The Vermont Northern Lights Career Development Center uses a number of committees and groups to review, advise and implement its work. Two ongoing groups that provide specific guidance are the Advisory Board and Approval Panels.

Advisory Board

In 2005, when the Northern Lights Career Development Center began, it created an Advisory Board with specific membership to review, advise and make decisions about the work of the new Center. As the Career Development Center developed, the role of the Advisory body also changed. Beginning in the fall 2006, Northern Lights used the Professional Preparation and Development (PPD) Committee as its Advisory body. Meeting participants include a broad range of professional representation from across Vermont. In addition, over 100 individuals receive notices of the meetings, announcements between meetings and meeting notes and handouts.

About the Professional Preparation and Development (PPD) Committee

Membership

The Advisory Board is comprised of representatives from early childhood and afterschool programs, services and others who guide and support professional development in Vermont. Members include representation from early childhood, afterschool and family based child care programs, Head Start, the Vermont Child Care Apprenticeship Program (VCCICC), the Vermont Department of Education, the Child Care Community Support Agencies, Vermont AEYC (Association for the Education of Young Children), Building Bright Futures regional Council and others.
Membership is open and meetings are held quarterly. To receive past minutes, and find out the current schedule and location of meetings, contact Janice Stockman at jjstock@sover.net.

Approval Panels

Approval Panels are used when a discrete body of experts is needed to review and provide approval for credential candidates or other applicants. There is one Approval Panel, currently.

Instructor Approval Panel

This panel emerged from the Instructor Qualifications System Review Board, the committee that designed the Instructor Qualifications System for early childhood and later, after school instructors, in 2005. The current Approval Panel began meeting in January 2006. It meets every 6 weeks in person and/or by conference call.

The charge of the Panel is to:

Brenda Buzzell Family Center of Washington County	Hope Emerson Vermont School Age Care Network
Kate Ross Speech and Language Pathologist	Janice Stockman PPD and Head Start State Collaboration Office
Nancy Sugarman Vermont Northern Lights Career Development Center	Maureen Young-McCarthy Vermont Northern Lights Career Development Center