BLUEPRINTS 2024:
AN ARCHITECTURAL CONFERENCE
FOR EARLY LEARNING DESIGN

MONDAY, JANUARY 22ND, 2024
1:00–5:00PM | TACOMA, WA

Blueprints 2024: An Architectural Conference for Early Learning Design offers a unique opportunity to build relationships and gain knowledge from passionate experts committed to improving the quality of early childhood environments. If you were three years old and three feet tall, how would the elements in your environment inspire you to play, take risks, and create?

The Child Care Capacity Initiative is bringing together experts and thought leaders to elevate the physical environment by designing, developing, and uplifting early childhood education. We are hosting an ongoing dialogue around creating and celebrating exceptional spaces for early learners that reflect the community they welcome. We seek to create spaces that acknowledge that children and educators are capable and competent. The result is a creative, challenging dynamic and relationship between families, children, and educators with the physical space that surrounds them.

ADMISSION/COST

Blueprints 2024 is FREE to attend.
Your admission has been covered by the Child Care Capacity Initiative.

LOCATION

STAR Center
3873 S 66th St., Tacoma, WA 98409

Join us Wednesday, December 6th in Tacoma!

You are invited to join PCECN's Community Listening Session at People's Community Center in Tacoma, WA on December 6th from 6 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. This safe space is created for parents, families, child care providers, and those who support children ages 0-5 and the larger Pierce County community. We welcome everyone, especially our BIPOC, immigrant, and refugee community members in Pierce County to ensure all voices are heard. Spanish interpretation will be provided.

All attendees will receive a $50 gift card for their participation. Children are welcome to attend, but please note that we also offer monetary compensation for child care if needed. For more information, please contact us.

For Network Partners, this Community Listening Session will be happening in lieu of our normal PCECN Partnership Meeting.

Join us for a unique community gathering; a supportive space to share perspectives, voice concerns, provide feedback, and engage in open dialogue on topics that truly matter to our community. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are valuable and essential to the fabric of our collective experience.

Please note that we are not collecting any data. This is a community-driven initiative designed to create a comfortable and inclusive space for everyone.

PCECN would be delighted to have you join us as you are an essential part of this conversation. We want to make sure your voice is heard and honored.

One of the most treasured parts of our work is celebrating the people and places that go above and beyond in supporting children and families through our annual Champions for Children awards. Champions are all around us – volunteers, groups, businesses, mentors, friends, neighbors, and advocates. Join us on November 8th as we recognize the individuals, teams, organizations, and businesses in Pierce County that have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to make children and families feel encouraged, uplifted, and supported!

In this webinar we will be reviewing the health implications, diagnosis, treatment, and long term outcomes of preeclampsia. We will also share local Pierce County resources that help prevent preeclampsia and help navigate preeclampsia in our community.

Register for Zoom Link

Guest Presenters:
Aisha Nnoli, MD, MPH
Johanna Wolf
Sharon Scarpett Aburto

Dr. Aisha Nnoli was raised in Washington state and believes in the value of providing all families evidence-based community care to improve maternal, infant and child health. As an Obstetrician-Gynecologist, she is an advocate for improving 4th trimester care for birthing parents and believes in using the Family Connects Model as part of a postpartum system of care.

As a Medical Director for Family Connects Pierce County, she collaborates alongside Nursing and Tacoma Pierce County Health Department teams to help ensure the use of evidence-based health practices and works in partnership with local health providers to help bring these important services to our community.

In addition, Dr. Nnoli works as a Faculty Physician with MultiCare OB/GYN Associates (MOGA). She is passionate about building relationships with her patients to provide individualized evidence- based care. She enjoys educating Tacoma Family Medicine Residents and Fellows in becoming future women’s health providers and leaders. Her interests outside of medicine include spending time with her family, hiking, camping, writing and crocheting.

Johanna Wolf is a Health Promotion Coordinator working with Black Infant Health and Chronic Disease at Tacoma Pierce County Health Department. She is the lead for Black Infant Health and manages the Reducing Cardiovascular Disease Inequities Grant.

Sharon Scarpett Aburto is a Health Promotion Coordinator at the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. She is part of the Maternal Child Outreach Team. She supports pregnant and post-partum clients by connecting them to programs and resources in the community.

A recording will be sent to those who are not able to attend live.

Questions? Contact Taylor Caragan.

Register for Zoom Link

In this session, participants will learn about the unique experiences and nuances of youth who identify within the LGBTQIA+ community and their families. This session will go over the data and trends we are seeing among LGBTQIA+ youth. Detailed examples and ways for providers to support these youth through at trauma informed and culturally responsive lens will be provided. All individuals in attendance will walk away with strategies and resources to successfully provide services to LGBTQIA+ youth and caregivers in an inclusive manner.

Guest presenters:

Aytch Denaro (they/them), MSW, LICSW, Clinical Social Worker at Mary Bridge Gender Health Clinic

Tovah Denaro (she/her)

A recording will be sent to those who are not able to attend live.

Register for Zoom Link

Join us to hear from local Pierce County doulas about the various kinds of support doulas can provide to families for birth, postpartum, and beyond!

Guest Presenters:

Maya Ewings, (She/her), Nurture by Nature and Open Arms Perinatal Services

Deb “Doula Deb” Jimenez (She/her), postpartum doula

Marquita Straus, LICSWA (She/They), The Maternal Coalition and A Sacred Passing

Register Here for Zoom Link

Join us to learn from Dr. Ramanpreet Toor about psychosis during the perinatal period. What is it? How can we identify it? How can the Pierce County community support someone who may be experiencing Postpartum Psychosis?

