Vision 2020 Think Tank Targets Early Childhood Education
September 10, 2007 (Newnan, GA) — The Education Think Tank, created as part of Coweta’s community-wide Vision 2020 planning process led by the Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce, has spent most of 2007 to date focusing on a key issue: early childhood education. As a result, Coweta County has a new Commission for Early Childhood Development and a model child development center in the works.
“There is a growing body of research that shows early childhood development to be the most important part of a student’s education,” said Blake Bass, Superintendent of Coweta County Schools and co-chair of the Vision 2020 Education Think Tank. “If we don’t invest in our students upfront, we’ll all lose out at the end. We need to address their needs before they get to pre-school age.”
Bass and his Think Tank co-chair, Dr. Joe Harless, agree that actively creating a community-wide focus on children before they become school age is vital for Coweta County’s future.
Harless, who also chaired the original Vision 2020 Education Committee that created the initial recommendation to focus on early childhood, said, “The years from birth to age five are when a child gathers the knowledge, skills and social behaviors that will provide a foundation for success throughout his academic career and beyond. Studies show that low performance in these early years is one of the root causes of later problems such as absenteeism, academic failure or dropping out.”
The Coweta Commission for Early Childhood Development, chaired by Harless and Smith Pass, former member of the Coweta Board of Education, consists of more than a dozen representatives from a broad range of agencies, businesses, institutions and individuals with an impact on early childhood development, including community parents. Organizations represented on the Commission include the Coweta County School System, Coweta Board of Education, Coweta County Commission, Newnan City Council, Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce, Coweta Community Foundation, Coweta Health Department, and Department of Family and Children’s Services, among others.
Model Center is a Top Priority
The first goal of the Commission for Early Childhood Development is the creation of a model child development center, centrally located in Coweta County. The Commission envisions that this center will serve children from birth to age five and become a hub for early childhood development information and activities countywide. The Commission is currently looking for a suitable site for the new center and actively working to raise approximately $8 million in building or renovation funds to create a state-of-the-art space.
“We envision this center as a beacon for best practices and a place that reflects the highest national standards for early childhood development,” said Harless. “Our goal is to have our doors open to children in the community by the fall of 2008, but we’re just as excited about what the center can offer in terms of community outreach.”
The Committee plans to offer seminars and workshops for parents of young children, to help them better prepare their children for school. It also will work to create “road shows” for delivery of programs for parents, childcare providers and others at satellite locations such as churches, elementary schools, recreation centers, health and medical facilities, businesses and other childcare facilities.
“Education research also shows that student success is influenced in large part by the education level of their parents,” said Bass. “By reaching out to the community – and in particular the parents of young children – we can help provide a step up for the coming generation and for generations after that.”
“There is no way a single center can provide care for all Coweta’s children,” said Harless. “But we can take steps to ensure that those who are caring for young children have the information and tools they need to make sure those children are ready to learn when it’s time for kindergarten.”
That includes early childhood teachers. Another of the Committee’s goals is to help attract a four-year early childhood development curriculum to one of the colleges or universities serving Coweta County. “We’re in the midst of talks with the University of West Georgia and with Brewton-Parker College, among others,” said Bass. “Hopefully we’ll be able to announce a new program for would-be early childhood teachers in our area.”
Both Harless and Bass applaud the Coweta community for its eagerness to rally around the early childhood development banner. The Commission has plans to partner with many area organizations that touch the lives of Coweta’s youngest residents, such as the YMCA, Head Start, the United Way and many others.
“After 32 years in the field of education, it is extremely inspiring to see a community come together like this around an issue that is so important,” said Bass. “The entire Vision 2020 process, culminating with the Education Think Tank and the Commission for Early Childhood Development, has helped everyone understand what is really involved in education and why early childhood is so vital to our future.”
