A $961,800 check was presented by First Things First (FTF) to Community Council in order to help with early childhood development in the Community. Council Chambers were teeming with parents and youngsters who came to witness the presentation.
“This check represents the on-going commitment of Arizona’s voters to children in the Gila River Indian Community,” said FTF Board Member Vivian Sanders. “These funds will ensure that more local kids arrive at kindergarten prepared to succeed.”
FTF operates through a local governance model which empowers local volunteers who live or work in the Community to create a system of early childhood development.
FTF funds come from an 80-cent increase on tobacco products approved by voters in 2006 for the express purpose of expanding or enhancing education and health services for kids 5 and younger. Decisions about which services to fund are made by local volunteers with early childhood expertise through the Gila River Regional Partnership Council which assesses the needs of the Community. The specific amount allocated to each region is determined by the number of children under 5 in the area, and how many of those children live in poverty.
Ariz. has ranked at or near the bottom of every indicator of child well being, which is critical since 90 percent or more of a child’s brain is developed by age five.
“To help support parents and children the Gila River Regional Partnership Council has allocated 48 percent our funding towards family support strategies, 40 percent funding for quality and access to child care and 12 percent for health and professional development,” said Pricilla Foote, chair of Gila River Indian Community Regional Council. There are 31 regional partnership councils statewide which are made up of volunteers who reflect a specific segment of their community.
“Through our 2010 needs and assets report the original partnership council found that the Gila River Indian Community is home to an estimated 2,556 children ages 0 to 5,” added Foote. The findings also estimated that 83 percent of households are single parents and a large group of grandparents are raising grandchildren.
The check presentation was held at Gila River Governance Center and included Community Council, community leaders, local school board members, early childhood, health and social service providers as well as family members.
Vivian Sanders, who serves on the FTF statewide board, said it was a privilege to share in the celebration of the commitment Ariz. voters made to our youngest children and of the improved outcomes for kids that are resultant from that commitment.
In 2006 FTF was passed with overwhelming support from voters and made Ariz. one of only a handful of states where early childhood education was put to a vote to address the lack of early childhood development services. For the first time in the history of the state, Ariz. has a state wide organization focused on expanding and enhancing early childhood and health services for kids.
“It’s really an honor to see the face of FTF and that is the children in the audience and to hear their voices,” said Sanders.
The check will fund services from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012 and symbolizes the commitment to ensure children are healthy and prepared when they enter kindergarten. The regional council will work with community stakeholders for the next three months on a plan to build on the early childhood services already funded in the region and to address other needs of young children in the area.
To learn more about your local regional council and the early childhood services funded by FTF in the Gila River Indian Community Regional Partnership Council, please visit: www.azff.gov/GilaRiver
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