LongLong BeachBeach DayDay NurseryNursery 2010-112010-11 AnnualAnnual ReportReport Counting Down to 100 Years – 1912 to 2012 The Soul of a Child The soul of a child is the loveliest flower That grows in the garden of life. Its climb is from weakness to knowledge and power To the sky from the day of its birth. To beauty and sweetness it grows under care, Neglected, ‘tis ragged and wild. ‘Tis a plant that is tender but wondrously rare, The sweet wistful soul of a child. Be tender, O gardener, and give it its share Of moisture, of warmth and of light. And let it not lack for the painstaking care To protect it from frost and from blight. A glad day will come when its bloom shall unfold, It will seem that an angel has smiled, Reflecting a beauty and sweetness untold In the sensitive soul of a child. Jordan Morales Our Mission: To provide quality early care and education for young children of working parents. Long Beach Day Nursery Annual Report 2010-2011 ear Friends, 1912 was quite a momentous year. It was a year of varied and interesting world events. Here in the US, Fenway Park opened; a gift of D 3,000 cherry trees from Japan was planted in Washington, DC; both Lifesavers candy and Oreos made their debut; and the Girl Scouts were founded. In other parts of the world, the Olympic Games played out in Stockholm; Lenin and the Bolshevik Party broke away from the rest of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party; the African National Congress was founded; and the Qing Dynasty came to an end in China with the formation of the Republic of China. Closer to home here in Long Beach, 1912 was significant because a group of civic-minded, visionary women led by Florence Bixby saw the need for quality child care for working parents, particularly working mothers. This was very radical thinking – few women worked outside the home in 1912. One hundred years later, Long Beach Day Nursery’s mission to provide quality care and education for young children of working parents remains as relevant now as it was then. From our humble beginnings with an opening day enrollment of three children to our current two locations serving more than 300 children each year, LBDN remains dedicated to its belief that a good start in the formative years of childhood provides children with a lasting foundation for success throughout their lives. We have much to be thankful for in this year of celebration. Our2011-2012 Stepping Stones to Success Scholarship Program has raised close to $100,000 this year in a campaign led by Mayor Bob Foster and his wife Nancy. Forty-eight percent of our teaching staff completed our profes- sional development program (see page 15). In an industry marked by high turnover, LBDN has 12 staff members who have completed more than 10 years of service, with five completing more than 20 [see page 15]! Our East Branch maintained its national accreditation status, joining our West Branch in meeting the revised, more stringent criteria (more than 400 standards!) required to be nationally accredited. This year has not been without its challenges. Every year as we go to print on our Annual Report, we find ourselves at the mercy of the state and its ongoing budget crisis. Once again, we are faced with deep cuts to funding for education, including early childhood education. Despite the growing body of research that demonstrates that the most critical time in a child’s brain development is during the first three years of life, along with the significant return on investment that quality early childhood education pays in terms of our society’s future economic development, the cuts continue – with early childhood education having suffered cumulative cuts of 40% over the past five years. Thousands of children will no longer be able to access the high quality school readiness curricula, programs for social and emotional development, and resources for family development and support the Department of Education’s early childhood education system has successfully built and delivered for decades. It’s a classic case of “pay now or pay later.” The good news is we successfully closed the books this past fiscal year in a strong position despite the decrease in public funding. We find ourselves in good financial health due to the generosity of many special 100th Anniversary Investors who stepped up to the challenge and raised the fund-raising bar this year, as well as to the senior staff’s keen eye to sustainability and the bottom line. Stronger fund raising, prudent expense control, and very conservative fiscal management are leading us to project a balanced budget for the year ending June 30, 2012 as well as the following fiscal year. While the challenges are not going away, we remain confident that LBDN will continue to weather these tough economic times. Throughout our 100 years of service, we have always been supported by loyal friends like you who have