Southeast VT Building Bright Futures-
Your source for all things early childhood
Well, better late than never. Right? It's been a busy month in the early childhood arena. Outside, we went from mid 70's to frost. And presidential politics is in full swing. Plenty to dig into for our October Telegraph. I'm back from family leave starting November 2nd. Be on the lookout!
Here's just a taste of what the October Telegraph includes:
- September and October council notes
- November 11th council meeting
- December 9th special council meeting and discussion
- Let's Grow Kids November 3rd Child Care Challenge forum
- Windham County Parent Resource Calendar
- VT Women Infant & Children (WIC) e-card launch
- Early Learning Challenge grant project updates
- Child care licensing regulations update
- VT Early Learning Standards
- Interesting reads, watches and listens
Paz-
Chad
802.451.8627 [email protected]
Who is BBF and what do we do? Building Bright Futures (BBF) harnesses the power of Vermont communities to improve child and family well-being. BBF serves the dual role as both the Vermont Early Childhood Advisory Council and 501(c)(3) statewide network, aligning local solutions of 12 regional Councils with policy at the state level.
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Upcoming Council Meetings
November 11th meeting. September 9th & October 14th meeting notes
The Southeast Vermont BBF regional council meetings are held every 2nd Wednesday of the month, 4-pm at Winston Prouty.
Our next meeting will be
Wednesday, November 11th from 4-6pm at Winston Prouty in Brattleboro. Cynthia Greene, BBF Action Plan Coordinator, will join us to connect the dots between our
state early childhood action plan and regional action plan.
Below is the schedule for our fall & winter council meetings. All meetings will run from 4-6pm and be at
Winston Prouty Center, 20 Winston Prouty Way, Brattleboro.
- Nov 11th
- Dec 9th **Special location, Holton Hall Conference Rm, Austine Campus, Brattleboro**
- January 13th
- February 10th
- March 9th
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Special December 9th Council Meeting
Sifting through the confusing state of our early childhood system
Join us for a special presentation and discussion to sift through the confusing state of our early childhood system. This will be an opportunity to better understand the state and local players, how they are connected and the role the BBF regional council plays in connecting the dots. This will also be our holiday social.
Click Here
to RSVP and share our Facebook event. Or, email Chad at [email protected] that you will be attending. Hearty refreshments and child care will be available. Please RSVP! Space is limited. Click Here for the event flyer.
December 9th, 4-6pm. Holton Hall Conference Room Austine Campus, 130 Austine Dr., Brattleboro.
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Steering Committee Elections
Interested in serving on the council Steering Committee?
Council Steering Committee Elections
The council is looking for those interested in serving on the steering committee. The steering committee provides direction to the council and council coordinator (me!). If you are interested, please contact me via email or phone.
Once I have a full list of interested candidates, I will send out an election notice via email and newsletter. Please contact me no later than Friday November 6th.
Council Operating Principles, including Steering Committee Roles & Responsibilities
Click Here for the approved council operating principles including the steering committee roles and responsibilities.
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Child Care Challenge Forum November 3rd
Hosted by Let's Grow Kids. Space still available!
There's still room at next week's Let's Grow Kids Child Care Challenge Forum taking place Tuesday, November 3rd from 5:30-7:30pm at the American Legion in Brattleboro.
Click Here
for details and to RSVP. Dinner will be provided.
The forum, and others like it across the state, will serve as an opportunity for Vermonters to tell their stories about the challenges they face concerning high quality, affordable child care and to start a community conversation about how to solve our child care challenge.
We hope to see you there!
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Launch of Windham County Parent Resource Calendar
Calendar launch event September 25
Announcing a new - free - resource for families in Windham County: The Windham County Parent Resource Calendar. This is an online calendar created by several organizations that serve families in Windham County. The goal of this calendar is to provide a free, single location for programs, classes, workshops, services, and more for families in Windham County.
Click Here to view the calendar. You'll see that families can choose to receive calendar updates through Twitter and by email. Another important feature in the calendar is the "Category" located just above the month. Parents can search listings by all, location, age, and more. Adding information to the calendar is very simple. And this calendar can easily be embedded in any website.
Additionally, this resource is available for free not only to families but also to all the participating organizations.
If you would like more information, contact Sam Maskell at the Rockingham Free Public Library by phone at 802-463-4270, or by email at
[email protected]. She can explain how the calendar works, set you up with a profile so that you can begin adding your organization's information, and, if you'd like extra help getting started, is available to provide an in-person training.
