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a childcare cooperative |
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Meetings - Agenda & Minutes
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KidsFIRST: 24/7 Organizational Meeting August 29, 2008 Gillette College – Presentation Hall
Public, Press & Dignitaries Invited
8:30 AM - Welcome and Introductions Sue Wallis—Executive Director
8:45 AM – What Quality Childcare Around the Clock Looks Like, Smells Like, and Tastes Like: From the Kaiser Shipyard to the Latest Innovations. Dr. Lissanna Follari, Early Childhood Education, Sheridan College
9:00 AM – Quality Childcare in Wyoming, and the Wyoming Early Childhood Partnership Noamie Niemitalo, Board Member
What is Smart Start? Smart Start was launched in 1993 in North Carolina to assure that every child in the state arrived at school healthy and ready to succeed. At the time, the state was at the bottom of many national rankings related to the health and well-being of children. It also had the worst quality child care in the country. State leaders recognized that change could only come through investment in the earliest years and that the public schools could never be successful in their job without assuring that children were starting school at a much higher level of readiness. Since its inception more than a decade ago, many changes have occurred as a result of Smart Start and the state’s investment in early childhood. · The number of children receiving higher quality child care has increased from 20% to nearly 80%. · Studies by Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute show that children are arriving at school at a higher level of readiness, have better math and language skills and fewer behavioral problems, and sustain their success through third grade. · North Carolina surged from near the bottom to closer to the top in a national ranking of 4th grade test scores as measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). · Children in the state are now more likely to be immunized on time and have a regular source of health care. The coordination and effectiveness of local service agencies is now greatly improved.
10:00 AM – KidsFIRST: 24/7 – Who We Are, and What We Want To Be Sue Wallis – Executive Director
10:30 AM – Questions/Discussion
11:00 AM – Adjourn
A Steering Committee is being formed prior to the meeting. The Steering Committee serves as founding board members with responsibilities to: 1) Establish the Vision and Mission; 2) finalize and sign Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, and IRS Application; 3) Contract with Executive Director; 5) Approve the initial Budget; 6) Serve as the initial Nominating Committee to provide a slate of Board Candidates for election by the membership.
Minutes of August 29, 2008 Steering Committee Meeting respectfully submitted by Sue Wallis, Executive Director
Attendees: Sue Wallis, Sue Sharp, Destiny Moelter, Wanda Burget, Lana Randen-Gaskins
Board Development Consultant, Sue Sharp, facilitated the development of a Vision and Mission statement.
Vision—We aspire to build and facilitate a network that offers parents tools and resources, peace of mind, and safe, high quality childcare in an environment where all children thrive.
Mission—Our mission is to encourage the accessibility and affordability of high quality childcare, excellence in early childhood education, and the health and well-being of all children on behalf of parent members of the cooperative.
Once the vision and mission were established, the Steering Committee reviewed the Articles of Incorporation and signed the document in order to file it with the Wyoming Secretary of State. The Steering Committee also reviewed and made minor changes to the By-laws, and the Conflict of Interest Policy in preparation for filing.
It was unanimously agreed that the organization would have no employees, and will contract for necessary services. Specific contracts for the Executive Director, Accountant, and Board Development consultant were discussed. The Executive Director will submit a Letter of Understanding to cover her job description and compensation. The Steering Committee unanimously provided the Executive Director authority to negotiate and sign any other necessary contracts for services. The need to ensure organizational continuity with the addition of an Administrative Assistant before the first of the year was discussed.
Arrangements for a first general Membership Meeting where the Board of Directors will be elected from a slate provided by the Steering Committee was discussed. It was agreed that this should occur in a month, or so. The need to have a meeting scheduled in the evening, with free food, and supervised entertainment for kids in order to make it easier for parents to attend was discussed. The first annual Membership Meeting will be followed by the first quarterly Board of Directors meeting which will include Board Development Training, and planning and budgeting for 2009 in a retreat setting.
Finally, various marketing strategies to facilitate getting the word out to parents was discussed. Sue Wallis will work with the Chamber of Commerce and other resources to develop and design marketing materials including brochures, newspaper ads, and radio spots with the idea of including appropriate materials in the Chamber’s Welcome Pack, and industry new employee materials, and childcare provider packets. P&H MinePro has graciously offered to fund a regular newspaper campaign of informative tidbits for parents. We will also look into opportunities associated with the public access TV station, radio spots—including Nolene Wright’s regular contribution to the northern Hills station. Materials will also be distributed to the Library, and other places where parents might access the information.
The meeting was adjourned with gratitude expressed to all those who have contributed their time and energy so generously, and especially to P&H MinePro for buying our working lunch.
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