Stepping Stones was orginally conceived of by local physician and citizen member of CCF, Dr. Michael Dickens. He suggested the idea of a chart that tracks the "vital signs" of the community as a way to understand the range of issues facing youth and families.

This easy-to-read report card is the beginning of a long-term plan to chart the community's health in areas that are measurable and represent diverse factors that affect the quality of family life. The 63 different indicators track academic achievement and school discipline, family and community safety, early childhood development and infant health, community involvement and conduct, and family characteristics and financial status. As this data is tracked over time, trends in the community will appear, highlighting strengths in services that work well, and revealing areas requiring improvement.

Stepping Stones is unique in that it focuses on community successes in addition to challenges. This report records the community assets Charlottesville/Albemarle has in place to support quality family life and youth development, such as libraries, fine arts programs in the schools, and recreation facilities.

CCF members believe Stepping Stones will spark dialogue about what it takes to have a healthy community and bring people in our community together to tackle tough problems.