Commentary: Breaking the Cycle – How CYDC Supports Vulnerable Children in the Lowcountry

By: Beverly Hardin, Guest Writer and CEO of CYDC

What difference can I make in the world around me? How long does it take to see the results of changes made to improve my community? What can I do to make sure these changes and their impacts are sustainable? These are the kinds of questions youth participating in North Charleston’s Freedom School, hosted by Carolina Youth Development Center (CYDC) in partnership with the Children’s Defense Fund, were asked this summer. 

It is common for kids to go back to school after a busy summer having lost some of what they have learned over the past year. CYDC’s Freedom School works to prevent that.

Freedom School is a six-week summer program for CYDC residents and local children that boosts student motivation to read, generates more positive attitudes toward learning, and connects the needs of children and families to the resources of their communities.

Through innovative teaching practices, creative projects, and visits from influential guests, our Freedom School students spent the summer discovering how to advocate for the causes they believe in and how they can leave a positive impact on their communities. This year, students focused specifically on the positive impacts they can make on the environment. Students applied their newfound knowledge to a variety of different projects throughout the summer, including writing and performing a rap about climate change.

By creating a curriculum that is easily digested by young children and allowing them to be active in their education, students were able to leave Freedom School newly empowered and inspired to take an active role in their communities.

During the fifth week of Freedom School, U.S. Congresswoman Nancy Mace visited CYDC to read to Freedom School students and get a tour of the campus. Recognizing this as an opportunity to engage in her community and learn something new, one student asked Rep. Mace about her thoughts on climate change, and how she is helping to mitigate damage caused by climate change.

This is the kind of action we want to teach our children. Our goal is to educate and inspire children with consistent, varied learning opportunities and experiences, giving them confidence to act proactively while breaking harmful cycles that lead to a lack of education, homelessness, abuse, and neglect. The end of these cycles means the beginning of healthier, thriving families.

When children and families need treatment, support and tools to help them remain strong, they can look to CYDC. Our array of programs and services are aimed at creating a safe space where vulnerable children and youth in the Lowcountry can thrive and learn and where families can develop positive discipline practices, stay resilient in tough times, reduce conflict, and improve parenting skills. We hold ourselves to the highest standard and aim to be a leader in all facets of both state and national child welfare practices.

Many of our services are free and available to the families in our community who need them most. Oftentimes, the biggest threat to health and well-being is access to care, but knowing these resources and supports are available can and often does make all the difference. The helpers and teachers are out there – you just have to look for them. Many are right here at CYDC, ready to support healthy, thriving families in the Lowcountry and throughout South Carolina.

To find out more about the Carolina Youth Development Center (CYDC) services and support for children and families or how you can support these critical programs, visit cydc.org.

Beverly Hardin is CEO of CYDC. Founded in 1790, CYDC’s mission is to cultivate thriving families. Through programs like the summer Freedom School, CYDC works to empower and equip our community’s children and families by providing a safe environment, educational support, and career readiness in collaboration with community partners.

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