As the familiar saying goes, “It takes a village to raise a child.”

In today’s ever changing and demanding society, parents are finding it more and more challenging to meet the needs of their children, specifically when it comes to education. All parents want their children to succeed, but they are finding themselves faced with four commonly raised questions including what is developmentally appropriate, what resources are available, what should children know upon entering kindergarten, and who is responsible for taking charge of a child’s education.

This past Monday night residents participated in a special program called Community Conversation at the North Haven High School. All the participants were from various backgrounds and represented different aspects of the community. They were selected and invited by invitation from a steering committee who was involved with the event.

“The Community Conversation is a grant program sponsored by the William Caspar Graustein Foundation in New Haven. This event is held all over the state,” said Gerardo Sorkin, director of North Haven community services and recreation. “We submitted a grant and were awarded the funding and additional money as well.”

This is the second time that North Haven is sponsoring this event. The first one was in 1999 and was called “Raising children in a Diverse Society.” It was successful and well received, Sorkin said.

Besides the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund and Foundation, other sponsors included the North Haven public schools, the North Haven library, Community Mediation of New Haven, North Haven PTA Council, Area Cooperative Education Services (ACES), North Haven Education Foundation, the North Haven Board of Education, and the town’s Community Services department.

This year’s theme was “The Future of Our Community, The Future of Our Young Children, and Why the Early Years Matter.” The program started at 5 p.m. and included dinner provided by Demir’s Restaurant. A PowerPoint presentation with a general overview was given, and finally all participants were divided into four groups according to the diversity of age and background for discussion.

The agenda consisted of introduction and guidelines, discussion choices, summary of common ground, areas of disagreements, questions and concerns, and next steps (where do we go from here?). The major focus was on early childhood education dealing with a child’s first five years. A common question asked was who’s responsibility is it to educate a child—the parents, community, or the public?

“I became involved in this event because of my commitment to early childhood education, and it’s wonderful to see the community participating and eager to move forward with it,” replied Alicia Clapp, a retired teacher and member of the Board of Education. “We must invest early in our children so they can achieve and be successful both locally and nationally.”

People who participated were from diverse backgrounds and included leaders from the community, parents, educators, clergy, seniors, high school students, and young adults. Nearly 90 people attended the event and despite some of the differences in opinions on who should be responsible for a child’s education, everyone had a common vision to help children grow and succeed because the future of the community depends on it.

“I think it’s an excellent opportunity to get people from all walks of life to have the chance to have an open discussion on early childhood education,” said Judy Amarone, director of the senior center.

“We agree with Judy, and it’s important to recognize diversity and to work cohesively and productively for the benefits of our children’s education and their future and the future of our community,” said Mame Usher, moderator of the event, and Lauren Montano, director of the community services daycare center.

Parents are concerned about what their children need to know when they enter kindergarten. Studies have shown that the first five years of a child’s life are crucial to learning because they deal with the developmental stages. Another aspect to look at is the diverse society that children of today are living in.

“Parents are raising their children in a diverse society,” said Claudia Grantham, principal of Clintonville School. “We are diverse and people have shown an interest in what is going on in the community and to build a community that meets the needs of a diverse society.”

Grantham further explained that we should look at young people because they are our future and we must start them at a young age, and start them well. More and more children are being brought into school not only very young, but also with many needs that have to be addressed. Resources are essential for addressing these needs and assisting children to function at their full and maximum potential.

“It’s important to give voice to our young children who do not have one, and when adults get together from all walks of life to give our children a voice their future success will be ensured,” said Kimberly Carew, language arts consultant at Clintonville School.

A common ground that all four groups did agree on was that parents are responsible for setting the stage for their children’s growth and education, but also it is a collaborative role that involves parents, teachers, and schools to help foster and continue children’s success (from preschool to high school), and the public to assist in their later years (for example college).

At the close of the event, all participants highlighted their most important ideas, filled out evaluations, and engaged in a wrap up session. A follow up meeting will take place and it will bring back the people to participate and brainstorm what the next steps will be. Everyone had terrific suggestions, comments, and shared common concerns about having the children of their community to be well prepared educationally at an early age so they can begin building successful and productive lives when they become adults.

“I’m very happy to be here and the question raised this evening presents different opinions about the question and in every community it’s a different answer,” said Selectman Michael Freda. “This forum will bring us closer to forming a concrete position. We all have a responsibility to all our children because they are our future.”