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Issue 15—May/June 1997

Linkages with Child Care

Contents

up arrowLinkages: Coming Together for Children and Families

The family is the center of a child's life. Families come in all shapes and sizes, with multiple and differing needs. Maintaining adequate employment, housing, health care, child care, and transportation are among the major issues which families face. Since so many children spend part of their day in out-of-home care, child care is the natural place to link services for children and families.

Linkages require a commitment to building partnerships among agencies, with communities, and with families. Linkages with child care will be one focus of this year's Annual Meeting of State Child Care Administrators, Child Care: Coming Together for Children and Families, which will be held July 14-15, 1997. The Child Care Bureau is also taking part in several other initiatives that promote the development and nurturing of linkages. These initiatives include: promoting healthy child care; sponsoring regional school-age child care conferences; providing leadership on critical issues such as inclusion and child care research partnerships; and expanding Head Start and child care collaborations.

In a call for comprehensive state and local planning, the Child Care Bureau has encouraged states, tribal nations, and communities to see child care as the hub for other services and to link child care to the following critical services:

  • Health
  • Family Support Services
  • Head Start
  • School and Youth Programs
  • Employment Services
  • Transportation
  • Housing
  • Child Support Enforcement

Building strong organizational relationships requires an ability to identify the range of partners that will be essential to address families' needs, and a willingness to work together effectively to provide a comprehensive system that respects, responds to, and empowers families.

This issue of the Child Care Bulletin examines ways that families can be supported through linkages with child care. Linkages with agencies such as child support enforcement and Head Start help to promote self-sufficiency for families and comprehensive services for children.

Federal work-study programs and intergenerational programs can assist in improving staff to child ratios, while enriching the experiences of the children in care.

Other initiatives include coordination of services with early intervention and public education to increase the availability of inclusive child care services.

The America Reads Challenge provides for linkages aimed at improving children's reading abilities through community partnerships that engage volunteer tutors and support parent involvement in children's literacy development. There are many ways for child care providers to link with America Reads activities and to increase the time spent reading to children in child care every day.

Linkages with other services are critical. Effective linkages expand the capacity of child care and other agencies to serve and to meet the needs of children and families.

up arrowChild Care and Head Start Collaborations Meet Families' Changing Needs
John Bancroft

Head Start and child care have much in common -- both provide services to young children, both have frequent contacts with parents, both work with children who have special needs, and both may work with the USDA nutrition program and with the public school system as children transition to school. Above all, both programs share a commitment to providing quality services for all children and families. Both child care and Head Start have a great deal of knowledge and experience to offer each other.

By their structure, Head Start programs offer comprehensive services: child development, social services, health, mental health, and nutrition. In its 30 year history, Head Start has developed many promising practices in parent involvement and family support services. In addition to this, the child care delivery system has a rich diversity of collaborative efforts designed to best meet local needs and to provide full day services, often despite limited resources.

As the needs of families change, it is critical that child care and Head Start professionals come together to provide comprehensive full day services to low income families who are working or are in training programs. Although there are several different models for combining these services, here are three approaches:

Family Child Care Head Start: One model was developed with demonstration funds by Puget Sound Educational Service District (ESD) Head Start. The Head Start program contracts with licensed family child care providers, who remain independent rather than becoming Head Start employees. The child care provider is also the Head Start teacher and receives support from Head Start staff, including training, technical assistance, supplies and materials, and participation in a provider support group. Staff working for Head Start also provide comprehensive social and health services to enrolled families. The provider receives the majority of income from child care subsidies, along with a limited amount of funds to cover the additional work she does as a Head Start provider.

All Day Head Start/All Day Child Care: This model can follow a similar collaborative approach as described in the previous example. The staffing models can vary considerably. In some cases, Head Start provides the social service and health staff, while paying the center for some, or all, of the cost of child development services, such as staff salaries. One variation might be having social service and health staff work for the center, which operates under contract with Head Start. In some programs, Head Start funds are used to increase the staff salaries, so that qualified staff can be hired and retained.

