GAYC Annual Members Meeting
September 26, 2014
The Gwinnett Center – Duluth, GA
People Present: 28
Call to Order: Dr. Lisa Belliston, GAYC Board President
Review of 2013 Annual Meeting Minutes: Laura Wagner, Secretary
Financial Report 2013 FY: Thomas Brock, Treasurer
Thomas Brock reviewed membership numbers, conference registration numbers and projections,
Accreditation Facilitation Project numbers, Strengthening Families numbers, and more.
Our audit date is approaching and will be completed in the next 30-60 days.
Selected Committee Reports
Public Policy: Crystal Rhodes – Crystal asked the group to update the board on ongoing events in Georgia
during the open microphone portion of the meeting. Georgia Pre-K week is approaching in two weeks,
and GAYC is a major partner in the event. Crystal shared that the GAYC members were welcome to
contact her and could find her contact information on the GAYC website or get a business card. Lisa
Belliston asked the group to think about what they wanted GAYC to advocate for in the next year.
Technology – Lisa Belliston
Lisa Belliston shared that the GAYC Office and the Technology Committee have been working hard on
technology – and for the first year, we were able to have online registration. The group in the room was
especially appreciative of this – of being able to register online and select classes. The other major
update was the “What’s your Passion” booth for the Month of the Young Child. Erin Carey shared that
still photos were being taken and photographers were taking video clips for the website, for our
Facebook page, our Pinterest page, and for a potential YouTube channel. Kerry Liebling was thanked for
being especially social media savvy – this has added a lot for GAYC. Kathy Alexander asked about social
media training – which was being offered on Saturday by Dr. Bisa Lewis. Crystal Rhodes also has a
Voices for GA’s Children document that she offered to share electronically.
Annual Town Hall Meeting: Dr. Lisa Belliston, President
NAEYC 2013 Highlight: Stephanie Morris, Deputy Executive Director for Member Engagement
Lisa Belliston reviewed Stephanie’s resume for the group. Stephanie told the group she was glad to visit
Georgia, as it was her first opportunity to get to know an affiliate after joining NAEYC. Stephanie said
that GAYC was at a really exciting moment, and that there must be much discussion about how to reach
and engage our membership – NAEYC is having a very similar moment, she said. There has been a lot of
discussion among the national board about what NAEYC is doing and what they can do better. On this
front, first and foremost, they are focused on member recruitment, retention, and engagement. They
have just kicked off a project to look at the NAEYC website to ensure that finding content is an intuitive
process. A new website will be launched likely next year. A new Constituent Management System will
also be an important project which will likely enhance the abilities of the affiliates and NAEYC to engage
members. NAEYC is also focused on the membership experience – making sure that being a NAEYC
member is the best it can possibly be. Stephanie asked the group to think about what to share in this
regard with her. Also in terms of operations, NAEYC is interested in recruiting younger members to join
at the onset of their careers. Stephanie also said that this year was a big year for NAEYC to work in pilot
areas – NAEYC is considering a conference mentorship program, which was piloted on a very small level.
After very recently announcing this pilot, there are already over 20 nominations for people interested in
the mentorship program. NAEYC is also very interested in raising the profile of the profession and the
people who work in the field. The NAEYC conference is upcoming – they will be focusing also on the
Spanish-speaking community, as GAYC has in this year’s annual conference.
Linda Travers asked Stephanie to speak about the Academy – Stephanie shared that Marika Mitchell
manages the side of NAEYC that focuses on the academy – they are very focused on the criteria for the
accreditation process to make it more efficient, and with fewer redundancies. NAEYC is being very
intentional about this process, currently.
SECA Highlight: Kathy Attaway, SECA President
Lisa Belliston also reviewed Kathy Attaway’s resume for the group in attendance.
Kathy shared that she does enjoy meeting the state representatives who comprise the SECA region.
SECA states don’t always share the same issues as each other. Kathy talked about working in
complement with NAEYC to serve children together. There was a recent strategic planning meeting that
SECA held – and will be focused on: intentionality, especially in reaching out to SECA members who are
working with children every day; technology, which we need to adjust to; communication, which results
in enhanced and higher membership rates; data-gathering and surveys, which inform ongoing
operations and ensure that SECA is on the right track; seeking writers of Dimensions; and more. Kathy
thanked the group for having her at the conference – and announced that the next SECA conference
would be held in February in New Orleans, LA.
GAYC Update: Christina Parker, Executive Director
Lisa Belliston introduced GAYC’s new Executive Director to the group, and briefly reviewed her
professional experience and resume.
