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CONNECT 2018

(Alliance 2018 Partner Summit)

November 28-30  |  Denver, Colorado

Each year, Alliance for Early Success brings together more than 200 state, national, and funding partners to share best practices to improve state policies for children, birth through age eight. The 2018 meeting was rich with information and strategy sharing.

Breakout Sessions

Alliance Partner Peeks: Mental Health, MCOs, and Medicaid – Telluride A

Elisabeth Burak, Georgetown Center on Children and Families

Elena Rivera, Children’s Institute

Sheila Smith, National Center for Children in Poverty

Learn how our state and national partners are working through the health care system to improve outcomes for young children. The Georgetown Center on Children and Families is partnering with EverThrive Illinois on identifying meaningful measures for Medicaid quality improvement, including state contracts with managed care organizations (MCOs), that will bring attention to the early years and prevention. The National Center for Children and Poverty will share new Infant-Early Childhood Mental Health policy profiles, trends from a database of IECMH policies, and a recently updated 50-state Medicaid survey.

Resources:

The Future of Children’s Health Coverage: Promoting Young Children’s Healthy Development in Medicaid and CHIP 

What Medicaid Can Do for Our Nations’ Youngest Children

Policy Options to Promote Young Children’s Healthy Development in Medicaid

Developmental Screening Rates Improving for Most States Reporting Medicaid Data

How States Use Medicaid to Cover Key Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Services: Results of a 50-State Survey (2018 Update).

Continuing the Conversation with Saru: Harnessing Grassroots Power for Young Children – Big Thompson

Lauren Hogan, NAEYC (moderator)

Join us for a peer-to-peer discussion on how the themes and ideas from Ms. Jayaraman’s remarks apply to our work as early childhood advocates, especially as it relates to engaging the voices of early childhood educators and parents.

Gubernatorial and Legislative Elections: They’re Over . . . Now What? – Platte River

Vance Aloupis, Children’s Movement of Florida (invited)
Brittany Birken, Florida Children’s Council
Mike Carpenter, Tennesseans for Quality Early Education
Jason Sabo, Frontera Strategy

State advocates played important roles throughout this past year educating and informing candidates about early childhood programs and policies. Some informed and some have served or are serving on transition teams. This will be a rollicking discussion about what advocates are, can, and should be doing with veteran and new state leaders to help set the policy agenda for the coming year.

Resources:

LegisBrief: Legislative Children’s Caucuses

State Legislatures Magazine article, Looking After the Little Ones

Legislative Children’s Caucuses: A Road Map and Lessons Learned

Alliance Partner Peeks: States’ Efforts to Improve K-3 Quality in Support of Student Success – Platte River

Bruce Atchison, Education Commission of the States

Laura Bornfreund, New America

Lori Connors-Tadros, CEELO

Louisa Diffey, Education Commission of the States

Rolf Grafwallner, Council of Chief State School Officers

Matt Weyer, NCSL

What can state leaders and advocates do to ensure that the K-3 years are of high quality for all students in the creation of a P-3 continuum? Working with support from Education Commission of the States, New America, Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes, Council of Chief State School Officers, and the National Conference of State Legislators, numerous states have been undertaking intentional efforts to improve the quality of kindergarten through third grade. These national partners will share lessons learned from their efforts over the past three years, discuss considerations and promising policy levers for other states, and highlight recent resources for policymakers and advocates. There will be time to have an interactive discussion regarding challenges and opportunities to advance K-3 quality in your state.

Resources:

General Policy Issues

50 State Comparison: State Kindergarten through Third Grade Policies

Initiatives from Preschool to Third Grade: A Policymaker’s Guide

SPREE Working Group (2018 report)

Promising K-3 Policies/Strategies

Building Capacity for Quality Improvement in NJ

Building P-3 Systems: Lesson Learned from 3 States

Connecting the Steps

A Focus on Teaching and Learning

Highly Effective Offices of Early Learning

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

The State of Early Learning in ESSA

A Tale of Two Pre-K Leader

The 2020 Census and the Current Immigration Landscape: Lasting Implications for Young Children – Big Thompson

Angela Rothermel, Children Now

Becca Ullrich, CLASP

An estimated 9 million young children live in an immigrant family—more than 1 in 4 children under the age of 8. Harsh immigration policies at the federal and state levels are scaring eligible families away from programs and services that are vital for their health, development, and economic security and harming children’s wellbeing. At the same time, the administration’s recent decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census will exacerbate the historical undercounting of young children, threatening significant funding streams including Medicaid, SNAP, IDEA, S-CHIP, foster care, and Title I grants – not to mention political representation. In this session, participants will get an update on current immigration policies; learn about advocacy opportunities to engage state networks in opposition to harmful federal policies; and consider federal, state, and local advocacy strategies to ensure our youngest children are counted.

Resources:

The 2020 CENSUS is fast approaching . . .

Census Policy Action Network Sign-On Letter

Count All Kids Backgrounder

“Don’t let California’s children be undercounted in 2020”

“Trump Can’t Win the War on Demography” 

CLASP’s Immigration Policy’s Harmful Impacts on Early Care and Education

CLASP’s Our Children’s Fear: Immigration Policy’s Effects on Young Children

Q&A on Public Charge

Alliance for Early Success Session Slides

Children Now Session Slides

CLASP Session Slides

Comprehensive State Plans to Advance the ECE Workforce: Why? How? What? – Telluride A

Susan Sarver, Buffett Early Childhood Institute
Jennifer Stedron, Early Milestones Colorado

State advocates and policymakers are increasingly prioritizing the early care and education (ECE) workforce on their agendas. Come hear from two states – Colorado and Nebraska – that have decided to invest time and energy to develop a long-term, comprehensive plan for advancing the ECE profession. Representatives from Early Milestones and the Buffett Early Childhood Institute will share tips and lessons learned thus far about what it takes to get this kind of effort off the ground, what structures and processes they’re employing to develop and implement the plan, what role advocates have, how they’re engaging the broader early childhood community, what their plans are focused on, and what some early successes have been.

