Sonja Koehler – Director
Iris Gamez – Community Outreach, Inclusion, and Advocacy Coordinator
What is the Bright Beginnings Early Childhood Development Initiative Backbone Team?
The Backbone Team provides strategic management of the countywide early childhood development initiative, ensuring forward movement of the countywide framework by convening partners, engaging in policy change, mobilizing resources, and internal and external communications, and capacity building. The team also offers various types of practical support for strategy-aligned action teams, such as: process design; meeting facilitation; project management support; community inclusion and engagement; and evaluation and monitoring. The term “backbone” comes from the Collective Impact model for social change.
Key Partners to the Backbone Team
The Bright Beginnings Initiative helps to bring together a strong network of support for young children and families. Key partners that help guide the Initiative’s work are: The Monterey County Children’s Council, First 5 Monterey County, the Bright Futures Education Partnership, and the members of the Bright Beginnings Early Childhood Development Advisory Group.
Bright Beginnings is an Initiative of the Monterey County Children’s Council, and as such, is chaired by the Council.
First 5 Monterey County hosts Bright Beginnings as its fiscal agent. Within the cradle-to-career initiative Bright Futures Education Partnership, Bright Beginnings leads the goals that fall under its strategic framework. To bridge the initiatives, members of the Bright Beginnings Early Childhood Development Advisory Group also act as Steering Partners within Bright Futures.
INITIATIVE CO-CHAIRS
- Edward Moreno, Public Health Officer, County of Monterey
- Francine Rodd, Executive Director, First 5 Monterey County
Early Childhood Development Advisory Group
(* also Bright Futures Steering Partner)
Jose Arreola – City of Salinas
Alma Cervantes – Building Healthy Communities
Laura Dunn – Carmel Unified School District
Dana Edgull – Behavioral Health
Claudia Gomez – Door to Hope
Limary Gutierrez – Greenfield Unified School District
Krista Hanni – Health Department
Niaomi Hrepich – WIC, Health Department
Sonia Jaramillo – Office of Education – Early Learning Program
Caryn Lewis*- Office of Education – Ed Services
Noemy Loveless – North Monterey Unified School District
Josh Madifs*- United Way of Monterey County
Mamas de Salinas Abogan (rotating members)
Sarait Martinez – Centro Binacional
Megan Matteoni – Office of Education – Quality Matters
Libby McMahone – Read to Me Project
Edward Moreno – County of Monterey Public Health Officer
Maria Ortiz – MAOF Resource & Referral
Mayra Perez Diaz – United Way of Monterey County
Ginger Pierce – Child Abuse Prevention Council
Angie Ramirez – CAPSLO
Laurie Ramirez – Office of Education – Child Care Planning Council
Beth Reeves-Fortney – First 5 Monterey County
Mayola Rodriguez – Go Kids, Inc.
Wendy Root Askew – Office of the Supervisor – District 4
Josh Warburg – Bright Futures Education Partnership
Shannan Watkins*- Early Development Services
(Advisors last updated June 2022)
