About

History and Accomplishments:

The Charlevoix, Emmet and Northern Antrim Counties Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coalition received its first grant from the Early Childhood Investment Corporation in 2006. The Early Childhood Investment Corporation was created in 2005 to ensure that every young child in Michigan has a GREAT START and arrives at the kindergarten door healthy and ready to succeed in school. There are 54 Great Start Collaboratives around the state that collectively leverage more private and pubic funds than it costs to run all 54 collaboratives.

Over the last four years our Great Start Collaborative has developed its marketing and communication plan to increase awareness among target audiences. We have created a fund development plan that is fully functioning.  An increase in parenting support, connections and leadership has happened through the Parent Coalition, collaborative support, parenting workshops, trainings, meetings and empowerment. Multiple community agencies have come together to braid funds, coordinate services, and collaborate on functions to reach those in need and decrease duplication. A comprehensive longitudinal study was done to show the long term benefits of preschool in our local communities. Together the collaborative has worked on grants, business support and long term planning for our youngest citizens.

Over the course of the last five years, the Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coalition has worked to achieve its first set of goals and objectives and successfully accomplished them with pride.

Our Mission:

Great Start of Charlevoix, Emmet and northern Antrim Counties strengthens our human and economic assets through the development and promotion of a system of support, education and wellness for children aged 0-5 and their families.

Our Vision:

Our long term vision is that every child born in Charlevoix, Emmet and northern Antrim Counties will have a great start growing and developing in communities that promote safe and healthy learning environments for children and families.

Executive Summary:

The Great Start Collaborative is made up of more than 30 different participants and organizations from around the community. Representatives from business, health, education, human services, higher education, non-profit, court systems, parents and philanthropy are all meeting together to create a movement in our area that seeks to involve the entire community in supporting families as they raise their young children to succeed in school and in life.

The first five years of a child’s life are a time of immense growth and opportunity.  Research tells us that 85% of a child’s brain is developed by the time they are five years of age. To become successful in school and in life, young children must be raised in an environment that promotes physical health, positive social and emotional skills, safety and parent and community support for learning and education.

The Great Start Collaborative came to the end of its first three year strategic plan in late 2010 wiser and just as passionate about the next three years! To effectively create another solid and successful strategic plan the collaborative first met in November 2010 to review data and priorities for creating goals, strategies and creating a solid foundation for an action agenda. Listed below are the goals that were created during this process.

 

Early Care and Learning:

Goal:  Increase the availability of free preschool for children ages three and four.

Basic Needs and Economic Security and Safety:

Goal:  Increase accessibility for families with young children to programs and services in Charlevoix, Emmet and northern Antrim Counties via safe and reliable transportation.

Goal:  Increase quality childcare for children birth to age two.

Social and Emotional Health:

Goal:  Promote social and emotional health for children 0-5 and their families through increased family support, prevention and intervention.

Physical Health:

Goal:  Promote physical health through healthy nutrition and physical activity.

Parenting Education and Family Support:

Goal:  Ensure the Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coalition functions as the one-stop shop for early childhood and parenting resources.

These goals were used by the collabrative as our foundation for creating an action agenda that drives our work to define strategies, resources, roles and responsibilities and progress measures for reaching each of the goals.

By 2013 we will:

  • Provide an increase in 3 and 4 year old preschool experiences for children in poverty.
  • Have an increase in safe and reliable transportation options available for families to enhance ease of access to services for young children.
  • Have an increase in 0-2 high quality child care opportunities.
  • Have a firm partnership with PNC bank and their Way to Grow program.
  • Have an early childhood social and emotional mental health system functioning and supporting families and young children.
  • Have an increase in high quality trainings for professionals, providers and parents in infant mental health and child brain development.
  • Have a consistent and united message on healthy eating and physical activity to prevent early childhood obesity.
  • Have a decrease in children accessing the Women Infants and Children (WIC) program that are overweight or obese.
  • Have firm partnerships with health care providers to connect them to early intervention services and programs and better understand what they are seeing and experiencing with young children and families.
  • Increase father involvement and engagement in raising young children.
  • Have educated our legislators and decision makers on the investment of early childhood and be their point of contact when questions arise.
  • Be a voice for parents and children through the Parent Coalition.
  • Have an increase in parents and community members connecting and communicating with services and programs through technology and social media.
  • Have a process for capturing data through a 2-1-1 partnership.
  • Have 2-1-1 fully functioning and be a tool for families to connect to early childhood resources and programs.
  • Be looked at as the one-stop shop for early childhood resources, information, services and support within the community.
  • Have an increase in early childhood investment via grants and private donations.

