONENTS
• Participant Information Form
• Participant Screening Form
• Parent Survey
• In-Kind Contribution Record Form
• Referral Follow-Up Database
CHILD DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE
EVALUATION COMPONENTS
• Family Reporting Form
• Pediatric Symptoms Checklist
(PCS)
• Temperament and Atypical
Behavioral Scale Assessment
(TABS)
• Intervention Success Plan Success
Assessment
• Workshop Attendance and
Evaluation Form
• Walker Assessment Scale (WAS)
SCHOOL READINESS EVALUATION
COMPONENTS
• Parent/Child Involvement Tracking
Database
• Referrals And Other Assistance
• Yearly Pre Parent Survey
• Yearly Post Parent Survey
• Weekly Activity Evaluation Survey
• Single-Event Activity Evaluation
Form
• Walker Assessment Scale (WAS)
• Backpack Distribution Analysis
• Backpack Intake Form & Postcard
Survey
• Attendance/Retention Records
SMART START EVALUATION
COMPONENTS
• Implementation Data
• Preschool Skills Assessment
• Walker Assessment Scale (WAS)
• Parent Exit Survey
• Parent Workshop Survey
• Smart Start Staff Focus Groups
SPECIAL NEEDS EVALUATION
COMPONENTS
• Family Success Assessment
• Parent Survey
• Direct Services Tracking Database
• Policy & System Change History
SUTTER SMILES DENTAL VAN
EVALUATION COMPONENTS
• Database
• Intake Evaluation Questions
INITIATIVE ON CHILD HEALTH
EVALUATION COMPONENTS
• Immunization Tracking
• Intake Forms
• County Immunization Study
PROGRAM INTEGRATION
EVALUATION COMPONENTS
• Program Integration Survey
• Program Integration Database

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY
FRAMEWORK
The Sutter County Children and Families
Commission has displayed a great deal of
integrity in the use of public funds. The
Commission has contracted with private
audit firms to develop its annual audits since
its inception in 1999. To date, all of Sutter
County Children and Families
Commission’s audits have met federal and
state public fund accounting standards
without exception.
Sutter County also reviews the financial
performance of its grantee agencies to assure
their fiscal compliance and integrity. The
Commission coordinates closely with the
Sutter County Auditors Office. The
Commission operates under the structure
designed for County Commissions in the
First 5 Financial Management Guide,
developed by the Government Finance
Officers Association of the United States
and Canada (GFOA).
In 2006, Sutter County completed an
extensive review of their financial and
organizational procedures in order to
comply with newly enacted legislative
changes.

END NOTES
i California Dept. of Finance/ CSU Chico Sutter County Economic
and Demographic Profile, 2006
ii Ibid.
iii California Dept. of Finance/ CSU Chico Sutter County
Economic and Demographic Profile, 2006. California Department
of Health; Health Profiles, 2005. Authors note: This figure was
arrived at by using the five year average number of births between
2000 and 2005 and calculating out the infant deaths and percentage
of change in the infant population.
iv Ibid.
v California Dept. of Finance/ CSU Chico Sutter County Economic
and Demographic Profile, 2006. Author’s Note: The median
household income figure represents the midpoint at which half of
the families are above and half of the families are below. This
figure is important in establishing the relative prosperity of the area
but it does not completely reflect the standard of living.
vi U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. Poverty
rates are a national standard used to determine eligibility for
government benefit programs. They are established by a Census
Bureau formula based upon the national Consumer Price Index and
as such they are not adjusted by geographic location.
vii Children Now, California County Data Book, 2005.
viii U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
ix California Dept. of Finance/ CSU Chico Sutter County
Economic and Demographic Profile, 2006 Authors Note: Food
Stamps are an important indicator of poverty because many times
people will use Food Stamps but not utilize other government
assistance programs.
x Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health Report,
2004; Children Now, 2006; Healthy People 2010. The infant
mortality rate describes deaths that have occurred within the first
twelve months of life. The infant mortality rate is often used as an
indicator to determine the overall health status of a community.
This rate is measured over a three-year period.
xi California Dept. of Finance/ CSU Chico Sutter County
Economic and Demographic Profile, 2006
xii Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health Report,
2004
xiii M. Hickey, K. Ishimaru. Insure the Uninsured Project. Work
and Health. Overview of the Uninsured in Sutter County. (workand-heatlh.org),
2004
xiv Sutter County Health Dept., Maternal Child Health Report,
2004. California Department of Health: Health Profiles 2004.
xv Children Now, California County Data Book, 2005.
xvi The 2005 California Childcare Portfolio, Sutter County
Profile, 2005
xvii U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census
xviii U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, 2000
xix Sutter/ YCUSD School Readiness Program Data, 2006