The Northern Windsor and Orange Council has been going through a process to determine what topics should be focused on for the upcoming year. We have been discussing what is having the greatest impact on our region, what topics support actions that we could take to make an impact, and where do we have the most momentum. Through this process we have determined that our two priorities of focus will be:
- Supporting children with challenging behaviors and their families
- Workforce recruitment and retention
Neither of these are new but we realized that there needs to be continued emphasis. The council also decided on a new monthly meeting time of the first Wednesday of the month from 1:30-3:00. We are still working on securing a location in the Sharon and South Royalton area. In the upcoming council meetings we intend to look at different actions we can take as a region.
The council also had a chance to discuss family engagement. We decided that family engagement is complex, difficult and that each family wants differing levels of engagement that changes over time. Trust and respect are crucial and there are some great models of family engagement happening in the region such as the DULCE model happening at the Ottauquechee Health Center and Mt. Ascutney Hospital and work at parent child centers and child care providers. One of the greatest results of the family engagement activities out of the Orange County Parent Child Center is seeing parents connect with other parents. We will continue to weave family engagement into our work.
