Building Bright Futures (BBF) is seeking a part-time Regional Coordinator to support the Building Bright Futures regional early childhood council in Southeast Vermont serving the Brattleboro AHS district which includes much of Windham County. BBF Regional Councils bring together a diverse group of community members who are committed to children and families to identify gaps, […]
Thanks to a small group of dedicated individuals, the Early Childhood Pathway that was inactive at the Windham Regional Career Center will be restarted this week. The program now has an advisory board, an updated curriculum (including a new course on The Art and Science of Teaching from Melissa Mroz-Gaskill), and a group of students […]
Council Recognitions At each council meeting, we take 5 minutes to recognize the work of a team or individual for their contributions to our collective work. In 2019 we recognized 4 event organizing teams (Recovery Postpartum Doula training, Month of the Young Child, Early Childhood Mixer, and Windham County Early Childhood Legislative Forum) and 6 […]
This article was originally published in the Brattleboro Reformer and is available here. We are grateful for permission to share with the Building Bright Futures community. By Bob Audette BRATTLEBORO — Living in a small town has its pluses and its minuses, said Sue Graff, a field services director in Brattleboro for the Vermont Agency […]
The Springfield Area Council has continued to support families by hosting a make and take craft event, light tour and cookie swap, a tame your inner shark music class and more. The council noted the importance of using a variety of activities for families and caregivers to increase options for the right fit to learn […]
Our annual legislative meeting was held on December 3rd. This year, our small group discussions were focused on physical, mental, and dental health access, access to high quality, affordable child care, and community resilience/social isolation. We are continuing to work to support the Windham Regional Career Center in restarting the Early Childhood Education pathway in […]
Thirty five early childhood professionals came together at the beginning of October for an Early Childhood mixer. It was truly a mixer with representatives from home, center, and school based programs, Children’s Integrated Services, the Parent Child Center, the Vermont Department of Health, Rise VT, 211, Let’s Grow Kids, and more. In addition to building […]
Have you ever heard of The Basics or Boston Basics? I hope that after this quick read, you will remember the name, and will hopefully be interested in finding out more. As a BBF coordinator, I can think of many places where the environment is perfect for young children and families to have high quality […]
As the 2019 fiscal year comes to a close, the Southeast Vermont BBF Council has been reviewing our priority areas. In these reviews, we have been looking at achievements, challenges, opportunities, and plans for moving forward. Below are one success, one opportunity for moving forward, and an exciting initiative for the coming year. Success: Between […]
by Deb Kitzmiller, Brattleboro District’s Maternal and Child Health Coordinator for the Vermont Department of Health Twenty years ago, in the Peace Corps in El Salvador, I was taught a life lesson that proved so valuable that I’m still reflecting on it within my work today. In 1999, Brattleboro based SIT/ World Learning taught me […]
Thank you to the Windham County Legislators who were able to come to the Early Childhood Day at the Legislature lunch on Wednesday and to all of you for being open to constituents during much of your ‘free’ time. Based on a discussion at that lunch about engaging together differently from only providing data and […]
Windham County is working together to make our communities more family friendly. One place where we continue to be successful is the annual Month of the Young Child (MOYC). It’s a time to turn our attention to the many people, places and programs that support the healthy development of our next generation by laying the […]