Part Day Head Start Class is Extended to Full Day and Full Year: This is usually done by accessing child care subsidies to pay for the extended services. There may be funding issues, varying from state to state, concerning allocation of costs between Head Start and child care. This model is appropriate if there is not an adequate supply of local child care that provides full day comprehensive services. If the program can access additional funding sources, (e.g. United Way, business, etc.), the program may also be able to provide full day comprehensive services to at-risk children who do not qualify for Head Start. One example of this model is operated by the KCMC Child Development Corporation in Kansas City, Missouri (see "Spotlight on...Kansas City's Early Head Start (EHS) program," in the Child Care Bulletin, January/February 1996).

Many programs and communities have designed innovative approaches to combining funding streams to provide quality "seamless" services to children and families with low incomes. One publication that is a resource of summaries and "how to" information on this subject is Working Together for Children: Head Start and Child Care Partnerships. The report includes examples of partnering by child care centers, family child care providers, and small single-site Head Start agencies, as well as multi-site agencies serving one or more counties. The initiatives highlighted have all overcome challenges through their efforts to improve services for the low-income children and families they serve. Although communication, funding policies, and program requirements may initially pose a challenge to child care and Head Start collaboration, models continue to grow and thrive. Both the child care and Head Start communities have always been able to grow and change in response to the ever changing needs of families.

  • Working Together for Children: Head Start and Child Care Partnerships by Nicole Oxendine Poersch and Helen Blank is available from the Children's Defense Fund (CDF), 25 E Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001 (202) 628-8787. Visit the CDF web site at http://www.childrensdefense.org

John Bancroft is the Executive Director of the Puget Sound Educational Service District Head Start. For more information, contact John at: (206) 439-6922 or e-mail at: jbancrof@psesd.wednet.edu

up arrowChild Care Bureau Promotes Linkages that Support School-Age Child Care

The Child Care Bureau is sponsoring meetings in ACF regions to bring together officials from state child care agencies and tribal nations, departments of education, and leaders in school-age child care and other community groups to discuss the need for school-age care as a result of welfare reform.

The meetings, being coordinated through the Child Care Technical Assistance Project with support from the School-Age Child Care Project at the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, are intended to lead to new efforts which are responsive to the needs of low-income children. During the meetings, state and tribal teams will define the current nature of school-age care and out-of-school time, the barriers to expanding and improving school-age care services, along with strategies that will meet both the demands of welfare policy and the needs of low-income children.

According to Joan Lombardi, Associate Commissioner of the Child Care Bureau, "School-age children will be more successful in school when we ensure that they are experiencing healthy and productive lives during their out-of-school time."

One example of a statewide collaboration that supports school-age care in New Hampshire is PlusTime NH, a broadly based organization focused on addressing school-age child care needs. PlusTime NH is a private, nonprofit agency that is funded primarily through the state's Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is the state's leader in setting school-age policy, coordinating professional development and mobilizing community action for school-age care.

The Board of Directors for PlusTime NH believes that concern and support for school-age care should cut across many sectors of society. The board includes representatives from for profit and nonprofit school-age child care programs, the Departments of Education and Parks and Recreation, Boys and Girls Clubs, the University of New Hampshire's Cooperative Extension Program, the YWCA, YMCA, school volunteer organizations, city child care coordinator, religious community, the criminal justice community, business, Health Maintenance Organizations, school administrators, and other supporters. The efforts of PlusTime NH have led to innovative funding solutions and public recognition and support for school-age care statewide.

The following are some examples of PlusTime NH linkages:

Criminal Justice: Working with the Children In Need of Services (CHINS) Task Force of the District Court Juvenile Justice Committee to highlight the relationship between crime prevention and availability of school-age care as well as to make it a priority for funding.

National Service: Requesting Health Care Transition funding to train Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) members, VISTA, AmeriCorps, and college students in conflict resolution techniques to be taught to students in school-age programs.

Ecumenical: Engaging the New Hampshire Council of Churches in an effort to expand the number of school-age care programs in churches across the state.

Business: Working with the business community to help them both educate employees about the importance of school-age care, and influence school systems to initiate programs.

For more information about PlusTime NH, contact: Cynthia Billings, Executive Director, at: (603) 668-1920.

To learn more about the regional school-age child care meetings, contact the Child Care Bureau at: (202) 690-6782.

up arrowTo Learn and Grow Partnership Links Child Care with National Service

The Corporation for National Service (CNS) has organized the To Learn and Grow (TLG) public/private initiative to help create linkages to expand, enrich, and improve the quality of out-of-school time programs. One of the activities of the TLG partnership will be to publish a "how-to" manual integrating the support of national service programs such as AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and Learn and Serve America, as a strategy in developing school-age care programs.

