An Open Letter to the NC State Legislature

Transcription

1 An Open Letter to the NC State Legislature As executive directors and board chairs of the local Smart Start partnerships, we fully support the work of The North Carolina Partnership for, Inc. (NCPC) and urge you to vote against the special provision currently being considered by the State Senate to eliminate funding for the organization. Eliminating NCPC will negatively impact local partnerships, jeopardizing the gains we have made in our communities for young children. North Carolina s early childhood education system would be severely damaged by the loss of NCPC. For over 14 years it has provided leadership, vision, and funding to improve the status of young children in our state. The network of the local partnerships, their boards, the programs they support, and the local organizations that are nurtured by Smart Start will be left without an organizing body or statewide leadership. NCPC is an essential partner in our efforts to assure that every child in North Carolina begins school healthy and ready to succeed. Through their leadership at the state level, we have been able to access millions of additional private dollars to support our local efforts funds that would never be donated to a government agency. NCPC staff work across state agencies, nonprofit organizations and donors to create new programs and to eliminate state-level governmental rules or practices that may be a barrier to our efforts at the local level. Most importantly, they work with us to assure that we are maximizing every public and private dollar and being fully accountable for results. They make sure every day in so many different ways that taxpayers of North Carolina are getting the very best return on the investment you have made on behalf of young children and families. This public/private partnership that the General Assembly created in 1993 is an example of what works. In 1995, the General Assembly made the wise decision to move oversight authority for Smart Start from state government to NCPC. That was a smart decision then and it is a smart decision today. The result of your wisdom has been higher standardized test scores and improved literacy for at-risk children, additional revenues from the private sector to support our programs, recognition by the State Auditor s office for our accountability efforts and national recognition for North Carolina as a model of what can be accomplished when the public and private sectors work together. Do not eliminate an organization that is so essential to the success of partnerships. Sincerely, Cindy Watkins, Executive Director Bryan Hagood, Board Chair Alamance Partnership for Elaine Scarborough, Executive Director Dana Maness, Board Chair Anson Partnership for Dr. Denauvo Robinson, Executive Director Kathy Leary, Board Chair Albemarle Smart Start Partnership (Pasquotank, Camden, Currituck, Gates, Bertie) Susan G. Cogdill, Executive Director Dale Clary, Board Chair Alexander Partnership for

2 Kim Shaw, Executive Director John Kilmartin, Board Chair Alleghany Partnership for Sarah Wolf, Executive Director Wanda Parks, Board Chair Ashe Partnership for Sara Yackey, Executive Director Jennifer Shore, Board Chair Avery Smart Start: A Partnership for Lisa Woolard, Executive Director Wes Smith, Board Chair Beaufort/Hyde Partnership for Lillian Bryant, Executive Director Rhea Hebert, Board Chair Bladen Smart Start: A Partnership for Linda Gironda, Executive Director Dorothy Hoerr, Board Chair Smart Start of Brunswick Ron Bradford, Executive Director Dan Anderson, Board Chair Buncombe Partnership for Joan Rovenstine, Executive Director Spring Williams Byrd, Board Chair Burke Smart Start Ann Benfield, Executive Director Bob Shinn, Board Chair Cabarrus Partnership for Jeri Arledge, Executive Director Brian Murray, Board Chair Caldwell Smart Start A Partnership for Young Sherry Peel, Executive Director Ray Harris, Board Chair Carteret Partnership for Sandra Hudspeth, Executive Director Patricia Warren, Board Chair Caswell Partnership for Kim Salyards, Executive Director C. John Watts, III, Board Chair Catawba Partnership for Genevieve Megginson, Executive Director Kate Scott, Board Chair Chatham Partnership for Susan Nixon, Executive Director Horace Reid, Board Chair Chowan/Perquimans Smart Start Partnership Cathy Taylor, Executive Director Robin Brackett, Board Chair Cleveland Partnership for Wilbur Smith, Executive Director Glenda Phillips, Board Chair Columbus Partnership for Patricia Morrow, Executive Director Wendy Chapman, Board Chair Craven Smart Start Eva Hansen, President/Executive Director Karen McDonald, Board Chair Partnership for of Cumberland Loretta Michael, Executive Director William Vann, Board Chair & Youth Partnership for Dare Linda Leonard, Executive Director Lynne Brame, Board Chair Smart Start of Davidson Mary Beth Scebold, Executive Director Mike Jenkins, Board Chair Smart Start of Davie

