Arts
Mrs. Baldacci is proud to serve as a board member of the Maine Alliance for Art Education . She is also working on a program which will showcase children's artwork at the State House complex and at the Blaine House. Art teachers from each county will send the best artwork to represent the county. Legislators will then bring the artwork to Augusta and for two weeks the art will be on display. Mrs. Baldacci is in the hopes that this will encourage excellence in Arts Education.
With a collaboration from the Maine Arts Commission , Mrs. Baldacci also intends to promote Maine artists and craftsperson's, again using the same county-based format. Support will then cover all ages from children well into adults.
Mrs. Baldacci is quick to point out that arts in education is not just paint on paper. It is also poetry, dance, drama, crafts and so much more! She believes that anything which enriches the culture here in Maine is a valuable asset to our way of life.
Education
Being an educator, Mrs. Baldacci strongly supports it and sees the need for literacy. She is the chair of a committee known as "Read With ME" which falls under the Maine Reads! Organization. This provides all kindergartners in Maine with two soft cover books, one of which is by a Maine author.
Mrs. Baldacci also contributes to the Raising Readers Committee and chairs the Libra Foundation at Well Child Checks Program. This gives age-appropriate hard-cover books to children from birth until they are five years old. She has strong support for the Department of Education and the advancement of family literacy.
The importance of education does not lessen upon graduation of high school, and Karen encourages everyone to get your GED and continue your education by means of Adult Education or attending post-graduate institutions.
Future projects include holding the children's cabinet, which brings together all of the state agencies that deal with children; and aiding early childhood learning programs.
Tips for Reading With Your Child
(Courtesy of the No Child Left Behind Foundation)