Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington Elects Dent and Slimak as New Co-Chairs
New Britain, Conn. (December 9 , 2010) – The Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington (ECCS), a member of The Community Foundation of Greater New Britain’s (CFGNB) First Years First early childhood development initiative, has elected two local residents as its new co-chairs. The elections took place during the organization’s Annual Meeting on November 30th at the Plantsville Elementary School. As a First Years First grantee, ECCS has received more than $70,000 from the Community Foundation in grant support since 2007 for its programs, including the new Family Resource Center begun in 2009.
Elected to succeed past Chair, Sarah Chandler, were Michelle Dent and Michelle Slimak. Speaking of Chandler’s two year tenure as ECCS Chair, Krista Pringle, ECCS Coordinator stated, “Sarah has been a tremendous asset to the Collaborative. It is through her efforts that the ECCS was able to secure funding from All Our Kin, Inc. for the Early Learning Guidelines Project to begin this January. Her leadership kept the ECCS moving forward through some critical periods, and I look forward to continuing to work with her in her new role as Education Committee Chair,” states Krista Pringle, ECCS Coordinator.
Michelle Dent is the Owner/Director of Cheshire Country Day School, a childcare center serving children ages six months to six years. She has a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Science in Education with a focus on Early Childhood Education. Prior to moving to Connecticut, Dent taught kindergarten and first grade at PS. 160 in the Bronx, New York.
Dent explains, “I became active in the ECCS because of my strong belief that all children should be nurtured and supported in their natural curiosity and their desire to make sense of the world through active exploration. As co-chair I hope to continue this work by reaching out to the Southington community and making sure that ALL of us that impact the lives of children are doing everything we can to ensure that ALL of our children enter school ready to learn.”
Slimak has been involved in Early Childhood Development for 15 years, most recently as a home daycare provider. “Two years ago I joined the ECCS, and 18 months ago I was elected Education Chairperson. As the education chairperson, the ECCS has offered workshops to parents and providers with behaviorists, nutritionists, and educators from Southington. I am looking forward to expanding on these important programs through my role as Co-Chair.”
About The ECCS
The Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington’s mission is “all Southington children will enter school ready to learn” with a special focus on the transition from preschool to kindergarten. ECCS is dedicated to three goals: advocating for high quality child care, empowering parents and families and being a resource for parents and professionals on the subject of early child care and education. In 2007, the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain began coordinating the project. The Community Foundation focuses on early childhood development goals through their First Years First initiative.
To learn more about ECCS, please contact Krista, ECCS Coordinator & Family Resource Center Director, 860-628-3286 x 380, southingtonfrc@yahoo.com