PRESS RELEASE: Groundwork Completed for Statewide Early Childhood System
PRESS RELEASE
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For more information, contact:
Maggie Koller (she/her)
Communications Manager
(309) 233-0434
mkoller@birthtofiveil.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 13, 2022
GROUNDWORK COMPLETED FOR STATEWIDE EARLY CHILDHOOD SYSTEM
Council Managers Now Hired in all 39 Regions of Illinois
Illinois has committed to building a statewide regional and community infrastructure to improve quality, equity, and access to Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) programs and services across the State, particularly for families who have been historically marginalized.
This new early childhood system, named Birth to Five Illinois, officially launched in February 2022 to fulfill a recommendation from the Illinois Commission on Equitable Early Childhood Education and Care Funding Report that Illinois design a system that centers family voice and racial equity in the allocation of funding. The hiring of 39 Regional Council Managers, one in each of the State’s 39 regions, marks the completion of the foundational level of this new statewide system.
Seventeen Regional Council Managers joined Birth to Five Illinois in May 2022. Eight additional Mangers onboarded in June 2022. On July 18, 2022, Birth to Five Illinois will welcome the final 14 Regional Council Managers to the Birth to Five Illinois team:
Region 1-A: Edna Navarro Vidaurre - City of Chicago
Region 1-B-D: Ilinca Wallace - North Cook County
Region 1: Bridget English - Adams, Brown, Cass, Morgan, Pike, Scott Counties
Region 8: Lou Ann Hayes - Carroll, Jo Daviess & Stephenson Counties
Region 13: Heather Pruett - Clinton, Jefferson, Marion & Washington Counties
Region 20: Janice Crow - Edwards, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Pope, Saline, Wabash, Wayne & White Counties
Region 28: Dianna Saelens - Bureau, Henry & Stark Counties
Region 32: Liz A. Gibson - Iroquois & Kankakee Counties
Region 39: Heather Seitz - Macon & Piatt Counties
Region 45: Candace Gardner - Monroe & Randolph Counties
Region 47: Abby Hoskins - Lee, Ogle & Whiteside Counties
Region 48: Kari Clark - Peoria County
Region 51: Ashley Earles - Sangamon & Menard Counties
Region 56: Keven Kerr - Will County
Cicely Fleming, State Director for Birth to Five Illinois, said, “Providing the necessary infrastructure, including staffing, ensures the prioritization of family needs. Hiring a Regional Council Manager in each of the State’s regions marks a monumental step towards operationalizing equity and amplifying input from communities in the development of early childhood policies and funding priorities.”
These Regional Council Managers are local professionals who live and/or work and have connections within their communities. Fleming also stated, “We are excited that this statewide leadership team has been established so we can shift focus on hiring the two additional staff for the regional offices and formalizing the Councils that will represent the diverse voices in each region.” More than 500 Council Interest Forms have been submitted to date.
Just as the prior cohorts, this third cohort of Regional Council Managers will soon be hiring Family and Community Engagement and Administrative Support staff within their region (several regional positions have been posted), as well as establishing both a Birth to Five Family Council and a Birth to Five Action Council. The first deliverable for the Birth to Five Illinois Councils is to complete a Regional Scan, or needs assessment, of the regional ECEC service landscape.
All Illinoisans interested in joining their region’s Birth to Five Council are encouraged to complete an Interest Form.
Information and Interest Forms are available in English, Spanish, and Polish on the Birth to Five Illinois website: www.birthtofiveil.com.
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