Yale Bulletin and Calendar

July 19-August 23, 1999

Volume 27, Number 35

Noted pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton
to speak at annual conference

A record number of teachers, principals, parents and policy makers working to implement school-based child care and family support services will gather to hear T. Berry Brazelton, best-selling author and leading national expert on children's health on Wednesday, July 21, at the 10th annual School of the 21st Century conference at Yale University.

Titled "Schools as Family and Community Resources: Preparing for the New Millennium," the conference will be held July 19-22 at the Omni New Haven Hotel and is sponsored by the School of the 21st Century at Yale.

The School of the 21st Century (21C), also known as the Family Resource Center (FRC) in some communities, transforms elementary schools into year-round, multi-purpose centers operating from early morning to early evening offering services such as all-day, year-round preschool; before-, after-school and vacation care for school-age children; information and referral services for families; guidance and support for new parents; networks and training for community child care providers; and health education and services.

Brazelton, one of the nation's best-known pediatricians and experts on child development, will be the keynote speaker for the conference. "The School of the 21st Century is right on target in tying together child care, preventive health care, after-school care and parent education," he says. "What better way to ensure the healthy development of all children?"

Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology, a principal architect of the federal Head Start program and founder of the 21C initiative, said, "The growing number of dual-earner families and increased concern about early childhood experiences prompted by recent brain research have created an expanding demand for quality child care and other family support services; more and more people are seeing the School of the 21st Century model as part of the answer."

Other speakers at the four-day conference include: producer, composer and humorist Christopher Cerf, who will discuss what lies ahead for children's television, including its potential as an educational tool; Michael Kaplan of the Yale Child Study Center, who will explore policy implications of the explosive new developments in brain research; James H. Wendorf of the National Center for Learning Disabilities, who will share insights into successful intervention strategies for children with learning disabilities; and Ruby Takanishi of the Foundation for Child Development and Marianne Kugler of the Mott Foundation, who will describe current and future funding opportunities for child- and family-centered programs.

The conference will include small-group working sessions, hands-on workshops and large-group seminars on cutting-edge topics such as brain research, technology, quality programming and parent involvement. Since 1988, more than 600 schools in 17 states have implemented the School of the 21st Century program. The model has proven successful in urban, rural and suburban settings as well as in affluent, middle-class and poor communities. Both Connecticut and Kentucky have launched statewide initiatives based on the model.

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Noted pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton to speak at annual conference
Campus Notes