Our Vision:
Early care and education is expected and respected by the Groton community. A full
range of services is available to all families.

Our Goals:
To improve the social, emotional, and academic performance of children birth
through eight.
To strengthen connections between the early care system and elementary education.

Our Objectives:
To increase families’ knowledge of programs and services that are available in
Groton.
To increase public awareness of the importance of early care and education.
To facilitate professional learning opportunities for both early care providers and
kindergarten teachers.

Our Organization:

The CFG Collaborative Table:

• Meets monthly on the first Tuesday at 10:OOam.
• Meetings are held at the Groton Human Services office, 2 Fort Hill Road, Groton.
• Facilitative leadership practices are utilized in all meetings.
• Membership is open to all interested in the well being of Groton's young children and families.
• Members serve as active community ambassadors and leaders for young children and families.
• The collaborative is led by a Chair and Vice-Chair who guide the group in creating the conditions for successful collaboration.

The CFG Core Leadership Group:

• Meets quarterly (January, April, July and October) or as needed.
• Consists of chair, vice-chair, grant coordinator, grant liaison, and two collaborative members.
• Reflects on the pulse of Groton's young children and families, the collaborative table and the Graustein Memorial Fund.
• Assists in creating the conditions necessary for successful collaboration.
• Applies the practices of facilitative leadership while assisting in moving the group's vision forward.
• Assists the group in achieving its goals and objectives based upon defined outcomes.
• Determines level of staff support needed to facilitate the collaborative process.
• Develops job descriptions and specified tasks for each staff position.
• Plays key role in interviewing processes.
• Plays key role in participatory evaluation of staff members.

The CFG Work Groups:

• Meet to accomplish work as outlined in Children First Groton's action plans.
  A work group's charge is determined by the Children First Groton collaborative prior to the first work group meeting.
• Membership is open to all concerned with the well being of Groton's young children. Work group members do not need to be members of the full collaborative table.
• Recommendations for action (e.g. products/spending) shall be approved by the Children First Groton collaborative prior to a work group taking final action.
• Work groups choose a lead person who is responsible for: setting meetings
  (date/time/location), keeping and sharing record of all work group meetings, and providing Children First Groton's Vice-chair with up to date information.
• A work group's lead person attends all monthly Children First Groton collaborative meetings to report on progress, make recommendations, obtain feedback and approvals, etc.
  The following work groups have been established: Focus Group; Marketing