Today is “Work Together Wednesday” which seems like a great time for me to introduce myself and thank you for your partnership with the Child Development Division as we serve Vermont’s young children and their families.
I am about one month into my new role as the Deputy Commissioner within the Department for Children and Families tasked with leading the Child Development Division. I have spent the last 20 years in a variety of roles supporting the healthy development of children and families in Washington, DC and Vermont. I moved here almost 10 years ago to be closer to family and am so glad to be raising our two boys in a state with so many who care deeply about its children. Since 2015, I’ve been working on early childhood issues in Vermont and learning from those of you directly serving children in their classrooms, homes, and communities.
What I’ve learned during that time is that our children are best served when we work together. Our kids and our state need all of us -- working in government and policy, child care and afterschool programs, higher education, nonprofit organizations, and more at the state and local levels -- to communicate and collaborate. Whether it is coaching first-time parents of an infant in an early childhood education program, helping a new program through the licensing process, connecting a child in specialized care with transportation, training new afterschool professionals, providing grants to support continuing education, or helping a family navigate services for their young children, we are all working toward the shared vision of each and every Vermont child reaching their true potential.
I want to acknowledge the difficult circumstances that those working in early childhood and afterschool are facing right now. The pandemic’s impact on children’s development coupled with the statewide workforce shortage is making everyone’s jobs harder than ever. While the Child Development Division cannot solve all of these challenges, our aim is to work in collaboration with all of you as effectively and efficiently as possible to help meet the needs of the children and families we serve together.
Please do reach out to me or other members of the team at the Child Development Division with your ideas, feedback, and questions. We share your passion for children and want to support you to the best of our ability.
Thank you again for the work you do every day.
In partnership,
Janet McLaughlin
Deputy Commissioner, Department for Children and Families
Child Development Division