National service programs that operate during non-school hours employ a variety of strategies to keep students safe and healthy, create productive learning environments, and foster caring relationships with tutors and mentors. These activities provide child care programs with extra resources to expand community outreach, volunteer involvement, and educational opportunities, while they engage children in service activities and develop children's interest in building leadership skills.

The national partners of TLG include the Corporation for National Service, the Department of Education, Child Care Bureau, National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, the National School-Age Care Alliance, Save the Children, the School-Age Child Care Project at the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, and the YMCA of the USA.

For more information, contact Nicole Spitale, To Learn and Grow Project Manager, Corporation for National Service, at: (202) 606-5000, ext. 484, or e-mail at: nspitale@cns.gov

up arrowChild Care Reads! Links with the America Reads Challenge

President Clinton's new initiative, the America Reads Challenge, is designed to ensure that every child can read well and independently by the end of third grade. Child care programs are poised to be an active part in this exciting initiative by making sure that every child in child care is read to each day.

A key component of the America Reads Challenge involves mobilizing reading tutors, including volunteers and college students in the Federal Work-Study program, as well as AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and other national service participants. The America Reads Challenge also calls for strengthening and expanding early childhood and family literacy programs, and for encouraging the private sector and community groups to work with schools and libraries.

There are many ways that child care providers can get involved:

  • Instill a love of reading in a child. Parents and child care providers can do this by reading to a child each day from infancy onward, talking with a child, reducing time spent watching television, helping a child to access the library regularly, and other activities.
  • Contact a local school, library, or literacy organization to find out about America Reads activities and ways to volunteer. Many libraries are gearing up for summer reading programs.
  • Encourage your local college, university, or your alma mater to join in the America Reads Challenge through the Federal Work-Study Program (more than 250 colleges and universities have made commitments thus far). Federal Work-Study students can help increase the time spent reading to children in preschool and school-age child care programs.
  • Contact the Department of Education at: (800) USA-LEARN, (800) 872-5327, or visit the section of the web site at http://www.ed.gov/inits/americareads/ to:
    • obtain a READY*SET*READ Early Childhood Learning Kit of activity guides for families and caregivers, with ideas and age-appropriate activities to help young children learn about language and literacy development.
    • get involved in the READ*WRITE*NOW! summer reading initiative and access materials to help school-age children with literacy development.
    • get updated information on the America Reads Challenge and the Federal Work-Study Program.

up arrowCollege Work-Study Students Support After-School Programs

Andrea Justice

For two years, St. Anne's Extended Care in California has participated in the University of San Francisco's Federal Work-Study Program. The work-study program is a federally funded Student Financial Aid Program through the Department of Education which enables students to earn money and gain work experience while pursuing an education. Students are awarded a stipend to be earned during an academic year that is based on demonstrated financial need. For off campus employers, the University of San Francisco's work-study program contributes about 50 percent of the student's salary, with the remaining 50 percent and benefits being paid by the employer.

The students who work in the St. Anne's Extended Care program are enrolled in education or psychology classes. Along with providing students with the financial resources to attend the university, the work-study program benefits the child care program by supplying qualified part-time employees. In addition, this collaboration with the university has involved students who are motivated and highly interested in the field of education. The students support the work of the child care center while gaining vital first hand experience in working with children.

The work-study students assist in all areas of the child care program. Some of the reading related activities that they support include "Reading on the Rug," a group reading activity at the end of each day; Reading At Home (RAH); and setting up a library and magazine reading area for the after-school program. Children also receive books for "Super Kid" awards, kindergarten graduation, and other occasions. On their birthday, children are encouraged to donate a book to the library. The book is then prominently displayed as a donation to the library in the child's name.

At St. Anne's Extended Care, everyone -- most of all, the children -- benefits from the collaboration with the work-study program.

Andrea Justice, formerly the Director of St. Anne's Extended Care, is active in the Fort Myers, Florida area child care community. To learn more, contact Andrea at: (941) 482-4387.

up arrowChild Care Collaborates with Child Support Enforcement

Child support enforcement and child care assistance programs have a shared mission -- to promote the well being of children and self-sufficiency for their families. Many child care and child support enforcement agencies are exploring various ways to work together.

