A Rowan County delegation attended the 2007 National Smart Start Conference earlier this month in Greensboro.
The meeting drew more than 2,500 early care and education experts, policy makers, and child-care professionals from all 100 North Carolina counties, 45 states and Canada.
The Rowan delegation included Smart Start Rowan Executive Director Cam Downing, Planning and Evaluation Coordinator Lisa Kraft and Community Awareness and Education Coordinator Linda Coplin.
Other attendees included staff members from Child Care Connections Resource and Referral:Amanda Ford, outreach coordinator; Tamara Watson, bilingual outreach coordinator; and Becky Landrum, child-care consultant.
During the conference, 17 N.C. counties, including Rowan, were recognized for their efforts in exceeding state performance-based standards.
Rowan was singled out for its work in the area of “early child-care education and placements.”
Each county received a $2,000 award to be used locally to help support child care providers who pursue early childhood courses at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.