2023 Alliance Annual Membership Meeting Recap
The Alliance’s ninth Annual Membership Meeting was held on May 30 at the Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich. It was a successful day that brought together over 35 members of the Vermont early childhood community.
To begin the Meeting, Matt Levin, the Executive Director of the Alliance, offered welcoming remarks. Next, workshops were held, including an introduction to the Alliance and a recap on how the issues on the Alliance’s ’23 Legislative Agenda have fared during the 2023 Legislative session.
After the sessions, everyone came together to hear remarks from Chris Winters, the newly appointed Commissioner of the Department for Children and Families. He shared his goals to build on the successes already happening within the Department and to open lines of communication with more community members for improvements and to get feedback.
Next, Chloe Learey, Chair of the Alliance Steering Committee, kicked off the business meeting with introductions of Steering Committee members and staff. Matt then conducted Steering Committee elections for the seats up for election this year. See the updated Steering Committee roster on the Alliance website.
The final event of the Meeting was a panel discussion about a funders’ view of advocacy. The panel featured Evan Delgado and Elizabeth Christie, from the Turrell Fund, and Sara Vecchiotti, from the Couch Family Foundation. Panelists offered their perspectives on how funders consider proposals that focus on advocacy, why some funders have reservations about funding advocacy, and how funding for advocacy can achieve long-term goals of both funders and applicants.
Matt Levin closed the meeting with a few final remarks and thanked participants for their dedication and commitment to Vermont’s young children and families.
2022 Alliance Annual Membership Meeting Recap
To begin the meeting, Faye Mack, Chair of the Alliance’s Steering Committee, offered welcoming remarks highlighting the previous year’s accomplishments and thanking Alliance staff members.
Attendees then broke into groups with new members joining Public Engagement Director Dan Brown for an introduction to the Alliance and returning members joining Executive Director Matt Levin for a recap on the results of the Alliance’s 2022 Legislative Agenda.
After the workshops, the business meeting began with introductions of Steering Committee members and staff, and then members approved the minutes from the 2021 Annual Membership Meeting and conducted Steering Committee elections.
Continuing on after the business portion of the meeting, Morgan Nichols from Main Street Alliance introduced Representative Emilie Kornheiser, who shared her observations on advocacy during 2022 from within the State House.
Matt Levin closed the meeting with a few final remarks and thanked participants for their dedication and commitment to Vermont’s young children and families.
2021 Alliance Annual Membership Meeting Recap
To begin the meeting, Margaret Atkinson, Chair of the Alliance’s Steering Committee, offered welcoming remarks highlighting the previous year’s advocacy accomplishments and thanking Alliance staff members. Attendees then broke into groups with new members joining Public Engagement Director, Dan Brown, for an introduction to the Alliance and returning members joining Executive Director, Matt Levin, for a recap on the Alliance’s 2021 Legislative Agenda.
Matt Levin kicked off the business meeting with introductions of Steering Committee members and staff, and then members approved the minutes from the 2020 Annual Membership Meeting and conducted Steering Committee elections. See the updated roster and download the Meeting minutes, including a draft version of this year’s, on the Alliance website.
Following the business portion of the meeting, Margaret introduced Congressman Peter Welch who discussed the new round of federal funds that may be allocated to the states, and thanked our community for our ongoing efforts during the pandemic. We then transitioned into a legislative panel to discuss our next six months of advocacy and how to effectively engage legislators. It was a pleasure to be joined by Sen. Ginny Lyons, Rep. Theresa Wood and Rep. Kimberly Jessup for an engaging conversation. Members were also able to express their gratitude for the legislator’s support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Small group discussions followed the panel.
Matt Levin closed the meeting with a few final remarks and thanked participants for their dedication and commitment to Vermont’s young children and families.
Thank you to all joined us! Watch a recording of the the full meeting here.
2020 Annual Meeting Recap
REBUILDING STRONGER
The Alliance’s sixth Annual Membership Meeting, held on September 16, 2020, via Zoom, brought together early childhood professionals and providers, parents, and employers from around the state.
Alliance members and staff reflected on the Alliance’s advocacy during the 2020 Legislative session and held the annual Steering Committee elections. A panel of representatives from member organizations shared their perspectives on how the COVID 19 pandemic has impacted their work and our advocacy, and discussed how they are planning to address systemic issues spotlighted by the pandemic and move forward stronger. This year’s Meeting also included breakout sessions on the 2020 Legislative Agenda and the Alliance’s work and small group discussions to continue the discussion started by our panelists.
We missed seeing everyone in person but felt renewed by the energy of our members! See some detailed highlights from the day, below.
To begin the Meeting, Faye Mack, Chair of the Alliance’s Steering Committee, offered welcoming remarks. Next, workshops were held, including an introduction to the Alliance and a recap on how the issues from the Alliance’s Legislative Agenda have fared in the 2020 session so far.
Matt Levin, Alliance Executive Director, kicked off the business meeting with introductions of Steering Committee members and staff, and then approved the minutes from the 2019 Annual Membership Meeting and conducted Steering Committee elections. See the updated roster and download the Meeting minutes, including a draft version of this year’s, on the Alliance website. Ann Dillenbeck, Alliance Steering Committee member, then introduced Representative Jessica Brumsted, who provided thoughtful remarks about her work with the Alliance.
We then transitioned to a panel discussion to reflect on the impact of COVID 19 on the early childhood community and how, together, we can build better systems during the pandemic recovery that improve the long-term well-being of the early childhood community. Small group discussions followed. Amanda Herzberger, Chair of the Junior League of Champlain Valley Diaper Bank, an Alliance member, closed the Meeting with a few final remarks and thanked participants for their commitment to Vermont’s young children and families.