Monthly Report

September 2008

The ECMH committee is planning to sponsor speakers at both the Early Years Conference in January and the Focus on Strong Families Conference in February.
This committee also will develop a new strategic plan for the committee based on recent advances at the state and local levels.
The committee invites active participation of its members and welcome new members. (See Calendar)

The Parenting and Literacy committee is finalizing its efforts to distribute the 2008-2009 Pre-K calendar, and to make plans for the new calendar for 2009-2010.
The committee will explore ideas for making greater use of the Pre-K calendar, possibility by creating new tools based on the activities and references cited in the calendar.
The committee will work with the PCC and ECMH committee to assess the feasibility of coordinating the Tuning in to Kids parent education program in Centre County.
The committee invites active participation of its members and welcome new members. (See Calendar)

The ECE Transition Team is making some minor revisions to its survey to kindergarten parents. The committee plans to have the school districts distribute these during parent conference in the coming months.
This committee also plans to organize a panel of speakers for the Focus on Strong Families Conference in February. This panel will discuss how parents can become more involved in their child’s education.
The Transition Team will also be coordinating its second annual event at the Nittany Mall in February to provide information about kindergarten registration and transition to parents of 3-5 year olds.
The committee invites active participation of its members and welcome new members. (See Calendar)

The C & A committee is working to continue contact with legislators throughout the year in regard to their support of early care and early learning programs.
This committee is also working on the publication of the 2007-2008 Report Card and is seeking submissions for its fall and spring newsletters.
The committee invites active participation of its members and welcome new members. (See Calendar)

Smart Start will display its publications at Lights on After School at the Nittany Mall on Saturday October 11 from 10:00am-2:00pm. This event will be highlighting school age child care programs in Centre County. (If anyone is interested in assisting with the display, please call the Smart Start office.)
The Early Childhood Education Summit sponsored by Pennsylvania Child Care Association, Office of Child Development and Early Learning, Pennsylvania Association of Federal Program Coordinators, and Pennsylvania Head Start Association will be held at the Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel on October 19-22. Those in the early childhood field as well as parents are invited to attend. For parents who would like to attend, the Office of Child Development and Early Learning is offering a limited number of parent scholarships. For more information about the Early Childhood Education Summit visit the website at http://www.earlychildhoodsummit.org/.
The Director's Forum would like to invite all child care and education program directors to tour St. Paul's Christian Preschool on Oct. 6 from 8-9 am. (view flyer), and to tour the Penn State Child Development Lab on Nov. 3 from 8-9 am. (view flyer).
Thanks to all who bought tickets to the UW/Spikes fundraiser on Aug. 13. We are proud to announce that Smart Start won prizes for most tickets sold on that evening (200 tickets) and most tickets sold by a single individual in our collaborative (30 tickets).