Outreach is one area of collaboration. Child care resource and referral agencies may include information about other services, such as child support enforcement, when consulting with parents. Other collaborative efforts may be in the area of policy issues that involve both programs. For example, the child care and child support communities have a common interest in ensuring that state guidelines used to calculate child support awards adequately address the cost of child care.

These are a few examples of collaborative initiatives between child care and child support enforcement:

Outreach Efforts. Colorado and Montana use their child care resource and referral networks to distribute pamphlets about paternity establishment and child support enforcement. The resource and referral agencies also maintain a list of local child support enforcement offices. Agencies which conduct parent training have incorporated child support enforcement issues into the classes.

Contact: Doreen McNicholas, Region VIII Administration for Children and Families, at: (303) 844-3100, ext. 374.

Provider Training. The Massachusetts Department of Social Services (DSS) arranged for representatives from the state's Department of Revenue (the child support enforcement agency) to train child care providers. The training presented information about child support enforcement and paternity establishment that child care providers could share with parents.

Contact: Sherrie Lookner, DSS Child Care, at: (617) 727-0900.

Cooperation. The Working Parents Assistance Program (WPA) assists working low-income families in Montgomery County, Maryland with their child care costs (see Child Care Bulletin, July/August 1996). To receive WPA child care subsidies, families are required to cooperate with the enforcement agency to pursue child support payments from the noncustodial parent. Child support has been collected in 53 percent of WPA cases.

Contact: Deborah Shepard, WPA Director, at: (301) 217-1168.

Policy Development. In the state of Minnesota, the child care and child support enforcement communities have collaborated closely on a number of policy issues that affect the two programs. These issues include addressing child care subsidies and dependent care tax credits in the state's guidelines for calculating child support awards, and determining how the custodial parent's income from child support should be treated in eligibility determinations for child care subsidies.

Contact: either the Child Support Enforcement Division, Minnesota Department of Human Services, at: (612) 215-1714, or Cherie Kotilinek, Child Care Program Administrator, at: (612) 296-2030.

The above article has been summarized from an article submitted to Children Today, a publication of the Administration for Children and Families.

up arrowChildren's Centers Link with Court System to Reach Vulnerable Families
Sheryl Dicker

Across New York, Children's Centers are providing both drop-in care for children while their parents and guardians attend to court business, and a site where families can learn about and access vital services. The Children's Centers in the courts are under the auspices of the Permanent Judicial Commission on Justice for Children (PJCJC). Currently there are 14, but by fall 1997, there will be 22 Children's Centers operated by nonprofit agencies including Head Start, YWCA, and multi-service agencies under contract with the New York State court system.

In 1996, the Children's Centers served more than 36,000 children and families. The profile of the children typically served indicates that they are among New York's most vulnerable children. The needs of the children and families make the service connection component of the program critical.

The PJCJC supports the concept that a linkage to one comprehensive program will lead to additional connections with services for families. Three ways that these linkages are made for families through the Children's Centers are:

  1. Staff provide information and referral services and are trained in the enrollment processes of the Lifeline phone service and the Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC).
  2. Three centers have Children's Services Specialists who establish new service connections.
  3. Staff from other agencies, such as Head Start, have been stationed at the centers to link children and families with vital services.
More than 1,500 enrollments for essential services have been made through these strategies. In addition, the Children's Health Project of the Montefiore Medical Center has located a mobile medical unit outside of the Manhattan Family Court to provide education, health care, and case management services for children served by the two Manhattan Children's Centers.

By providing a safe haven for children in the courts and forging links to vital services, the Children's Centers have made a difference in the lives of thousands of New York's most vulnerable children and their families.

Sheryl Dicker is Executive Director of the New York State Permanent Judicial Commission on Justice for Children (PJCJC). For more information, contact Sheryl at: (914) 422-4425.

up arrowChild Care Initiatives Across the Country

Connecticut: Multiple Strategies Link Services to Support Inclusion

Connecticut supports the inclusion of young children with disabilities into child care programs through a variety of strategies. The statewide early intervention program for infants and toddlers with disabilities provides services such as special instruction, occupational and physical therapy, and speech and language therapy on-site in child care homes or centers as specified by a child's Individualized Family Service Plan. Early intervention programs have also paid for part-time child care slots for children in need of a group socialization experience. For example, the statewide Early Connections program established contractual relationships with 86 child care centers in which toddlers with disabilities participate an average of two half-days a week. Early Connections staff provide on-site support to the caregivers.

