Education Advisory Committee
Meeting Minutes
February 17, 2010
Members Present
Zenida Castillo, El Valor Dion Rogers, Chicago Youth Centers
Derbert Plaza, Catholic Charities Leah Jowers, Chicago Youth Centers
Lucille Brown, Healing Temple Chantivia Robinson, Centers for New Horizons
Virgen Valez, Erie House Carol Petersen, Onward House
Grace Clear, Erie House Darica Charles, Onward House
Ruth Davenport, CPS Kim Green, Onward House – Lee’s Cuddles N Care
Leslie McKinly, CPS Ernestine Carr Thomas, Salvation Army
Ilian Espinoza, El Hogar Yolanda Harris, Chicago State University
Florence Ekoi, Trinity United Weilian Xin, Chinese American Service League
Camille Gant, Westside Holistic Cheryl Eldridge, Easter Seals
Shavonda Waddles, Hull House Natalie Stanley, Easter Seals
Becky Rube, Howard Area Claudia Oliver, Easter Seals
Stacy Peterson, YMCA Rhonda Freeman, Metropolitan Family Services
Bryan Stokes, Gads Hill Duane Kirksey, Dorothy Sutton Branch
Merima Pehlivanovic, St. Augustine Yolanda Johnson, Trinity Resources Unlimited
Clara Maynie, South Shore United Mary Kaleta, City Colleges – City Colleges
Barbara O’Laughlin, CCEE Denise Jordan, DFSS
Kim Shelton, LSSI Margaret Jordan, DFSS
Jody Anderson, DFSS Sandra Gonzalez, DFSS
Carrie Clark, DFSS Anya Robinson, DFSS
Laura Young, DFSS Maria Gonzalez, DFSS
Lucille Taylor, DFSS
I. Welcome
Co-Chair, Kim Shelton of LSSI, welcomed committee members and called the meeting to order.
II. Identification of Note Taker
Jody Anderson, DFSS, was identified as the note taker.
III. Reading and Approval of Minutes
Minutes from the Education Advisory Committee Meeting held on January 20th, 2010 were distributed and reviewed. Mary Kaleta of City Colleges motioned to approve the minutes and Derbert Plaza, Catholic Charities, seconded the motion.
IV. CYS Administrative Update – Denise Jordan, DFSS
There is still no information regarding the second follow-up from the 2008 federal review.
DFSS recommends agencies’ conduct internal assessments to start preparing for the next upcoming federal review.
Training updates and reminders:
· Curriculum training begins today for Head Start Home-Based Programs, targeting homeless families. Training located at the Marriott Chicago - Medical District/UIC.
· CreativeCurriculum.net training on the new Teaching Strategies GOLD assessment system has been pushed back to July 2010 and registration will be available on COPA.
· The Back to Basics teacher training series, in partnership with the Chicago Children’s Museum, is planned for the end of March and registration will be available on COPA.
· Erikson Institute is planning to develop a new training series, designed for Network Coordinators. As part of the planning process, Erikson has developed a “needs assessment” to be completed by the Network Coordinators; their in put will be used in the development of the training series.
V. Early Head Start/FCCH – Anya Robinson, DFSS
Network Coordinators and Providers attended the second of five trainings on The Creative Curriculum for Family Child Care on February 5th. Participants are exploring the new version of the Family Child Care curriculum and have received new books and resources. The third session will take place on March 5th.
VI. School Age – Maria Gonzalez, DFSS
Curtis Peace, Executive Director of the Illinois AfterSchool Network (IAN) was the guest speaker at the School Age sub-committee meeting on February 16th. Mr. Peace discussed the AfterSchool Conference to be held in Springfield on April 16-17, 2010. Scholarships for the conference are available. If interested, contact Maria Gonzalez at DFSS or 312-743-0254.
Part two of the SPARK physical education and wellness curriculum training will be on February 19th at Catholic Charities - St. Joseph. Please call Sandra Gonzalez, DFSS at 312-743-3626 with any questions.
The 2010 DFSS School Age training calendar is under review and will be finalized for distribution within the month. Training opportunities will include curriculum planning, classroom observation, conflict resolution, lesson planning, and summer activities.
VIII. Chicago Center for Early Education (CCEE) – Barbara O’Laughlin
Barbara O’Laughlin, CCEE Associate Director, reminded members about the new booklet on economic resources for families. The free booklet, Chicago Families: Meeting the Challenges of Today’s Economy, contains resources available throughout Chicago to support families during the current economic downturn. Members received a flyer with contact information for obtaining additional booklets and Financial Literacy workshops.
The next issue of Parental News: Stepping Into the Future will be delivered next week. The packet will also include an English and Spanish version of the economic resource booklet and a notice for delegate agencies’ to update their distribution preferences.
Members received the CCEE Winter-Spring 2010 Workshops brochure and registration form. The brochure describes free workshops available to educators and parents of pre-school and school-aged children.
IX. Open Discussion
Step II training series that focuses on the skill sets needed to develop individualized staff development plans, starts tomorrow and registration is closed. A second cohort of Step II will start in May.
Mary Kaleta, City Colleges, explained that professional development scholarships are being accepted for classes starting Fall 2010.
Denise Jordan, DFSS, solicited member feedback on the first session of The Creative Curriculum Coach’s Guide training series held on February 2nd and 3rd. Rhonda Freeman, Metropolitan Family Services, stated it was a good overview and especially liked the materials provided. Kim Shelton of LSSI explained the training provided her with techniques and strategies to support teachers in the work they do.
Denise Jordan, DFSS, provided feedback from the I Am Moving, I Am Learning (IMIL) Focus Group held on January 26th. IMIL is a national initiative that takes a proactive approach for addressing childhood obesity in Head Start Children. Program goals seek to increase daily physical activity, improve the quality of movement activities, and promote healthy food choices. Members can learn more about the program at
http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/ecdh/Health/Nutrition scroll down & click I am Moving, I am Learning
and www.choosykids.com .
Stacy Peterson, YMCA, asked about training materials for the Picturing America artwork poster photos received last year. Some members described ways they used the materials and A Head Start on Picturing America Resource Guide can be downloaded at http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc - Early Childhood Development – Focusing on Child Development – Creative Arts –A Head Start on Picturing America.
Bryan Stokes, Gads Hill, and other members expressed confusion and discussed their interpretation of a letter received from CPS on children in the CreativeCurriculum.net web-based assessment system.
Ernestine Carr Thomas, Salvation Army, expressed concern for agency ability to provide appropriate salaries with increasing qualification requirements. Members discussed challenges with recruitment and hiring teachers with Bachelor Degrees.
The next meeting will be held on March 17th, 2010.