This past weekend, we held the fourth annual “Empowering Habits and Empowering Lives” Empower Conference. More than 250 Early Care and Education professionals from all over Arizona participated in the all-day meeting. Conference participants explored the Empower Program’s 10 Standards to Empower Children to Live Healthy Lives and learned how to be more effective through developing cultural competency and inclusiveness.

The conference included fun and interactive sessions presented by state and national experts. Dr. Cara Christ, Deputy Director and Chief Medical Officer of the Arizona Department of Health Services, kick-started the event held at the Desert Willow Conference Center in Phoenix.

The child care providers attending had a chance to participate in high-energy sessions to find out how to “Krunch Out Tooth Decay,” be a sun safety “Superstar,” play nutrition and breastfeeding “Jeopardy,” and ignite physical activity sparks for all families. A “Superstar” photo booth and  resource-rich exhibits were popular places.

The 10 Empower Standards were developed for Empower Child Care Facilities in Arizona. More than 2,500 child care providers from across the state participate in the Empower Program, reaching over 200,000 children in Arizona.  Check out the conference presentations and see pictures of the Superstars from all around Arizona.