Christina said that it was especially important for GAYC to have a unified voice for young children – we
believe in this as an organization. We sit on a lot of task forces, coalitions, campaigns, and broad groups
of stakeholders. The training initiative within GAYC is focused on increasing capacity – in APN (Atlanta
Promise Neighborhood), Savannah, Augusta, and in North Georgia… we are looking at launching an
advanced initiative for advanced and intermediate trainings for child care professionals, keeping an eye
at enhancing quality of providers, despite the age and experience of providers. This initiative will take
off soon. Christina thanked Diana Curra and Kerry Liebling for the strong work that was happening in
the office. GAYC is working on a reliable database to enhance GAYC’s communication and marketing.
Christina also shared with the group about EducatorBridge.com – which is a “bridge” for educators, or, a
job site, where individuals can upload resumes and other documents into a web-based system for
employers to seek qualified candidates for their own needs. GAYC is open to gaining more partners to
sponsor the site. This site helps to keep GAYC in a leadership position in Georgia.
Some of the changes Christina mentioned in the conference included session selection, technology,
sponsorships, and more. Christina thanked Cathy Durand-Horne, who served as our Conference
Committee Chair, and thanked the more than 300 volunteers that we have here at the conference this
year.
Christina asked the group to communicate with the GAYC office – and said that the GAYC staff’s ears are
always open to ideas and suggestions, and that the office doors were always open to our members and
volunteers.
Open Microphone:
One of our members, Kim, talked about her experience as a family day care home provider, and asked
about Pre-K in child care programs. She said that she does private Pre-K – but doesn’t get public funding
for those slots. Kim also asked about training for trainers, and talked about the concern of unlicensed
providers, especially those who are on craigslist. Kim also hosts trainings for other providers at her
home, where they talk about marketing, training, and they get hours. Continuing education can also be
a challenge for some providers.
Stephanie Morris said that NAEYC is working on a database of education programs for providers that are
affordable and desirable – this directory will probably be available in about 6 months, and will also
include funding streams and funding sources. This is a big project for the field.
Laurel Beckham asked the group to consider what GAYC could change, or improve upon in the future.
One member said that it was exciting to see more intermediate and advanced trainings. Another
member, Kathy, shared that she liked that all three organizations were combined as a membership so
that she could hear about each organization simultaneously, and that the hard copies of materials were
really beneficial, not only for her, but for others she knows in the field. She said it was sad to see Pat go,
but she was happy to see new energy and excitement, and “new blood.” Kathy also said it was nice to
see people working together and uniting to provide the quality of care and education that children need
so that they can be in our seats 20-30 years from now.
One member thanked GAYC for the scholarship for the conference, as it was hugely helpful to her and
her business.
Another member, Barb, said that it was important to talk about the professionalism of the field and
tying that to quality. Raising quality is important – but also, if we want quality, and if we want to raise
the professionalism of the field, the question is really about the wages offered. What about the people
in the field who spend money on their education – what’s the compelling argument to keep those highly
professional people in the field of early childhood education (especially in 0-4 care). Laurel said that this
should perhaps be something on our policy agenda. When we get this information from our members,
we can incorporate it into our legislative and policy agenda as an organization.
Kim shared that CAPS is a huge issue – if parents using the CAPS subsidy don’t have their information
updated in 30-45 days, they get kicked out of the system and have to wait another 30-45 days – this
affects her business significantly, and affects the learning of young children who need this assistance.
Linda Travers talked to the group about losing a grant for NAEYC accreditation – we have had the AFP
grant for a number of years – and this will run out in December. She and Christina Parker have talked
about ways to keep this going. Linda asked – what is the relationship between QR and NAEYC? We
need to take this a step further, she suggested, to consider NAEYC as that final step for quality. What
can we do, as the state affiliate, to promote NAEYC, and support the programs who participate in NAEYC
– and how can we help them sustain their quality? Linda said that GAYC would not be giving up, though
the AFP grant was running out in September. Linda asked the group to suggest to GAYC those programs
that were accredited but needed reaccreditation – or, about 2-3 star programs that wanted to go to the
next step of quality and become NAEYC accredited.
Charmaine Godley asked about best practice states which have seamlessly handled the crosswalk
between QRIS and NAEYC.
Recognition of Retiring Board Members – Lisa Belliston
Lisa recognized Laurel Beckham for her many years (8) on the GAYC board. Lisa also recognized
Courtney May, and Roberta Malavenda for their service to the board.
Induction of New 2014-2015 Board Members – Ayanna Hawkins
Michelle Carter, our new board member was recognized in absentia, and other existing board members
recommitted to serving GAYC.
Closing and Adjourrnment – Lisa Belliston
The group in attendance was thanked for their contribution for participating in this discussion, and
welcomed to continue to contribute in the future.
Respectfully submitted by Laura Wagner, Secretary