NEWS

We are continually learning and evolving as we build a strong, sustainable Building Strong Brains coalition. A key part of this complex effort is measuring our shared impact and planning strategic next steps. With the help of Visible Network Labs, we’ll gain deeper insights into our community networks and create visual tools to better understand our partnerships, highlight strengths, and pinpoint gaps in our ecosystem. Leaders from the Building Strong Brains Data Support Team: Horizon Education Alliance, the Elkhart County Health Department, the William J. Shaw Center for Children and Families at the University of Notre Dame, and the Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society are preparing to implement this tool to ensure the coalition’s long-term strength and growth. As we roll out Visible Network Labs, coalition partners will be invited to participate in a survey this fall. We’re excited about the valuable insights this project will provide to enhance the work of Building Strong Brains.

1.  Strategic Collaboration
2.  Efficient Resource Allocation
3.  Data-Driven Decision Making
4.  Strengthening Relationships
5.  Identifying Gaps and Opportunities

We are excited to welcome Goshen College as our newest organizational sponsor. Our organizational sponsors help BSB by:

• Prioritizing early child development as a focus for the organization, evidenced by board agreement.
• Agreeing to share, to the extent possible, relevant information with coalition partners to reach shared goals.
• Demonstrating commitment to systems-level change to children and their families by participating in coalition teams and projects that extend beyond one organization’s or sector’s perspective.
• Contributing time, expertise, leadership, and financial resources.

August Family Child Care Networking Event

Thank you to Geminus for visiting family child care providers in Elkhart County to invite them to the Family Child Care Networking event held last month. Each provider received a bag filled with information, resources, and giveaways, along with an invitation to attend the event. 

Family child care professionals had the opportunity to network and learn about available resources provided by INAEYC, SPARK Learning Labs, The SOURCE, and Geminus. They also had an opportunity to hear updates about the Building Strong Brains work across the coalition network. 

Virtual Family Child Care Network Meeting

Be part of Indiana’s most dynamic network for professionals like you. Join a vibrant community of family child care professionals who understand your unique challenges and are ready to support you every step of the way. 

Elkhart County Home Care providers are invited to join us virtually, at 7 p.m. September 26 for “Setting the Stage for Multi-Age Play,” presented by Town Square Explore the many right ways to create a functional, inviting, and high-quality care and learning environment in this virtual training for family child care providers by describing the role of space, furniture, and materials in supporting multi-age play. Training hours will be provided. *Thank you to our partners at Geminus, Crossroads United Way, the Community Foundation of Elkhart County, and the Building Strong Brains Quality Child Care and Early Learning Environments Action Team, for planning, facilitating, and sponsoring these early childhood professionals’ events. 

Register Here » 

Launching Beyond the Blues

Beyond the Blues is a group for pregnant and postpartum women with perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) that will be launching at Oaklawn’s Goshen location in September.  The group came about through collaboration between members of the Building Strong Brains  Maternal and Infant Health action team. Katy Carlson is a therapist at Oaklawn with training in PMADs, and learned of the need for this type of group therapy resource in the community.  Marti Conrad is a social worker with Elkhart County Health Department’s Healthy Babies and also had a longstanding interest in establishing a PMAD support group. Through discussion between Katy and Marti, and also with Shin Yee Tan of The SOURCE, Beyond the Blues is being launched. The group will meet weekly and is open to pregnant and postpartum women and their babies. The group will include time for processing/sharing, as well as building skills for mental health such as self care, mindfulness, and assertiveness. The group will be co-facilitated by Katy and Marti. Katy will bring her therapy training and passion for working with moms and babies. Marti will bring her many years of experience working with this population and her extensive knowledge of community resources.  We are excited about this partnership and hope that it can be a valuable resource for women who need it!

Professional Development Opportunity for New School Leaders and Center Directors

Early Learning Indiana, in partnership with McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership at National Louis University, is inviting new school leaders to grow their leadership skills through a three-part professional development series. This series is generously supported by Lilly Endowment Inc. Spots are limited. Visit this LINK to learn more.

4 Virtual Sessions
Tuesdays Sept. 17, October 1, 15, 29
6:30-7:30 p.m.
4 Weeks Long
Register here.

Annual Early Childhood Conference at Saint Mary’s College – “Joyfully Connecting with All”

October 26, 2024. Several workshop sessions will be delivered in Spanish and sessions will be presented that are designed specifically for early educators working with infants/toddlers/two year olds, preschoolers and administrators/directors. Training Certificate – 3 hours.

Registration opens late August. Contact Terri or call (574) 298-3353 if you would like to volunteer at the conference. Volunteering allows participation in all sessions, so please join us.

Conference Sponsorship Opportunities to assist with reducing the conference registration cost for early educators is a priority.  More info about how to be a conference sponsor here: 2024 EC Conference Sponsorship Info & Form

Information about the keynote speaker and her workshop topics can be found here:  Frequently Asked Questions – Early Childhood 2024 Conference

Beacon Health System received a $5.4 million grant from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration for the Healthy Start Initiative: Eliminating Disparities in Perinatal Health. The Healthy Start Initiative will aim to improve birth outcomes, promote health equity, and eliminate health disparities. As part of the initiative, the Michiana Family Journey program will bring together more than 25 nonprofit partners in Elkhart and St. Joseph counties. This initiative has significant alignment to the Building Strong Brains Coalition work focused on maternal and child health. We are thrilled for our region to have this opportunity for continued collective impact!

The Building Strong Brains Coalition continues to strategically learn together, develop, and implement action strategies, as well as identify ways to overcome barriers to progress. These diagrams show how the three action team focus areas are evolving to be more precise and focused on overcoming those challenges.

Maternal and Child Health Action Team

Quality Child Care and Early Learning Environments Action Team

Community Supports for Children and Families Action Team

• The Community Supports for Children and Families Action Team is researching and piloting findhelp, a search engine providing opportunities to identify and connect families to resources. To learn more about findhelp, visit findhelp.org and see the included information sheet below.