As a new year approaches, it's a good time to reflect and plan. We asked Children’s Institute staff what they hope to accomplish in 2018. We asked for big, lofty goals, and/or small ones alike. Here's what they said:

• “Since I’ll be finished with my Master’s degree in 2018 my goal is to apply for funding to study ways to improve the health of children in our community.” – Marji, Senior Project Coordinator
• “To become a more effective trainer in the hopes that more and more children will benefit from the work being done at Children’s Institute.” – Linda, Project Coordinator
• “I am hoping to arrange a better system to keep my projects on schedule.” – Kim, Early Care and Education Specialist
• “In my spare time, I shall de-clutter, re-organize, and decorate my spacious cubicle workspace. I plan to use framed photographs I have taken (not from ego, I hope, but to be thrifty).” – Anonymous
• “2018 for me will be a year of outward expression. Within Children’s Institute, we have been talking about the desire to share more of our work with our supporters and community. I personally think it is so important to share this information as widely as we can, because we learn best when we learn from each other. As CI works toward launching a new website, we want to make sure it is the most user-friendly experience we can create. There should be no barriers to information, and I want to work to make sure that anyone who comes to us looking for tools, resources, or support can find what they need and leave with new ideas. I also hope to create an environment to dialogue, so those coming to us for resources also feel welcome to share their own ideas and tools within our community.” – Caitlin, Project Coordinator
• “To continue finding ways to improve the work we engage in with our partners, which for me translates to keeping our eyes open, listening at a deeper level, and taking perspective to avoid doing things to just get things done-working consciously and thinking bigger.” - Anonymous
• “One of my goals for next year – more KIDS and more TRUCKS next September!” – Cindy H., Senior Development Manager
• “I hope to change the way we see education in this community so SEL isn’t something we have to “implement” or “add on” but rather a shift in philosophy, a new way of doing business in schools, that recognizes that all children need these skills to be successful in life.  So transforming education – that’s my big lofty goal for 2018!” – Elizabeth, Director of SEL Center / Research Associate

We are excited for 2018 and all the work we can do together to strengthen children’s social-emotional health and support their success. Happy New Year!