Members of the AmeriCorps program were honored at the NC Head Start Association banquet. Pictured are, from left to right: back row—Khari Garvin, Cindy Tuttle, Anne Moser and Katie Snow; front row—Melissa Bussard, Shannon McGuire, Jane Carson, Amanda Wyatt and Lucia Alzamora.
The six members, Lucia Alzamora, Melissa Bussard, Jane Carson, Britny Keller, Shannon McGuire and Amanda Wyatt work in Head Start classrooms in Alexander, Guilford, Stokes and Wilkes counties.
“We are very appreciative of the work and labor they have done,” said Khari Garvin, director of the North Carolina Head Start State Collaboration Office. “We want to recognize them publicly for that.”
This year is the first in a collaborative agreement between N.C. Head Start Collaboration Office and ACT, an AmeriCorps program sponsored by Stokes Partnership for Children (SPC), a local Smart Start Partnership, and funded by the North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service. Through this collaboration, ACT members provide release time needed for Head Start teachers to earn their degrees and meet federal mandates for early childhood education teachers.
According to Cindy Tuttle, Executive Director of Stokes Partnership for Children: “SPC is a non-profit organization that administers Smart Start funds to support programs to benefit children age birth to five and their families, is a catalyst for bringing different groups together for the sake of the children, educates the community on the critical needs of young children and helps develop solutions.
“Smart Start is North Carolina’s nationally recognized and award-winning early childhood initiative designed to ensure that young children enter school healthy and ready to succeed. Through the public-private Smart Start initiative, SPC is able to leverage additional funding streams to help create solutions for young children. Research proves that increased teacher education improves the quality of life for young children.”
“The joint effort of ACT and Head Start shows how two federal programs can work in harmony,” said Katie Snow, ACT program coordinator. “Together, our North Carolina AmeriCorps members and teachers are strengthening our education system and preparing our children for their futures.”
On December 12, 2007, former President George W. Bush signed the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act, which included a set of timelines for teacher education requirements. By 2011, all Head Start teachers at a minimum must have an associate degree in early childhood education, and by 2013, at least 50 percent of Head Start teachers must have a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education.
Through the ACT program, members serve as assistant pre-school teachers, providing enrichment activities to the children and release time for teachers to further their early childhood education. ACT serves Buncombe, Davie, Forsyth, Henderson, Stokes and Surry counties.
AmeriCorps, a national service initiative funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, is designed to increase volunteering and civic engagement in America. Since 1994, more than 4,000 individuals have participated in AmeriCorps programs in North Carolina.
The North Carolina Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service, a federal and state-funded agency housed in the Governor’s Office, administers funding for North Carolina AmeriCorps programs. For more information on the AmeriCorps programs, visit www.VolunteerNC.org or call 1-800-820-4483. For more information about Stokes Partnership for Children, visit www.stokespfc.com or call 1-800-559-5606.
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