Opinion: Norwalk ACTS director’s weekly shout outs

Anthony Allison is the executive director of Norwalk ACTS. 

Shout Out to all of Norwalk ACTS’ TEAM Summer Members, who are working hard this summer to make sure as many children as possible are enjoying a quality summer learning experience. New developments include: 

• Odyssey Early Learning Enrichment Program received donor funding to provide breakfast to campers;
• Kumon of Norwalk is offering free registration, a $80 savings, to pre-school through high school students who enroll in its math and reading programs before July 15. Kumon recently celebrated five years in business.
• STEM summer camps offered through a partnership between the Connecticut Yankee Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the South Norwalk Community Center expand this year to include a total of 70 more spaces for boys and girls entering the first to fifth grades.

Shout Out to Connecticut State Legislators for acting in support of our young children by passing two new laws that took effect on July 1.

1. Universal Preschool – A plan to provide preschool to all children in Connecticut between the ages of 3 and 4 for the school year commencing July 1, 2022. The plan will include ways to utilize both public and private preschool programs and ways to provide assistance for local and regional boards of education to implement the plan. The Department of Education will submit the plan no later than January 1, 2019.
2. Qualifications For Early Childhood Educators – Those seeking employment as an early childhood educator in Connecticut will now be required to hold a bachelor’s degree and have completed 12 credits or more in early childhood education or development to fill a position.

Members of Norwalk ACTS’ Prenatal to Third Grade Work Group are working toward having each child ready to learn by Kindergarten, and a quality preschool experience plays an important role in achieving this goal.