New program specialists hired by Smart Start
By Other
Published in News on December 16, 2004 1:56 PM
Wayne County Partnership for Children has hired two new program specialists to work with licensed child care centers to increase their state ratings and has also received a grant for 14 computers from the Triangle United Way.
Carla Stafford, a graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, previously taught kindergarten in Duplin and Johnston counties.
Married with two children, she is originally from Wayne County.
Her role will be to help child care providers become compliant with the state child care laws through teacher training and curriculum development.
Kimberly Mooring Best, also a native of Wayne County, has worked in the child care field for many years as both teacher and director. Her love for children began early through child care centers operated by her own family.
She is married to John Michael Best and has two children. She obtained her degree in child development from East Carolina University and is pursing a master's degree there in early childhood education.
The computers the agency received, worth about $30,000, were distributed to local nonprofit child care facilities and More at Four prekindergarten classrooms in Wayne County.
The Young Explorer is a computer geared toward children ages 3 to 7 and comes equipped with educational software to enhance the classroom's educational curriculum.
Julie Odom, community services coordinator for the partnership, said the donation will allow hundreds of young children in Wayne County the opportunity to experience computer learning in their individual classrooms.
Child care centers that received the computers include Small World Child Care, Wee Are the World Child Care, Wonderland Christian Child Care, Happy Days Child Care, First Baptist Child Care, Goldsboro Family YMCA Child Care, Merry-Go-Round Child Care, Wayne Christian Day Care, Faith Christian Day Care, Carter Christian Child Care, Carter Christian Child Care, Guiding with Care Child Development Center, Agapeland Child Development Center and Rhyme University.