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on waiting lists for childcare assistance at Child Care Services Association or DSS. She said that research shows that if we invest well in a child's first three or four years, they are more likely to do well in school and in life. The key to high quality childcare is the education, compensation, and retention of the childcare teacher. In Orange County, about'/ of the teachers working in childcare centers have degrees, yet their median hourly wage is $10.50 per hour and about one out of four does not have health insurance. Childcare teachers are more likely to be uninsured than most people living in Orange County. When the young children of these childcare teachers need childcare and there are no funds to help their parents pay for it, the impact is especially hard. Childcare directors have identified this as a critical need for their staff and for the children in the community. She said that whether the Board chooses to target County funds for childcare assistance to low-income teachers and assistant teachers or to low- income families in general, there is no doubt about the need. Ernest Dollar, Executive Director of the Orange County Historical Museum, thanked the County Commissioners far continued support and for initiating the purchase of the Adams Tract. He spoke about the magnitude of the mission of the museum. It has become a tourist attraction, with a yearly visitation of 7,000 local, national, and international visitors. The museum has over 1,500 artifacts ranging from 8,000 BC to September 11t". He said that no other place could claim the Regulators, Elizabeth Cotton, or Dean Smith. He said that 80°~ of Americans learn their history from museums and historic sites rather than history books. He said that the decisions and actions of the Board of County Commissioners are all recorded in the museum. He asked the County Commissioners to reconsider their funding request. Mary Ann Peter thanked the County Commissioners for their support of $5,000 for the Orange County Historical Museum. She volunteered to be the board's first fundraising chair. They are in desperate need of stabilizing their funding to keep the doors open. She said that the life's blood of the museum is its volunteers. This year the volunteers donated more than 3,500 hours of their time and a lot of money for un-reimbursed expenses. The volunteers need to know that the County appreciates and supports its museum. Secondly, the second floor of the museum serves as the only public art gallery north of Chapel Hill and Carrboro. They would like to replace the old lights with track lighting and acquire same display cases on which to display three-dimensional art. Thirdly, the diversity and number of their museum offerings is growing. One of their goals is to incorporate the African American experience in all of their exhibits. She hopes that the County Commissioners will increase the funding by the modest amount that they are requesting for this year. Jeff Durst is the Education and Interpretation Specialist for the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough. He spoke in favor of the Human Services agency funding request. He spoke about Teaching with Hillsborough's Historic Sites, a collaborative heritage education project sponsored by the alliance and two of its member organizations. This project began five years ago. The programs focus on history and social studies as well as language arts, computer technology, visual arts, dance, mathematics, and science. The tours this year will pay special attention to Hillsborough's 250t" anniversary and its role in Orange County. In order for these programs to operate effectively, The Alliance for Historic Hillsborough is seeking the support of Orange County far $5,000. Their goal for next year is to have classes from all seven Orange County elementary schools participate and to see an increased participation in CHCCS. Robin McMahon is with the CHCCS. She is an educator and she represents a lot of the educators present. She asked the County Commissioners to fund excellence in education for the children. They are asking the County to fund the children first before anything else. She asked the Board to keep in mind all the services that they need - it is not just the basics