NOTE: As of Feb. 29, 2024, Carolina Youth Development Center (CYDC) has rebranded to Landmarks for Families. Our nonprofit, community programs and residential services remain committed to cultivating thriving youth and families in this new chapter.
Carolina Youth Development Center (CYDC) has achieved national accreditation through the New York-based Council on Accreditation (COA).
CYDC is a nonprofit serving the Tri-County that provides shelter and support services to child victims of abuse and neglect, as well as youth mentoring programs and a community-based prevention program that helps at-risk families access the resources they need to stay together.
Organizations pursue accreditation to demonstrate the implementation of best practice standards in the field of human services. COA evaluated all aspects of CYDC’s programs, services, management and administration.
“Accreditation is a meticulous process that leaves no stone unturned in evaluating an organization, and we are proud of this tremendous accomplishment,” said CYDC Chief Executive Officer Beverly Hardin.
“Successful accreditation is affirmation of our high quality, comprehensive care services.”
COA accreditation is an objective, independent, and reliable validation of an agency’s performance. The COA accreditation process involves a detailed review and analysis of an organization’s administration, management and service delivery functions against international standards of best practice.
The standards driving accreditation ensure that services are well-coordinated, culturally competent, evidence-based, outcomes-oriented and provided by a skilled and supported workforce.
COA accreditation demonstrates accountability in the management of resources, sets standardized best practice thresholds for service and administration and increases organizational capacity and accountability by creating a framework for ongoing quality improvement.
To achieve COA accreditation, CYDC first provided written evidence of compliance with the COA standards. Thereafter, a group of specially-trained volunteer Peer Reviewers confirmed adherence to these standards during a series of on-site interviews with the board of directors, volunteers, agency partners staff, parents and clients.
Based on their findings, COA’s volunteer-based Accreditation Commission voted that CYDC had successfully met the criteria for accreditation.
CYDC has been continuously accredited since 1980.
About COA
Founded in 1977, COA is an independent, not-for-profit accreditor of the full continuum of community-based behavioral health care and social service organizations in the United States and Canada. Over 2,000 organizations — voluntary, public, and proprietary; local and statewide; large and small — have either successfully achieved COA accreditation or are currently engaged in the process. Presently, COA has a total of 47 service standards that are applicable to over 125 different types of programs. To learn more about COA, please visit www.COAnet.org.
About Carolina Youth Development Center
Originally known as The Charleston Orphan House, CYDC, founded in 1790, was the first public orphanage in the United States. It has evolved into a private nonprofit, providing comprehensive care for abused, abandoned and neglected youth, assisting vulnerable families in the community with preventative services, and offering job readiness and life skills programs for our residential children, as well as youth in foster care in the community. CYDC’s services also include the local affiliate of the Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring programs and the Callen-Lacey Center for Children’s residential group home in Berkeley County.