Preschool age children with disabilities who attend child care programs have also received support from special education staff. One example of this is in the Hartford Public Schools. A city funded child care classroom at Kinsella Elementary School has enrolled five children with disabilities. The school system provides a part-time special education teacher who team teaches with child care staff.

Caregivers in Connecticut also receive ongoing support and training to accommodate the diverse needs of children. A curriculum, Training for Inclusion, has been developed for child care providers through funding from the Department of Social Services. Five regional training teams that include a caregiver with an inclusive child care program, a parent of a child with disabilities, and an early childhood special educator have provided training through workshops and long term institutes. In a two year period, more than 5,000 child care providers in the state have received training to support inclusive child care. A major focus of the training is on developing collaborative relationships with other providers and agencies that serve children with disabilities.

States planning to forge linkages between the child care community and other children's programs such as early intervention and early childhood special education may collaborate on both the state and local level. One way is to ensure that child care representatives are included on state and local Interagency Coordinating Councils for early intervention services.

To learn more, contact Mary Beth Bruder, Director of Child and Family Studies, University of Connecticut Medical Center, at: (860) 679-4632.

Kansas: Transportation Linkages Serve Before- and After-School Programs

The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services, which administers funds of the Child Care and Development Block Grant, recently provided funding to Unified School District (USD) #500, part of Kansas City Public Schools, to help establish an inclusive before- and after-school care program at ten elementary schools. Together, they will serve approximately 1,800 children, beginning in the fall of 1997. Key stakeholders in this collaborative effort are the state, the school district, along with the community based Boys and Girls Club. An additional collaborator is the local Head Start program which is contracting with the school district to provide evening meals for the students in the after-school programs.

Transportation to and from the before- and after-school programs had been identified as a difficult issue in this inner city area. To address this, the school district will use its buses to run four new routes in the evening to transport children home. The state will fund personnel to provide the transportation services and will also cover the fuel costs. Morning transportation issues may be addressed through a combination of parent reimbursement for transporting multiple children, taxi cab services, or contractual transportation services. Utilizing existing school sites and transportation staff makes this plan cost effective.

The plan for implementation of the project involves a collaboration between the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Kansas City, which will provide the child care, and USD #500, which will provide transportation, sites, and fiscal management of the program. A linkage has also been established with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to address state licensing requirements for school-age child care sites.

This partnership is intended to be a pilot project that would become self-supporting after the first year, with the school district being responsible for ongoing administration of the program. The school district and the Boys and Girls Club will be meeting with other youth service providers and parents in the community to discuss ways that other complementary service providers might be added to the expansion of the first year pilot project.

For more information, contact Verna Weber, Child Care Administrator, Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services, (913) 296-3374.

Maine: Microenterprise Development Links Providers with Resources

Increasing access to quality, affordable child care while supporting community and economic development in Maine is the goal of the Child Care Development Project administered through Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI). This private, nonprofit community development corporation provides financing and assistance to small businesses that offer income, employment or ownership opportunities for individuals with limited resources.

CEI provides financing to new and existing state licensed providers who serve children from low-income families and/or children with special needs. The interest rate for the loans is fixed at the Prime Rate, well below rates that banks typically charge. CEI educates traditional lenders on the mechanics and benefits of child care financing, and is also involved in facility financing, as well as state and national policy development.

CEI initiated the Child Care Development Project through a grant from the Ford Foundation that was matched with state funds. The structure of the project has evolved over time. Now, caregivers receive financing and business counseling through a CEI-funded partnership with the statewide Resource Development Center network and through the CEI Small Business Development Center. The technical assistance includes individual business counseling, workshops, and other training activities. It addresses topics such as loan applications and licensing issues. CEI also encourages providers to contact the ASPIRE/JOBS program of the Maine Department of Human Services and other subsidy programs for referrals when providers have child care slots available.

