Group Seeks Public Ideas To Give Young Children 'Great Start' for School
By Amy Polk

Mary Ellen Higo of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario (right) places a sock puppet on the hand of her daughter, Carly, 3, at the Great Start booth in Pickford Saturday, November 10. Mrs. Higo was visiting her sister, Debbie Seppala of Pickford, and the Pickford Craft Fair when she stopped at the Great Start booth. Children could make sock puppets there, while their parents learned more about the program and its efforts to better prepare infant to age-five children for school. Aseries of community conversations about improving health, social, and educational opportunities is planned in the E.U.P.

Eighty-five percent of brain development happens before the age of five, and that is a narrow window in which parents can get their children ready for school. Research shows that children will do better in school if they feel safe and secure, are physically and emotionally healthy, and are exposed to stimulating learning experiences. Unfortunately, educators say, some local children are lacking one or more of the things that make them more likely to do well.

The Eastern Upper Peninsula Great Start Collaborative wants to correct that, and has been conducting meetings in E.U.P. communities to share the findings of a new report on the status of young children in the area and to explore how to correct some of the problems the report has discovered.

The Eastern Upper Peninsula, for instance, has more child abuse and a slightly higher rate of neglect than the rest of the state, according to the report, and it also has more mothers who smoke while pregnant.

"We want every child to go to kindergarten excited about learning, instead of worrying whether anyone is going to pick them up from school or be home when they get there," said Becky Davis, Eastern Upper Peninsula Early Childhood Education program coordinator. "They shouldn't have to think about being hungry or where they are going to get winter clothes."

In contrast with past decades, families with young children today often have two working adults supporting the family, so young children spend more time in daycare or with other care providers and less time with their parents.

"It makes a difference in preparing a child for school," said Gary Davis, director of E.U.P. Great Start.

In approximately 73% of area families with children younger than six years of age, both parents work.

"It doesn't leave much time for parents to be involved and do things with their children," like participating in child-related organizations or on projects designed to help their children," said Chasidy Keyser, chair of the E.U.P. Great Start Collaborative.

Another issue caused by the high percentage of working parents is being able to find and afford child care while the parents are gone.

A relatively high number of E.U.P. residents work night shifts at prisons, casinos, and hospitals, and finding care for children at night and on weekends is difficult here, Mr. Davis said. Sometimes parents simply cannot afford child care, and will opt against seeking work, further putting the family's income and stability at risk.

The Great Start Collaborative Project is seeking ways to change these statistics and give every child the things needed for a "great start." Children with a safe and secure home life, a healthy mother who received prenatal care, good relationships with caregivers, health care with immunizations and regular checkups, social and emotional health, exercise and a well-balanced diet, and good learning experiences have an improved chance at success in school, said Mrs. Davis.

Community meetings will be Monday, November 26, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Avery Square Cafeteria basement in Sault Ste. Marie, and Tuesday, November 27, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Turner-Howson Elementary School Library in Rudyard. Registration is not necessary, and door prizes and free T-shirts will be provided to every participant.

Meetings already have been held in Cedarville, Newberry, St. Ignace, and Pickford to get suggestions for how to best help children in the Eastern Upper Peninsula. Great Start and Eastern Upper Peninsula Intermediate School District staff have also hosted information booths at local events to interview parents and spread the word about the project.

"The next step is to change some of the data that we think might be unhealthy to children," said Mrs. Davis, "and these meetings are an opportunity for anyone in the community to make suggestions. The community conversations will revolve around the report."

There are many programs available to help young children in Michigan and the Eastern U.P., but often the people who need them most are not using them, Mrs. Davis said.

"Some parents do not know the resources and programs are available to them," she said. "Some are embarrassed to use them. Some have significant barriers to using them,"

The Great Start Collaborative hopes, through the community conversations, workers can learn how to get assistance to the people who need it most.

Program coordinators are already working with educators and social services workers in the three counties. The community conversations offer an opportunity for community members to have a voice in the effort.

"Maybe, for instance, we can arrange for someone to visit some of the more remote communities once or twice a week and meet with the people who need these services," Mrs. Davis suggested. "We have a lot of resources that don't cost anything, and we need to figure out how to help parents get the resources needed. It helps to be reactive, but it's better to be proactive."

Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac counties were among the first group of Michigan communities targeted for Great Start funding. The program springs from Michigan's Early Childhood Investment Corporation, which was formed a year ago to spur investment in the state's preschool population.

Great Start has provided enough money to compile a report, hire coordinator Gary Davis and staff, form parent groups for each county, and create an action plan for getting helpful services to children.

People who do not attend the meetings but want to give their opinion or fill out a survey can contact Gary Davis at (906) 632- 3373, extension 119, or they can go online to www.eupkids.com.