The Family Development Program has been invited by the NM Office of Child Development to work in 13 New Mexico Early Childhood Investment Zone communities across the state. We are challenged to engage interested early childhood professionals in building a sustainable coalition to address community-identified early childhood needs that align with our state goals for NM FOCUS. FOCUS is dedicated to quality for all children and is working from local to state levels to collectively assure that every child reaches his or her full potential.
The Investment Zone initiative is strategically designed to engage all sectors of the early childhood system (home visiting, FIT, early learning, Head Start, 619 special education, Title I, Pre-K, public health, and family support) to make a shared commitment to improving outcomes for young children. As a co-learning opportunity, the Family Development Program will provide collaborative leadership training for effective coalition-building and immersion in Mind in the Making: The Science of Early Learning to support development of a common, accessible language for how young children learn and grow.
The overall goal of this two-year engagement is to establish cross-sector commitment and coalition sustainability for local communities to become fully engaged in FOCUS and its long term investment in quality for all young children in New Mexico.