Strengthening Home Visiting: A South Carolina Perspective on Workforce Development

In the heart of South Carolina, Cathy Ramage is on a mission to transform home visiting from a collection of programs and services to a recognized, professional career path – and believes the Institute for the Advancement of Family Support Professionals can be an important partner in that mission. 

As the director of home visiting at Children's Trust of South Carolina with 10 years of experience in the field, she has become a passionate advocate for home visitors who support some of the state's most vulnerable families. 

South Carolina's home visiting ecosystem presents a complex challenge. With multiple programs operated by different entities, a centralized approach to workforce development is necessary, but challenging to coordinate. Which also means not enough professionals are finding a pathway to home visiting and less families can get the support they need.

In fact, Ramage says only about 10% of families who could benefit from home visiting services are currently receiving support. 

"Home visitors do so much," Ramage said. "They have to be knowledgeable in so many areas and manage a lot of unique circumstances with families in crisis. Workforce development is really hard given those reasons when you're supporting staff."

So, Children’s Trust helped bring together a consortium of state leads, model representatives and key stakeholders to drill down on common needs, goals and challenges. The Children’s Trust then began encouraging and incentivizing the Institute’s Career Compass and certification program in partnership with SC First Steps to School Readiness. 

One motivator for Ramage involves the stark pay disparity among home visitors. Pay is often determined based on internal factors at different agencies or organizations, and therefore can vary by tens of thousands in salaries across different staff for similar work. This inconsistency highlights the urgent need for a more structured approach to professional development and recognition. 

"The Institute had this vision of keeping states from having to reinvent the wheel," Ramage said. "They found a way to build something that really is intended to support learning, growth and a more coordinated approach to competencies in a field that didn't have that yet." 

The Institute's certification provides a comprehensive framework that ensures home visitors have the core competencies needed to deliver high-quality services. By creating a standardized assessment across multiple domains, the program offers professionals a clear pathway for growth and development. 

"We want to continue to promote the certification as the certification for home visitors in South Carolina," Ramage said. "Our long-term vision is to become more coordinated and get more recognition for the work, and, ultimately, improve service quality for families." 

She knows the potential for home visiting is immense and envisions a future where it’s seen as an essential profession with clear advancement opportunities. Home visitors are not just service providers – they are community change agents supporting families as they navigate the most pivotal time of their lives.

Learn more about the Institute and its career development opportunities at https://www.theinstitutefsp.org.