shared our vision of better lives for the children of Greater Long Beach. Thank you for your support. Melanie Werts Patrice Wong Chairman of the Board, 2011-2012 Executive Director Long Beach Day Nursery Annual Report 2010-2011 100th Anniversary Planning Update It all started in March 2009, when the first meeting of the then sparse Steering Committee was held. Here is what has come out of all these many months of planning. January 23 - December 30, 2012 November 10, 2012 We’d like to thank the Historical Society of Long Historical Exhibit 100th Anniversary Gala Beach and the Long Beach Navy Memorial Kathy Wade, Chair Eline Fudge, Chair Heritage Society for their support of our 100th Historical Society of Long Beach Long Beach Marriott (Airport) Anniversary exhibit. 100 years of Long Beach Day Nursery For tickets, reservations or more infor- History on display. mation: call or email Eileen Factor, Open to the public, Tuesday, Wednesday, Director of Development & Communications Friday 1 - 5 p.m. Thursday 1 - 7 p.m., 562-591-0509, ext. 112 – [email protected] Saturday 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. March 19, 2012 4 Golf Tournament Steve Hockett, Chair Palos Verdes Golf Club Success! May 12, 2012 4 Board of Directors & 100th Anniversary Tea for Tots Officers 2011-12: Gloria Deukmejian, Chair Melanie Werts, Chair Rancho Los Alamitos Deloris Mayuga, Chair-elect Success! Joan Alderson, 1st Vice Chair June 13, 2012 4 Linda Silver, 2nd Vice Chair Annual Meeting Elaine Thompson, Recording Secretary Theresa M. Landers, Chair Brian Russell, Treasurer Board Members: LBDN East Branch Photo of: Courtesy Caught in the Moment Marty J. Alvarado Theresa M. Landers Success! Gina Ballard Carmen O. Perez August 11, 2012 Michele Dobson Steven T. Romeyn Family & Friends Picnic Long Beach Day Nursery Alumni span several Salvador Farfan Michael Soutar Jonathan D. Gotz, Chair generations From l to r: LBDN Board Member Joen Joen Garnica Julia Taboada Ivy Goolsby Bennet Tchaikovsky Heartwell Park Garnica, Richard & Ann King, Former LB Mayor Beverly O’Neill; Front: Sophia & Benjamin Farfan. Jonathan D. Gotz Joan Van Hooten Open to the public, 12 noon - 4 p.m. Steve Hockett Kathryn A. Wade Call for reservations Lisa Hopkins Carl Ann Wylie Long Beach Day Nursery Annual Report 2010-2011 LBDN Programs on Cutting Edge of Early Childhood Development ong Beach Day Nursery is dedicated to the belief that a good start in a child’s formative years provides children with a lasting foundation for success. A typical day at LBDN is a balance of opportunities for language, math and science discovery as well as L both structured and unstructured playtime. The day is a blend of child-initiated and teacher-initiated activities including group time, free choice times, outdoor play, nutritious meals and snacks and rest times. We know from research that this is how children learn best and develop an early, deep and long-lasting love of learning. We also promote physical, social and emotional development to pre- pare children for all of life’s lessons, not just the academic ones. We also believe that parents play an important role in a child’s success and therefore we offer many opportunities for parents to learn about child development and quality early childhood education. For our teachers, we offer a formal incentive program for their professional growth and development. Through classes and workshops, our teachers remain abreast of current trends in early care and education. Teachers are also provided opportunities to attend industry conferences. Scholarships and other financial aid are available as well as two annual in-service staff development days and one planning day. Early Literacy “Ready to Read” Math/Scientific Curriculum Initiated in 1999, the "Ready to Read" program focuses on class- Math is integrated informally throughout the day and incorporat- room literacy and language development activities. Each class- ed more formally with tasks that provide opportunities for chil- room incorporates two hours of age-appropriate language and dren to sort objects according to attributes, create patterns, or literacy activities into the daily curriculum, including our infant graph their classmates' responses to questions such as "What is classrooms. We also offer resources for parents to work with their your favorite color?" children at home. The “Ready to Read” program is enhanced with • Mathematical thinking: Children are encouraged to develop a the following programs: sense of number and quantity. Examples are activities that include • Raising a Reader: Originally implemented in partnership with counting, determining more or less, larger or smaller, how many, the Long Beach Public Library, the Raising a Reader program is a recognizing patterns and shapes and developing a sense of time well-regarded, national literacy program that features a 12-week awareness.