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Engaging the Business & Workplace Communities
Events & discussions over past two months point to focus on families & economy
Efforts are underway to put a spotlight on the intersection of supporting children and families and building a thriving economy. A number of events in September and October as well as our October 14th BBF council meeting explored the intersection in greater detail. Additionally, the Southeast VT BBF council is proposing to put significant emphasis on these regional efforts. A recap of each as well as BBF's policy brief on family centered policies are below.
Sept 15 forum on paid family and medical leave
The Vermont Commission on Women and the Main Street Alliance of Vermont hosted a series of community forums on long-term paid family and medical leave to explore the possibility of developing and implementing a state-run Temporary Disability and Caregiver Insurance (TDCI) Program. The forums explored the need for this program, how similar programs have been implemented in other states, and what a successful TDCI program could look like for Vermont. Click Here for a copy of the presentation.
Oct 1 business breakfast
Let's Grow Kids and Windham Child Care Association hosted an informal conversation with the Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce to answer questions and engage the area business community on early childhood issues. Click Here to read the full story.
October 14th Workforce Development & Early Childhood Summit
Impact Monadnock and the Greater Keene Chamber of Commerce hosted a summit focused on the intersection of workforce development and investing in our children. Click Here to read the full recap and next steps from the summit.
BBF Policy Brief on Family Friendly Workplace Policies
Click Here to read BBF's policy brief documenting the impact of family friendly workplace policies
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Update on VT's Early Learning Challenge Grant
A detailed update on activities related to VT's ELC grant  For a full overview and monthly updates, Click Here for details on the VT Early Learning Challenge-Race To the Top (ELC-RTT) grant. Click Here to read the latest grant updates
The ELC grant is a $36.9 million, federally funded, four-year grant to help build a high-quality and accessible early childhood system in the state so that all young children will be ready to succeed in kindergarten and beyond.
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VT United Way 2-1-1 Launches Help Me Grow
Statewide service to support children with young children
Click Here to read the launch details of Help Me Grow, which will support existing local early intervention efforts. For more information on the Help Me Grow model, Click Here.
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November 14th Making Connections Conference
Annual conference for early educators & early childhood field
Click Here for details and registration. Space is limited. Register today!
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Vermont Early Learning Standards
Long-awaited updated to state early learning standards
The Vermont Early Learning Standards (VELS) help inform families about the development and capabilities of children from birth through grade 3 and guide educators in the development and selection of program-wide curriculum and educational strategies for children from birth through grade 3. These standards are central to the shared vision of what we want for young children in Vermont; and highlight the importance of high quality early childhood experiences as the foundation for school success and lifelong learning. Plainly said, early experiences matter.
Beginning in 2012, a cross-section of early childhood development and education stakeholders convened to begin the task of revising the VELS; originally published in 2003. (from VT Agency of Education)
Click Here to read the updated Vermont Early Learning Standards
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Vermont Early Childhood Alliance
Updates from the Alliance, including March 9th Day at the Legislature
Save the date for Wednesday, March 9th for the annual Early Childhood Day at the Legislature.
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Early Educator Professional Development Calendar
Windham Child Care Association launches a comprehensive professional development and community calendar.
Click Here to view the recently launched
Windham Child Care Association Professional Development Calendar.
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Launch of WIC Electronic Benefits
Women, Infants & Children (WIC) launches electronic benefits card
Click Here to read the full details on the new electronic WIC card.
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 What's Happening?
News & events for and from the field.
News & Updates
- Rockingham Free Public Library Sam Maskell awarded LGK "Early Childhood Superhero" award. Click Here to read.
- Melanie Zinn honored as Early Educator of the Year by WCCA. Click Here to read.
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Congrats to State Representative Tristan Toleno, honored for his leadership on earned sick leave legislation.
Click Here to read.
Events
- November 6th forum focusing on homelessness. Click Here for details.
Job Announcements
- Windham County job openings in the early childhood field. For the full list, Click Here.
Interesting Stuff To Read, Watch & Listen:
- Quality and vision of early learning experiences matter. Click Here to read.
- Too Small to Fail: Return on investment on early childhood education. Dartmouth Hitchcock Pediatric Grand Rounds.Click Here to watch.
- Guest Susan Heimer from Winston Prouty Early Learning Center talks about the topic of toddlers on Family Matters.Click Here to watch.
- Trauma may mirror ADHD. Click Here to read
- Supporting Breastfeeding.Click Here to listen.
- Broad spectrum alcohol disorders. Click Here to read.
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5 million U.S. Children have a parent in prison.
Click Here to read.
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You liked us on Facebook and we like you back.
Now that we've surpassed 100, I'm taking 36 days off of bugging you. Be sure to check us out for regular news, articles, tips and interesting posts. Click Here. Thanks!
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