Monday, January 28, 2019

From the Director, Bethany Colson

Resolution: a firm decision to do or not to do something (Oxford Collocations Dictionary)

Happy 2019! Welcome to a new year, a time of resolutions ― some that fall by the wayside quickly, others that linger but do not take root, and some that become part of our routine, lifestyle and vision. Resolutions are challenging to maintain, especially when they are distinctly different from our current situation. The far-reaching goals that can move us a great deal often do not succeed without clear planning and effort.

Our Center is in the process of making resolutions through our strategic planning process. We have gathered information on our services and programming, from our Advisory Committee, staff and you, our stakeholders. We received a large response from the online stakeholder survey and want to share our gratitude for the time taken to provide this feedback. Stakeholder survey responses were overwhelmingly positive, giving us confidence that what we are doing is making an impact on deaf and hard of hearing children in our state.

In addition to requesting feedback on our programming, we have sought ideas about how to move our Center forward, looking to the next four years and how we can accomplish our mission more succinctly and with greater achievement. I am proud to lead our staff in this process of envisioning our future while maintaining the success we have found thus far.

We continue to review programs, focusing on the attributes that have led to success for deaf and hard of hearing children. In addition, we are considering how to implement additional programming to best provide resources, information and services statewide.

We are excited about setting our resolutions and wish you the best as you determine your own resolutions and see them through all year.