Pre-Conference Advocacy Workshop | School Readiness Conference
   

On April 16 - 17, 2004, the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area will host one of the nation's premier conferences on school readiness. Children: Our Common Wealth VI will bring the nation's leading researchers, theorists and educators dealing with this most important issue. The conference will focus on all dimensions of school readiness, particularly with regard to the implications of the recent breakthroughs in neuroscience and cognitive developmental science.

Children who start school behind tend to stay behind. A poor academic beginning is a reality for 30% of children nationwide, and often as high as 70% of inner city children. This conference will explore, discuss and present information and ideas on how you can prepare children to excel in school.

 

Click here to register online for Children: Our Common Wealth VI.

 

Click here to download a printable brochure with this information and registration form.
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Conference Schedule
    Schedule is subject to additions and slight changes.  

 
Friday, April 16, 2004
7:30 - 9:00 Registration
9:00 - 10:00

"School Readiness and Low-Income Children: Facing the Challenge, Finding Opportunities"

Jane Knitzer, Ed.D., Director, National Center for Children in Poverty, New York, NY

10:30 - 11:30 "Well Begun is Half Done: Helping Young Children Succeed in School"

Sam Meisels, Ed.D., President, Erikson Institute, Chicago, IL
Dr. Meisels has published nearly 150 articles, books, and monographs and is coauthor of The Handbook of Early Childhood Intervention.
11:30 - 1:00 Lunch
1:00 - 2:00

"Issues in Assessing School Readiness"

Sam Meisels, Ed.D., President, Erikson Institute, Chicago, IL

  "Minds in the Making"

Ellen Galinsky, Family and Work Institute, President and Founder of the Family and Work Institute, New York, NY
Author of Ask the Children: The Breakthrough Study That Reveals How to Succeed at Work and Parenting
  "Getting Schools Ready for Diverse Students"

Aisha Ray, Ph.D., Erikson Institute, Chicago, IL
  "Ohio's Approach to School Readiness"

Jane Weichel, Ph.D., Associate Superintendent, Ohio Department of Education, Columbus, OH, and immediate Past-President of the National Association for the Education of Young Children
2:30 - 3:30

"Understanding Individual Differences in School Readiness: The Role of Effortful Control and Attention"

Barbara Burns, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY

  "Kentucky's Approach to School Readiness"

Barbara Singleton, Ph.D., Kentucky Department of Education, Frankfort, KY
 

"The Challenges of School Readiness in Children with Chronic Heath Conditions"

Monica J. Mitchell, Ph.D., Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH

 

"Literacy Promotion in Home Visitation Programs"

Daniel Pallante, M.Ed., Director, Collaborative Language and Literacy Instruction Project, Granville, OH
Judith Van Ginkel Ph.D., Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH

  "Promising Practices in School Readiness"

Desiree Reddick-Head, M.Ed., Technical Assistance Specialist, National Child Care Information Center's State Smart Start, Raleigh, North Carolina
Susan Rohrbough, M.Ed., Technical Assistance Specialist, National Child Care Information Center's Smart Start, Raleigh, North Carolina
  "Low Income Parents Perception of Their Role in Supporting School Readiness"

Margaret Machara, Ph.D., University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
  "Social-Emotional Issues in School Readiness"

Lisa Klein, Ph.D., Hestia Advising, Former Vice-President of the E. Marion Kaufman Foundation, and author of  Emotional Development Creates a Strong Foundation for School Achievement, published by the National Center for Children in Poverty.
  "Keeping Children Ready to Learn"

Stu Silberman, M.Ed., Superintendent, Daviess County Schools, Owensboro, KY
4:00 - 5:00 "Literacy and School Readiness"

Susan Neuman, Ph.D. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Author of the Handbook of Early Literacy Research.
Saturday, April 17, 2004
8:00 - 9:00 Registration
9:00 - 10:00 "Redesigning Child Care to Promote Education, Support Families and Build Communities"

Joan Lombardi, Ph.D., Senior Policy Fellow, National Institute for Early Education Research, Washington, DC
Author of Time to Care: Redesigning Child Care to Promote Education, Support Families, and Build Communities.
10:30 - 11:30 "National Head Start Reporting Project and School Readiness"

Craig Ramey, Ph.D., Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 
Dr. Ramey and his wife are co- authors of Right From Birth: Building Your Child's Foundation for Life and Going to School: A Complete Handbook for Parents of Children Ages 3-8.
  "Evaluation of Early Head Start"

John Love, Ph.D., Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., Princeton, NJ 
  "Governors' Forum on Quality Preschool"

Anna Lovejoy, National Governors' Association, Washington, D.C.
  "Federal Policy in Child Care"

Shannon Christian, Associate Commissioner for the Child Care Bureau in the Administration for Children and Families at the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C.
11:30 - 1:00 Lunch
1:00 - 2:00

"Parental Goals and Young Children's Achievement: Implications for Goal-Based Parent Intervention"

Barbara Burns, Ph.D., University of Louisville, Louisville, KY

 

"Positive Moves for Positive School Outcomes: Transition for Young Children with Special Needs"

Gloria Harbin, Ph.D., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
Teri Nowak, M.A., University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

 

"Long term impacts of maternal depression on early child Development"

Robert Ammerman, Ph.D., Professor of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH

 

"Evaluation of the Kentucky KIDS NOW Initiative:   Valuable Lessons Learned"

Anna C. Faul, Ph.D., University of Louisville, Louisville, KY
Becky Antle, Ph.D., National Resource Center Child Welfare Training and Evaluation, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY
Jennifer Grisham-Brown, Ed.D., University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

  "Assessing Resilience in Young Children"

Paul LeBuffe, M.A., Devereux Foundation, Philadelphia, PA, 
Dr. LeBuffe is the author of the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment Instrument.
 