Resources:

Transforming the Early Childhood Workforce in Colorado

Colorado’s Early Childhood Workforce 2020 Plan 

Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission

Commission Overview

Translating Equity into Early Childhood Policy – Telluride B

Shannon Jones, Groundwork Ohio
Nakeshia Knight-Coyle, Oregon Department of Education
Aaliyah Samuel, National Governors Association
John Wilson, Kansas Action for Children

Race, Equity, and Inclusion is an Alliance principle that weaves throughout our work and the Partner Summit. In this session, we will turn a laser focus on how to incorporate this into advocacy and a policy agenda. There are no magic answers, but there is some fantastical work that will spur all participants into asking more questions and exploring more ideas.

Resources:

Ohio Early Childhood Race & Rural Equity Project

From the Ground Up: Ohio Early Childhood Race & Rural Equity

Alliance Partner Peeks: Child Care and Development Block Grant – Big Thompson

Helen Blank, National Women’s Law Center
Lauren Hogan, National Association for the Education of Young Children

The $2.37 billion increase in base funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant provides states with newfound opportunities to increase access to quality child care. Two collaborative efforts, represented here by the National Women’s Law Center and National Association for Education of Young Children, are supporting and tracking states’ actions, empowering and engaging state advocates, and gathering data to help sustain and grow federal and state investments. Hear how they are and will be working with states, and how you can help build the case.

Resources:

Session PowerPoint Slides

Planting Seeds and Cultivating Legislative Support – Platte River

Mindy Binderman, Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students
Julie Poppe, NCSL
Rosita Ramirez, NALEO

Major changes are coming to state legislative chambers in 2019. Leadership and committee membership changes, along with numerous newly elected legislators, will require increased efforts to educate legislators and identify champions. Our partners at NCSL, NALEO Educational Fund, and the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students will share their strategies and lessons learned from their efforts to educate and increase interest and understanding in early childhood issues among legislators and legislative staff. Come learn how you can best leverage and support their leadership.

Setting Coalitions Up for Success, Preparing Them for Evolution – Telluride A

Jon Gould, Children’s Alliance
Laura LaCroix-Dalluhn, LaCroix-Dalluhn Consulting
Jacy Montoya Price, Colorado Children’s Campaign
Christina Walker, Clayton Early Learning

Whether you’re developing a new coalition or trying to revamp an existing one, this session is for you. Advocates from Colorado, Minnesota, and Washington will share their experiences and lessons learned about creating, growing, and managing early childhood coalitions. Come learn from and with them and other states about coalitions’ structures and memberships, incorporating new issue or voices, engaging agency staff, focusing on equity, managing dissensions, and protocols for governance and decision-making.

Resources:

Early Learning Action Alliance Facilitation Timeline, Objectives, Strategies

Children’s Alliance’s Roles at the Early Learning Action Alliance

A Partial History of Advancing Racial Equity at the Early Learning Action Alliance

Notes from Laura LaCroix-Dalluhn

 

Innovation in Early Childhood Practice and Policy – Big Thompson
Ashley Beckner, Omidyar Network
Steffanie Clothier, Gary Community Investment
Louise Stoney, Opportunities Exchange

Effective, sustainable, early learning opportunities will require increased investment as well as innovative thinking. New sources of capital are nurturing new leadership and investing in new business models, service delivery methods, technology platforms, teaching tools, outcome and assessment measures, and more. These innovations have the potential to redefine what is possible when it comes to early childhood practice and policy. Hear what we are learning, reimagine what is possible, and brainstorm the policies that can support these efforts.

Resources:

Session PowerPoint Slides

Leveraging States’ Workforce Investment Systems to Advance the ECE Profession – Telluride A
Cheryl Feldman, District 1199C Training & Upgrading Fund
Fred Franko, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
Tom Morgan, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
Bret Walker, Denver Office of Economic Development

All states have resources and expertise to help industries that are critical to the economy build a supply of competent workforce. Should early care and education (ECE) be considered as one of these “industries”? How can the ECE profession benefit from states’ capacity (including funding) for workforce investment? What can advocates and policymakers interested in improving the ECE workforce do to tap into those resources? This session will shed light on these and other questions by highlighting two initiatives: An ECE apprenticeship program from Philadelphia that may be a model for Pennsylvania and Colorado’s effort to apply a “sector-based” approach to workforce development to the ECE profession.

Resources:

The Accelerated Early Childhood Teacher Program

Philadelphia Early Childhood Education Apprenticeship Program

Developing a CDA-to-Associate’s Degree Registered Apprenticeship

Accelerated Early Childhood Education Career Pathway

Apprenticeship as a Degree Attainment Strategy for the Early Childhood Workforce

PA’s ECE Registered Apprenticeship Career Pathway: ECE Associate’s Degree Registered Apprenticeship

Colorado: The Workforce System and The Early Childhood Profession

Closing Plenary: Dr. Frank Luntz, CEO, FIL, Inc. – Colorado C/D Ballroom
Words That Work
Utilizing language research from the last 18 months, Dr. Frank Luntz will provide a lively, interactive presentation and specific recommendations for how to move public opinion in support of early childhood investment. He will unveil the 21 words and phrases that will have the greatest impact on policymakers… and parents.

Resources:

Bipartisan Policy Center summary of findings on ECE messaging to conservatives and liberals