Page 20 - S36.Autumn 2019

20
Southington Magazine — Autumn 2019
Joanne Kelleher and Intern Siera Murray
waiting lists. Yet the childcare staff may work long hours for low wages and with increased licensing requirements. Registration for traditional part-day nursery schools starts in the winter months for the following fall and if parents begin looking in the spring, they find that there are no openings.
The grandparents in Southington are increas- ingly taking care of their grandchildren, either dur- ing the day as an alternative to childcare or on a more permanent basis due
to medical or addiction is-
sues. To support them the
ECCS has started a “South-
ington Grandparents Con-
nect” Facebook group
and will be scheduling
grandparent-specific edu-
cational workshops with
networking opportunities.
To support early child- hood educators, the ECCS has offered free profes- sional development op- portunities on topics in- cluding domestic violence, behavior and social and emotional development, early language, gardening, music and movement, and yoga and stress reduction.
Educational workshops
for parents and guardians have included an annual kindergarten readiness series with the SPS staff, nutrition, brain growth, and special needs support. Car seat safe- ty clinics are held with the Southington Police Department. The ECCS also pro- motes preschool and kindergarten regis- tration and advocates at the local, state and national level. The ECCS website has a directory of childcare options, summer programs, enrichment activities, health- care providers and other resources.
Over the past few years the ECCS’s work has been supported through grants from the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain, the Main Street Community Foundation and the Petit Family Foundation, along with fundrais- ers and donations.
For more information, to learn about volun- teer opportunities, or to make a donation, please contact the ECCS director, Joanne Kelleher, at southingtonearlychildhood@gmail.com, visit their website at www.southingtonearlychildhood.org or follow them on social media at https://www.face- book.com/ECCSouthington/ or https://twitter.com/ ecc_southington.