TRAVERSE CITY, MI -- Representing a five-county region of Northwest Michigan, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians Tribal Chairman Derek Bailey will participate in the 2011 World Forum on Early Care and Education.
The event will be held May 3 through May 6 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
During the World Forum, Bailey will meet with 40-50 Global Leaders to exchange knowledge and experiences about programs that directly improve and enhance care and education of young children.
Bailey was asked to represent the five-county region that includes Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, and Leelanau counties, and to participate in the Global Forum, by a group of organizations that include the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District (TBA-ISD), Rotary Charities, the NorthSky Nonprofit Network, and Mother Goose Time. The five-county region is the region served by the TBA-ISD.
Although Bailey is the Tribal Chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians, he says he will participate in the World Forum as a representative of the five-county community.
Leslie Falconer of Mother Goose Time, who participated in past World Forums, brought together the group with the idea of sending a community representative to the World Forum. It is unusual for a region to send a community representative inasmuch as most of the representatives are government officials and professional educators.
The TBA-ISD is the official sponsor of Bailey to the World Forum and paid for his registration, however Bailey’s travel expenses are being paid for by Rotary Charities and the Alabaster Fund of Traverse City.
According to Michael J. Hill, TBA-ISD Superintendent, Bailey was chosen because of his passion for early childhood development and education, as well as his progressive, innovative approach, his ability to connect with local, state, regional, and national leaders, as well as the numerous relationships he has in the community at many levels including business relationships.
