Be a Voice, Be an Advocate, Be a Champion!

Champions for Children, through the Down East Partnership for Children, is a growing group of committed community members/leaders who value children and families and want to make a difference in their own community.

Leaders participate in specialized training through the Ready Communities program.

Ready Communities is a program of the Down East Partnership for Children, a non-profit agency designed to build a strong foundation for children and families by advocating and supporting both high quality early care and education and a coordinated system of community resources.

Group training is focused in three main areas and includes:

-Champions Workshop Series - a parent empowerment and involvement series designed to 
 connect more parents and community members to schools

-Community Voices - a 10 weeks Leadership Development Program designed to empower
 grassroots leaders to develop a shared vision and become involved in solving issues in their
 community

-Community Fellows - a 2 year leadership development program with an option for 3rd year
 participation designed to provide coaching and skills enhancement to community-based
 grassroots leaders focused on early care and education from zero to third grade

Through free training, networking and coaching sessions, participants gain the skills that create long-term change by strengthening their ability to connect children and families to community resources.

While each program requires a time commitment, participation is not required in each program. Champions/leaders choose programs that match their interest levels.

Ready Communities offers workshops on a broad range of topics to support community members, parents and professionals in advocating for children and the community. Topics include:

-Principles of Family Support

-Strategic Planning & Visioning

-Group Dynamics

-Cultural Competence

-Community Building

-Effective Communication

-Parental Guidance

-Why Quality Early Care Matters

-Leadership Development

-Building True Collaborations

-Ready Schools & Ready Communities

Community members who participate in any of the workshops or trainings become skilled at leading change, building relationships, engaging their community to act and working and learning together.

For more information, please contact Viola Barnes-Gray, Ready Communities Coordinator at (252) 985-4300, x-251 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Follow this link to learn about the Graduate Community Fellows.