Childhood Development Board to meet at NAU; public forum scheduled

The Early Childhood Development and Health Board will be meeting on the Mountain Campus next week and will conduct a public forum to raise public awareness of the need for comprehensive early childhood education in Arizona.

The forum will be held from 6:15 to 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, June 26, at the Coconino High School Small Auditorium.

It is designed to develop public understanding of the need for a comprehensive system that provides accessible, affordable and high-quality services to prepare children up to age 5 to succeed in school and life.

The forum also will give members of the public an opportunity to address the board about issues parents, providers and the public face regarding barriers to proper early childhood development and health in their homes and communities.

The board also will hold its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday and Wednesday on the Northern Arizona University campus.

Pamela Powell, an assistant professor in the College of Education's Department of Teaching and Learning, is on the nine-member board.

The board was established in 2006 by the passage of Proposition 203, the "First Things First" initiative. The measure funds quality early childhood health and education at the local level, building on a five-year plan adopted by the state School Readiness Board and supported by Gov. Janet Napolitano.

Information is available online.