About Us
The Great Start Collaborative is a partnership of community leaders, business owners, charitable and faith-based organizations, health and human service agencies, educators, and parents that come together for the purpose of:
- Promoting awareness and advocating for early childhood issues;
- Address factors that influence school readiness;
- Planning and coordinating community services.
The collaborative is committed to developing a seamless system that utilizes community resources and supports to help families have access to tools needed to provide a healthy start for all children. A seamless system of care builds networks that support the five focus areas identified in the star points. Our system will ultimately achieve better outcomes for children and their families if we all work together to support young children.
We are located at the Montcalm Transition Center 618 W Main St Suite C Stanton MI 48888
Message From Our Director
Montcalm County Community Members,
Early Childhood continues to grow and evolve, especially in Montcalm County. From higher quality preschool opportunities to changes in organizational policy, young children continue to remain at the forefront of our community’s priorities.
We know that research shows us that early childhood; birth through age five is a critical time in the development of a child’s brain. Early experiences matter. We know high quality programming is essential in building children’s brains to be successful in school and life. We also know that this is why the investment in early childhood has such a high rate of return. For every dollar we invest in a young child, we see at least a seven-dollar return. Simply stated, early childhood is a smart investment.
We always welcome others to join our efforts. Thank you for visiting our website in an effort to be connected!
Cari O’Connor, LMSW