Great Start Collaborative Meeting Times and Locations:

June 15, 2011 from 9am to 11am at the Boyne City ISD (1313 Boyne Ave., Boyne City)

August 17, 2011 from 9am to 11am at the Boyne City ISD (1313 Boyne Ave., Boyne City)

October 18, 2011 from 9am to 11am at the Boyne City ISD (1313 Boyne Ave., Boyne City)

Great Start Collaborative Committees and Committee Members:

Obesity/Nutrition:

Chair(s):  Maggie Kromm (Child Abuse Council) & Pat Fralick (Health Department)

Beth Watts- Parent

Theresa Symons -Parent

Mandy Peterson – Great Start Parent Coalition

Devanie – Parent

Nicole Lindwall – Children’s Learning Center/WRC

Early Childhood Fund:

Chair:  TBD

Marcia Campbell-  Char-Em ISD

Susan Chowen – Great Start Regional Resource Center

Kolleen Homuth – Petoskey Public Schools

Shawn Dell Stenson -Parent

Theresea Symons -Parent

Mandy Peterson – Great Start Parent Coalition

Jill Haan – Char-Em ISD

Nicole Lindwall – Children’s Learning Center/WRC

Phyliss Hess – Northwest Community Action Agency

Welcome Committee

Chair:  TBD

Beth Watts – Parent

Shawn Dell Stenson – Parent

Meagan K – Boyne USA Resorts

Theresa Symons – Parent

Fund Development:

Chair: TBD

Kolleen Homuth – Petoskey Public Schools

Theresa Symons -Parent

Mandy Peterson – Great Start Parent Coalition

Marcia Campbell – Char-Em ISD

Susan Chowen – Great Start Regional Resource Center

Star Power:

Chair: TBD

Shawn Dell Stenson – Parent

Beth Watts – Parent

Theresea Symons – Parent

Mandy Peterson – Great Start Parent Coalition

Transportation:

Chair:  Shirley Gillespie – DHS

Period of Purple Crying:

Chair:  Shirley Gillespie -DHS

Ron Fowler – Petoskey Public Library

Theresa Symons – Parent

Maggie Kromm – Child Abuse Council

Nina Wagner – Char-Em ISD

Parenting Awarness Month:

Chair: Mandy Peterson – Great Start Parent Coalition

Ron Fowler – Petoskey Public Library

Beth Watts – Parent

Theresa Symons – Parent

Maggie Kromm – Child Abuse Council

Katharine Howes – Emmet and Charlevoix Courts Representative

Petoskey News Review

Caroline Belknap – Early On

Social and Emotional:

Working with the Frey Foundation Grant and the Health Department

Nicole Lindwall – Children’s Learning Center/WRC

Phyllis Hess – Northwest Community Action Agency

Caroline Belknap – Early On

Health Department

Great Start Collaborative Executive Committee:

Megan Krzywosinski (Boyne USA Resorts) – Chair

Shirley Gillespie (DHS) -Co Chair

Mandy Peterson (Great Start Parent Coalition) – Parent Representative

Kathy Kundrat (Northwest Community Action Agency) – Fund Development Fiduciary Member

Marcia Campbell (Char-Em ISD) – Secretary

Advocate

Recalls

RSS Northern Moms Event Page

  • Story Time with Ms. Laura
    Join Ms. Laura and friends for stories, songs, and fingerplays. Time:May 24, 2012 from 10:30am to 11amLocation:Charlevoix Public Library Street:220 W Clinton St City/Town:Charlevoix Website or Map:http://www.charlevoixlibrary.… Phone:231.237.7350 Export to Outlook or iCal (.ics) […]
  • Mother Daughter Weekend at Camp Daggett
    Mothers, stepmothers, grandmothers, big sisters, aunts plus their daughters, sisters and granddaughters ages 7 to 17 are invited to an activity-packed weekend at the 2nd annual Mother & Daughter Weekend at Camp Daggett, Friday, May 18 through Sunday, May 20. Again, there will be wonderful activities including smores and singing around the campfire, high […]
  • Teen Reader's Theatre Group
    This group is designed for grades 9 & up (Though, this is very flexible). Reader's Theatre is a legitimate form of drama with actors using their voices and upper bodies to convey various roles in a script through reading to an audience. It differs from a play in that parts or roles are read rather than memorized. Actors usually stand behind lecterns […]

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RSS Education Week

RSS Healthy Child Healthy World

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Past Information

About

Funded with a grant from the Early Childhood Investment Corporation of the State of Michigan and the Kellogg Foundation, our project began in April of 2006. The goal of the project is to form multiple collaborative bodies in the state to begin development of a comprehensive system of early childhood care and education for 0-5 year olds and their families. This system is similar to the Smart Start system of North Carolina and the state of Michigan is receiving technical assistance in our efforts from the state of North Carolina.