Guest Presenter: Dr. Ramanpreet Toor has completed her residency in psychiatry at Baystate Medical Center and C-L fellowship from Cambridge Health Alliance, Harvard Medical School Teaching Hospital. She is currently faculty at the University of Washington, working as a psychiatric consultant in primary care clinics, and is also a perinatal psychiatry consultant on PAL for mom consult line for Washington providers. She is the program director of integrated care fellowship and also leads the teaching curriculum on Integrated psychiatric care for the psychiatry residency and part-time fellowship for community psychiatric providers. She is interested in improving mental health access and also to improve awareness of mental health disorders in the community.

Register Here

Attendees will learn about understanding and identifying Mood and Anxiety Disorders, including:
-Cutting through the terminology confusion
-Understanding what is included under the umbrella of Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs). How are they are similar and what makes them different
-Tools for recognizing and preventing PMADS (beyond screening tools)

Presenter: Sarah Atchison, LMFT, CMHS, Co-Owner of Integrated Therapy Services NW

Sarah is the director and founder of the Bloom Program for Maternal and Infant Wellness. She has a background in working with children, adolescents, couples, and families of all ages and from a variety of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. She has worked extensively with pregnant and postpartum women, young families, and high-risk children. Sarah has a special interest in supporting those who are planning for a baby, have been trying for a while, are adjusting to new parenthood, coping with a loss or utilizing reproductive assistance.

Register Here

Annual meeting for all Help Me Grow Pierce County action team members and community stakeholders to celebrate our progress over the past year and inform next steps for where we are going! All are welcome.

Register Here for Zoom Link

The Period of PURPLE Crying begins at about 2 weeks of age and continues until about 3-4 months of age, and describes the time period when infants typically cry more than any other time. Christine Baker from Seattle Children's will be talking about what to expect from infant crying, normal patterns of crying and strategies for parents to take care of themselves during those sleepless nights. She will also provide resources and tips of how to share this critical information with families of newborns.

Register Here

What is Infant Mental Health? Join us as we hear from experts on what is infant and early childhood mental health, why it's important to talk about it, and how to support social-emotional development from birth through age 5.

Guest Presenter: Lou Olson, LICSW, IMH-E Level IV-C
Director of Children's Developmental Services at HopeSparks Family Services

This event will be recorded. If you are not able to attend live, we will e-mail you the recording following the event.

Register Here

Join us as we discuss the importance of Parent-Centered Child Developmental Screening and Early Intervention. Why do we screen? How do we partner with parents to identify resources and promote healthy child development?

CME Credit and STARS Credit Pending

Presenters:

Stephanie Walchenbach, MPH

Candy Watkins, Pierce County Human Services

Register Here!

Join Project Child Success and Help Me Grow Pierce County for a 2021 legislative session preview of issues that affect children and families, and how you can be involved in virtual advocacy!

Zoom Registration Link

Guest presenter: Sally Carman, OTR/L

Learn how sensory processing differences can affect both children and adults; understand the concepts of sensory seeking, sensitivity, and avoidance.  More importantly, “put on sensory glasses” to develop effective strategies to foster improvements in functional behavior for all ages!

Register Here

The Family Connects model is an evidence-based program that connects parents of newborns to the community resources they need through voluntary, postpartum nurse home visits or tele-health. In 2021, community partners in Pierce County will be launching a Family Connects pilot to support select families with newborns! Join our first quarterly Community Advisory meeting to learn more about the model, and provide your feedback on the implementation planning. All are welcome.

Register for Zoom Meeting

Virtual Webinar: Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders are the #1 complication of pregnancy, affecting over 1 in 5 mothers and 1 in 10 fathers. This webinar will provide an overview of Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders and the importance of screening from Perinatal Support - Washington, information on resources available in Pierce County to support postpartum parents, and insights from Pediatrics Northwest on how they have integrated screening for PMADs into their pediatric practice. Register Here!

What are the range of community supports available to Pierce County families with young children, and how have providers adapted their services to work with families virtually? Join the Help Me Grow Pierce County team and local providers to learn the basics of available resources and how families can connect to them.

Register Here

What are the range of community supports available to Pierce County families with young children, and how have providers adapted their services to work with families virtually? Join the Help Me Grow Pierce County team and local providers to learn the basics of available resources and how families can connect to them.

Request Event Recording

You are invited to Help Me Grow Pierce County's January Community Stakeholder Meeting! We will kick off the new year by sharing lunch, updates from action teams, and celebrate officially launching additional resources for local families with children from pregnancy through age 5.

Note: this meeting will occur in place of action team meetings in January. 

Boys & Girls Club Schatz Branch
3875 S 66th St, Tacoma, WA 98409

Please RSVP here so we can accommodate you for lunch!

Join us for coffee and breakfast as we celebrate your work over the past year and reveal next steps for increasing support for families and young children in Pierce County!

RSVP

Join us at the capitol to meet with legislators and share the importance of investing in our youngest residents. Carpool and child care are available. Registration required.

RSVP NOW

Join us to prepare for the 2019 legislative session! Learn about our legislative priorities, including fixes to child care policy and Help Me Grow. Hear from longtime early learning champion Rep. Ruth Kagi, and practice your own advocacy messages. All are welcome! Registration required.

Location: Boys & Girls Club Schatz Branch, 3875 S 66th Street, Tacoma WA 98409

Lunch will be provided

RSVP NOW