Public Forums
During 1998 and the early
part of 1999, the Governor's Commission on Early Learning
held 4 parent meetings across the state hosted by co-chairs Mona Lee Locke and
Melinda French Gates. Parent surveys were conducted at each meeting. Click on
a City
to find the results of those surveys.
A final report on these
surveys is forthcoming.
| Spokane | Yakima
| Tri-Cities | Bellingham |
Several issues remained constant throughout these
public forums. Below we've identified
these main issues along with ideas and quotes from parents who completed our survey.
Parent Education
- Resource/referral book given to all parents.
- Availability of Cooperative Preschool where support
and education of the parent
and child takes place.
- Parent Cooperative Education is an incredible support
network and nursery for
parents involved in schooling beyond early childhood.
- Encouragement of families to be a committed family.
- Parental education of current research on brain
development and the importance
of parental involvement. A more family approach in the work setting.
- Classes, support groups especially for those who have
no family.
- Parents need parenting skills. They need to know and
understand that they are their
children’s first and most important teacher.
Child Care
- More access to children of all income levels to
services/education available.
- Quality child care – increase subsidy rates for
child care.
- Access for families to be able to stay home with
child for first three years (i.e., mother).
- Help with preschool costs for middle-income families.
(I make too much to qualify
for Head Start, but not enough to pay for quality programs). Mandatory ECE training
for all child care providers and teachers of preschool.
- Success by 6; support public libraries; preschool
co-ops through community colleges.
- Make the child care profession as attractive as other
professions.
We need to help parents know how to take care of
their children and help facilitate
their children's learning. Parents can only
teach their children what they have been
taught.
Better child care/day care support for newborns
– toddler aged children.
Health Services
- Universal newborn hearing screening before discharge
from hospital.
- Information on brain development and providing
nurturing environment. How children
learn and what should be expected. Exposing children to appropriate stimuli and
experiences.
- Pediatricians should be front-line information
sources about services and connecting parents.
- Information at birth to all new parents from
hospital; visiting nurses; universal hearing
and vision screenings; early intervention services – supported and accessible for
parents
early on, i.e., physicians, visiting nurses, etc.
- Continued home nursing services until age 3,
transition into community services,
follow-up and family contact.
- Centralized database of resources available and means
to direct people toward them.
- Continued support to birth to 3 programs, ECEAP, Head
Start, Parent Co-ops. Working
relationships with medical community, school district, public health, parents.
Employer Support
- Flexible workplace to allow parents to engage in
parent programs like co-ops.
Family friendly work practice – parental leave,
parenting classes, time to spend in child care.
Support and encourage businesses to provide child
care for employees; simplify and
streamline procedures for establishing on-site day care (make the system more
user-friendly).
Increased locations of drop-in/educational child care
options. Support and ease of creating
employer operated day care (education based). Used as a benefit to employees, not
necessarily for profit. To streamline the regulations to make this more of an option for
employers of small businesses.
Public Awareness
- A phone line to call to get information. Access to
quality child care while working. How what is
experienced in child care can be connected to at home.
- Public awareness information for parents. Child care
training and quality funding for those
who care for our most precious assets.
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