What's on the
legislative agenda?
The legislature is
back in session, and the Commission has proposed legislation
aimed at improving basic services for children and their
families while also reducing unnecessary expenditures and
streamlining procedures in these increasingly difficult
times.
Commission reacts to
governor's budget proposal
The
Commission on Children has
issued this statement (PDF) on Governor M. Jodi Rell's proposal to eliminate the Commission in the
2009-2011 budget.
A public hearing on the Commission's budget will
be held by the legislature's
Appropriations
Committee on Wednesday, February 18, in Room 2-C of the Legislative
Office Building in Hartford. Presentations by agency heads are scheduled
to begin at 3:30 p.m., with testimony from the public following at 4
p.m.
More about the Commission:
| "Children
are not a special-interest population. They
are the next adults. They don't have a
voice, they don't vote, they're too young,
so they don't have anyone representing them
up here." -- Commission on Children
Executive Director Elaine Zimmerman, as
quoted in an
Associated Press article |
February is Parent
Leadership Month in Connecticut
Governor M. Jodi Rell has proclaimed February 2009 Parent Leadership Month
in Connecticut, noting that "Connecticut is recognized as the first
state in the nation to intentionally create a system of Parent
Leadership opportunities for parents to actively exercise their civic
and parental responsibilities."
Just the facts: handy data on children's issues
The Commission on Children has
fact sheets on an assortment of children's issues, and now you can find
them in one place on our website. Topics include: bullying, lead
poisoning, obesity, parent engagement, poverty, prevention, and reading.
Get them here.
Commission welcomes a new member
Wethersfield attorney Barbara J. Ruhe has been
appointed to the Commission by Senate Minority Leader John McKinney. Ms.
Ruhe has been in private practice in Connecticut since 1976 and has
extensive expertise in family and juvenile law. She regularly works on
behalf of children who’ve been physically and emotionally
abused.
Commission on Children in the news
Note: Most newspapers make their online articles available for only
a short period before charging access fees.
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Commission
Executive Director Elaine Zimmerman appeared on WVIT-TV Channel
30 morning news program on February 2 to discuss the recession's
impact on children, in conjunction with
an event the Commission held on the topic.
-
Ms. Zimmerman also discussed
parent engagement as a guest February 8 on the Hartford-area
affiliate of Radio Disney, WDZK-AM 1550.
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Commission Legislative Director Elizabeth C.
Brown has been named to the newly reorganized Youth Committee of
the Connecticut Employment and Training Commission, which will also
function as the Ad Hoc Youth Policy Council. The Commission is
staffed by the
Office for Workplace Competitiveness.
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Ms. Brown has also been
appointed to the
Families with Service Needs (FWSN) Advisory Board.
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Commission Director of Policy and Research
Analysis Thomas R. Brooks' keynote address on children and
poverty at an October 7 meeting of TEAM Inc., an agency that serves
impoverished residents in the Naugatuck Valley, was quoted in the
Fall 2008 newsletter of the Connecticut Association for Community
Action (CAFCA).
Download the newsletter in PDF format
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Commission Special Projects
Director Patricia Estill was one of several Connecticut
officials who described the state's immunization practices for a
February 10 conference call hosted by the federal Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. It was heard in more than 100
immunization offices across the country. The CDC had invited
Connecticut and Washington to make presentations because of their
high immunization rates. Ms. Estill presented on the organization of
an
April 2008 event that honored the state's immunization
"champions" -- doctors, nurses, office managers, and others who
helped raise immunization rates in Connecticut.
|
About the Commission
Created in 1985 by the Connecticut General Assembly, the 25-member Commission on Children brings together the three branches of government--legislative, executive, and judicial--as well as the private sector to promote public policies in the best interests of children. More
The Connecticut Commission on Children
18-20 Trinity Street
Hartford, CT 06106-1591 |
Phone: (860) 240-0290
Fax: (860) 240-0248
Website: www.cga.ct.gov/coc |
Commission members:
M. Alex Geertsma, M.D., F.A.A.P., Chair; George A. Coleman, Vice Chair;
Alison Hilding, Treasurer; Judith Busch, Secretary; James P. Cordier;
Representative Andrew M. Fleischmann; Mary K. Fox; Senator Mary Ann
Handley; Senator Jonathan Harris; Representative Michael Lawlor; Josh
Piteo; Mary Grace Reed; Barbara J. Ruhe; Laura Lee Simon, Chair Emerita;
John Yrchik. Ex-officio members: commissioners of children and families,
developmental services, public health, education, social services, and correction; the secretary of policy and management; the attorney general; and the chief court administrator.
More information
Commission staff: Elaine Zimmerman, executive director; Elizabeth C. Brown, legislative director; Thomas R. Brooks, director of policy and research analysis; Patricia Estill, special projects director; Dawn Homer-Bouthiette, Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI) director; Kevin Flood, public information officer and webmaster; Mary Kate Lowndes, grant writer and accounts manager; Rachel Levy, executive secretary; Edie Luciano, legislative secretary. Contact information
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