Conflict and Collaboration: Breaking Down Barriers by J.M. Holland

The story in the Pre-K Now video conference from Eau Claire, Wisconsin struck me as an incredibly realistic portrayal of the process of expanding pre-k. The section of the video on Eau Claire starts about 20 minutes into the webcast. Watch the webcast and think about what working together really looks like.

I attended similar meetings to the one presented in the conference when I worked with Gov. Tim Kaine's Start Strong Initiative. The great thing about community based reform is that people who really care get the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people they know. The hard part is that when people are talking about their own communities and changes they want to see happen, they can get passionate. It was great to see one of the team members question the process of how this new pre-k initiative is going to take shape in the "Listening Session" hosted in the community. Stakeholders were able to express their fears. One participant said, "I am a little frustrated because I came tonight to to hear the plan." The process facilitator replied, "This meeting is to have your views expressed." Another participant asked, "How are we going to maintain quality?" These are the types of exchanges communities need to have in order to create better early education experiences for young children.

Here are a couple questions to get you started thinking about how pre-k could be expanded in your community.
What strengths do we have in our community?
Are there successes in our community/state on which we can build or scale up?
Who could support a new vision for expanded high quality early childhood education?
Who needs to be at the table?