"When A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: Using Dialogic Reading to Promote Language Acquisition"

Chris Kelley, M.Ed., Children, Inc., Covington, KY

  "Connecting the Arts to the Early Childhood Curriculum"

Lauren Steiger Hess, M.A., Arts Project Manager, CET Learning Services, Cincinnati, OH
 

"Early Childhood Education: A Call to Action from the Business Community"

Tita Freeman, Director of Communications, Business Roundtable, Washington, D.C.

2:30 - 3:30 "Summing Up: What is School Readiness?"

Kyle Snow, Ph.D., National Institute of Child Health and Human Development,  Bethesda, MD
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Pre-Conference Advocacy Workshop
    Sponsored by USA Child Care and Children, Inc.
As states focus on producing greater educational outcomes against a background of severe fiscal constraint, the role of strong evidence-based advocacy becomes more and more critical. Recent breakthroughs in neuroscience and developmental sciences shed new light on the experiences that need to be available to all children in early childhood to make them ready for school. This workshop is designed to arm early childhood professionals with the essential arguments and supporting research to inform their advocacy efforts with legislators and other thought leaders.

The one-day program of activities will include:

* Presentations by selected faculty from the general conference, based on research relevance and importance to the provider advocates community.

* Various hand outs including short papers synthesizing both the best policies and the research that underlies them, and summarized research findings.

* Panel and audience reaction to the speakers with a focus on school readiness research's functional value for designing successful advocacy strategies.

* Workshop formats designed to allow active participation of all attendees in translating the most recent school readiness research findings into specific advocacy written products and strategies to take back home.

* Ideas for taking the various messages to wider audiences (i.e. what works in addressing the media, policy makers, parents, the child care community and public school educators.)

* Examples of promising advocacy initiatives and public policies from various states that are leading the way

The pre-conference will conclude with an evening reception for pre-conference attendees, faculty and other invited guests, including members of the media anticipated to be attending the general conference. Participants will come away with a sense of hope and significant help in making cogent and powerful arguments for effective child care programs in their state that will have children truly ready to succeed in school. Please give real consideration to joining us in building powerful advocacy efforts for school readiness.

Based on strong interest in this pre-conference, registrations will be limited for this workshop. For additional information on the pre-conference workshop, email USA Child Care or call 703-875-8100.

 

Costs

  • Friday, April 16 - $100

  • Friday, April 16, Full-time Student* - $50

  • Saturday, April 17 - $100

  • Saturday, April 17, Full-time Student* - $50

  • Both Days - $160

  • Both Days, Full-time Student* - $80

  • Advocacy Pre-Conference - $80

  • Advocacy Pre-Conference and Both Days $200

*Copy of valid student ID must be included with registration.

Payment must accompany registration. 
Make checks payable to Children, Inc.  
Payment may be made by Credit Card (Visa or Mastercard Only), Check, Purchase Order.
Note: When registering online, only credit card payments are accepted. 
If you wish to pay via check or purchase order, your registration must be mailed or faxed.

Registration deadline is April 2, 2004. No refunds will be given after this date.

Lunch is included on Friday. A restaurant guide will be provided for Saturday's lunch.

Click here to register online for Children: Our Common Wealth VI.

 

CEUs

Certificates of attendance will be available to all attendees at the end of each session.


A total of 9 Kentucky Child Care Training Clock Hours will be available at the conference- 5 on Friday and 4 on Saturday.  
The Cabinet for Health and Family Services has registered this training event for early care and education professionals according to statutes and regulations governing the licensure and certification of early care and education programs.


CEUs for various disciplines will be available through Western Kentucky University.  You will be provided CEU forms at the event, along with instructions on how to submit payment to receive your CEU certificate (which will be mailed after receipt of your form and payment).  Cost for CEUs is $20, payable directly to Western Kentucky University, and may be made by cash, check or credit card.


Continuing Education Units from Western Kentucky University are recognized by most all agencies within the state of Kentucky that require certified professional development or continuing education, including Child Development Associate certification.  
 

Directions to the Northern Kentucky Convention Center:

Take the Covington/Fifth Street Exit #192 from I-75. 
Turn left on Madison Avenue. 
Follow the signs to the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. 
Privately owned parking garages and surface lots are adjacent to Center.
 

Accommodations

These hotels are all within four blocks of the Convention Center and offer Children: Our Common Wealth Conference rates. For additional information on accommodations, visit www.nkycvb.com.

Cincinnati Marriott at River Center
10 West Rivercenter Blvd.
Call 1-800-266-6605 or (859) 261-2900 and ask for the "Children, Inc." rate of $125 per night, available through March 17.
Adjacent to Convention Center

Embassy Suites Hotel
10 East Rivercenter Blvd.
Call 1-800-EMBASSY or (859) 261-8400 and ask for the "Children, Inc." group rate for $139 per night, available through March 10.
Adjacent to Convention Center

Holiday Inn Riverfront
600 West Third Street
Call 1-800-HOLIDAY or (859) 291-4300 and ask for the "Children, Inc." group rate of $85 per night, available through March 25.
Near Convention Center and will provide shuttle service.

Courtyard by Marriott
500 West Third Street
Call (859) 491-4000 and ask for the "Children, Inc." group rate of $75 per night, available through March 17.
Near Convention Center and may provide shuttle service.

 

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