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Message: Hello, I thought you would find the following article interesting. Link: http://www.plan4preschool.org/docs/single/ventura-strategic-plan-05-10/ Download: http://www.plan4preschool.org/documents/ventura-5-sp-05-10.pdf Abstract: Governed by a nine member Commission, appointed by the Ventura County Board of Supervisors, First 5 Ventura County funding decisions are guided by a strategic planning process. The initial strategic plan for First 5 Ventura County was adopted in April 2000 with a renewal of strategic plan objectives in August 2003. The strategic plans have guided the implementation of policy development and program implementation since that time. Significant learning has taken place over the past five years and it is timely that the original plans be reviewed and revised to integrate these important lessons learned. This past year, the Commission has embarked on a comprehensive strategic planning process, designed to re-evaluate all of its prior investments and to develop a new plan for the next 5 years. Tobacco tax revenues have been declining and will continue to decline. It is important for the Commission to evaluate lessons learned, research best practices and assure that available resources are maximized and invested in those areas with the greatest promise of return. To do this planning, the Commission looked at several factors. First, the Commission examined the results from First 5 Ventura County Annual Evaluation Reports, targeted studies conducted by the Commission’s Center for Excellence and the contributions of all of the funded partners. As part of this work, an annual parent survey is conducted where parents have consistently cited preschool, access to services and parent education as their top three priorities. The Commission reviewed research to identify nationally recognized best practices that are proven to work – the Pathways Mapping Initiativei was used as a foundation for this. Commission committees provided invaluable input and helped to develop new models of service delivery to best serve children and families. The proposed strategic plan builds on these past practices and learnings, and further defines the specific outcomes the Commission wishes to achieve within broad-based strategy areas. Based on research and evidence based practices, proposed best investments are recommended for each of these outcomes. And finally, an implementation strategy is outlined to further build on existing community capacity and the successes of the first 5 years. The plan is driven by available resources and the desire of the Commission to focus those resource on best investments at a level at which First 5 can truly make a difference for young children and their families.