3 Henrietta Zalkind, Executive Director David Henson, Board Chair Down East Partnership for (Nash & Edgecombe) Joan Williams, Executive Director Linda Hadden, Board Chair Duplin Partnership for Laura Benson, Executive Director Angie Welsh, Board Chair Durham s Partnership for Charles W. Kraft, Executive Director April Broadway, Board Chair Smart Start of Forsyth Carolyn Paylor, Executive Director Cedric K. Jones, Board Chair Franklin Granville Vance Smart Start Jean Goodman, Executive Director Mildred Poole, Board Chair Guilford Partnership for Magda Baligh, Executive Director Stanley Lewis, Jr., Board Chair Halifax-Warren Smart Start Partnership for Lisa Familio, Executive Director Nancy Guy, Board Chair Harnett Partnership for Cynthia Brown, Executive Director Alice Sharpe, Board Chair Pam Perry, Board Vice Chair Hertford/Northampton Partnership for Jean Squier, Executive Director Shelley Wilburn, Board Chair Hoke Partnership for and Families Dr. Norma Sermon-Boyd, Executive Director Donna Paige, Board Chair Jones Partnership for Sonia Gironda, Executive Director Milton Butterworth, Board Chair Smart Start of Henderson Marta Koesling, Executive Director Lynn Allen Smith, Board Chair Iredell Partnership for Dr. Dwight Morris, Executive Director Lisa Brogdon, Board Chair Partnership for of Johnston Lyn Hankins, Executive Director Mikeal Basinger, Board Chair Lee Partnership for Keith Sylvester, Executive Director Kristal Suggs, Board Chair Lenoir/Greene Partnership for Steve Eaton, Executive Director Robert Weeks, Board Chair Partnership for of Lincoln/Gaston Counties Nancy Alenier, Executive Director Jerry Plemmons, Board Chair Madison Partnership for and Families Sheila Orth, Executive Director Kelly Baxter, Board Chair Martin/Pitt Partnership for Caroline Rodier, Executive Director Kristin Mart, Board Chair McDowell Partnership for & Families

4 Jane Meyer, Executive Director Timika Shafeek-Horton, Board Chair Mecklenburg Partnership for Jennifer Simpson, Executive Director Judy Stevens, Board Chair Mitchell-Yancey Partnership for Deborah Musika, Executive Director Rev. Bobby Tyson, Board Chair Montgomery Partnership for Terry Reynolds, Executive Director Tom Boals, Board Chair Partners for & Families (Moore ) Janet Nelson, Executive Director Melissa Lavengood, Vice Chair Smart Start of New Hanover Dawn Rochelle, Executive Director John Marks, Jr., Board Chair Onslow Partnership for Margaret Samuels, Executive Director Jay T. Bryan, III, Board Chair Orange Partnership for Young Betty Blythe, Executive Director Richard Baldwin, Board Chair Pamlico Partnership for Connie Carr-Costin, Executive Director S. Eugene Jordan, Board Chair Smart Start of Pender Judy Batten, Executive Director Jackson Elliott, Board Chair Person Partnership for Pauline McKee, Executive Director Duffy Johnson, Board Chair Randolph Partnership for Janice Edgerton, Executive Director Juanita Wilson, Board Chair Region A Partnership for (Cherokee, Clay, Macon, Graham, Swain, Haywood, and Jackson) Martha Vance Brown, Executive Director Glenn Alexander, Board Chair Richmond Partnership for Jessica Lowery, Executive Director Tim Little, Past Chair Robeson Partnership for Heather Kilpatrick, Executive Director Victor Armstrong, Board Chair Rockingham Partnership for John Gerstenmier, Executive Director Jimmy Greene, Board Chair Smart Start Rowan Barry Gold, Executive Director Ernestine Lewis, Board Chair Rutherford/Polk Smart Start Partnership Victoria Byrd, Executive Director Carolyn Roth, Board Chair Sampson Partnership for Anita Riojas-Mayers, Executive Director Ron Sapp, Board Chair Scotland Partnership for and Families Barbara Whitley, Executive Director Matt Irvin, Board Chair Stanley Partnership for Cindy Tuttle, Executive Director Perry Carroll, Board Chair Stokes Partnership for

5 Marty Westmoreland, Executive Director Barbara Anderson, Board Chair Surry Early Childhood Partnership Joe Castro, Executive Director Don Bieger, Board Chair Smart Start of Transylvania Kay Overton, Executive Director Denise Landino, Board Chair Tyrell-Washington Partnership for Mary Ann Rasberry, Executive Director Jesse Milliken, Board Chair Union Smart Start Pamela Dowdy, Executive Director Shante Martin, Board Chair Wake SmartStart Brian Cornell, Executive Director Karee Mackey, Board Chair s Council of Watauga Patty Huffman, Executive Director Sissy Lee-Elmore, Board Chair The Partnership for of Wayne Laura Welborn, Executive Director Jennifer Murray, Board Chair Wilkes Community Partnership for Jim Hawley, Executive Director Kevin Hinnant, Board Chair Wilson Partnership for Carolyn Choplin, Executive Director Tim Harrison, Board Chair Smart Start of Yadkin