As of December 1996, CEI has financed 70 providers with 81 loans. About 56 percent have been for family providers and the balance for centers. The majority of these loans were made with funds from the Ford Foundation, with a few loans being funded by the SBA Microloan Program or the Farmers Home Administration. CEI has leveraged $3,121,150 from other sources, producing total funding of $5,207,214 to providers in Maine. These businesses currently employ 302 people and will create 113 new full time jobs over the life of the loans. About 98 employment positions are targeted to individuals with low incomes.

For more information, contact Phebe Royer, Loan and Investment Officer and Child Care Development Project Coordinator, Coastal Enterprises, Inc., at: (207) 882-7552.

Vermont: Linking Initiatives to Guarantee Quality Child Care Choices

Vermont has entered into a concentrated effort that links several key initiatives to improve child care services. The child care infrastructure is being revised to reflect a community based decision making model. The separate funding streams which had formerly provided for eligibility determination, resource and referral services, outreach and development, and training, are now being made available as a lump sum to the 12 statewide regional districts. Each district has responded with a new plan for improving child care services.

To promote quality care across the state, core standards for center based care have been adopted by all programs providing public funds for early childhood services.

The state is also integrating its training and technical assistance resources. Program managers from various departments have agreed to focus their resources on improving the quality of early care and education. Using a career lattice that links workshops, courses, seminars and conferences, Vermont has also entered into a longer term strategy for improving the professional skills of child care providers.

In addition, new players have been added to the field of improving child care. These include the Department of Corrections, which will be manufacturing high quality furnishings and play equipment, building outdoor play yards, painting child care facilities, and helping to design adaptive equipment for children with special needs.

Also, the Vermont Community Loan Fund, which traditionally invested in affordable housing and economic development, has now linked with the Vermont Agency of Human Services / Education Collaboration to improve the quality and supply of child care. The loan fund will establish a revolving fund for facility renovation loans, and provide technical assistance on financing and future planning for child care programs.

Another linkage that focuses on supporting literacy development has been established among the Vermont Council on the Humanities, the Center For the Book, and Vermont's child care programs. Entitled "Never Too Early," this project provides training and technical assistance to 1,200 family child care providers in the state. Each provider is offered the opportunity to learn more about early learning and development, about choosing quality children's literature, and about effective ways of engaging children in language activities. Caregivers are also provided with books to use in their program.

These new linkages present many opportunities for strengthening child care services in Vermont.

For more information, contact Cheryl Mitchell, Deputy Secretary, Vermont Agency of Human Services/Education Collaboration, at (802) 241-2220.

up arrowCare Castle Fosters Relationships Across Generations

"Bring the generations together" Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

"You need more love in America" Mother Teresa

Words like those from two great humanitarians inspired the vision for Care Castle; an intergenerational center that serves both seniors and children. Started by seniors in the Pikes Peak region of Colorado, it is an early childhood program that utilizes senior citizen volunteers to help the professional staff care for the children. The program at Care Castle is based on the concept that our youngest and oldest citizens have separate needs which can be served by early childhood programs for the benefit of both children and senior citizens. Care Castle, in addition to the senior volunteer program, provides care for infants, toddlers and preschoolers, and offers tuition assistance for low-income families.

Care Castle Intergenerational Child Care Center has started to replicate its senior citizen volunteer program in other communities, nationally and internationally. The replication project, named the Grand Connection, is based on the belief that we can foster relationships between our oldest and youngest generations. Care Castle is a model for assisting early childhood professionals to care for children of working families.

Trained senior volunteers enhance the ratio of adults to children in the care settings, contributing to a higher quality of care. In the program, there are more than 75 senior citizen volunteers who help care for the children by rocking babies, reading to the toddlers, helping the preschoolers plant and tend their flower garden in the playground, as well as performing office and administrative tasks at Care Castle.

Partnerships are an important part of the program's success. Pikes Peak Community College co-produced a video showing the daily caring environment and the vision for intergenerational child care programs. The training manual for the 12-hour program in child development and child care which the seniors volunteers must attend is being refined for the replication project.

The program at Care Castle Intergenerational Child Care Center creates a richer life for both the children and the seniors. Children receive the benefit of extra care and attention. For the seniors, life is enriched by their relationships and connections with the children, parents, and staff --experiences which help to mitigate the isolation many people encounter in their later years.

For more information, contact Judy Priebe, Executive Director, Care Castle, at: (719) 473-6335.

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) has released an interim report of a study that examines intergenerational shared site programs. It summarizes information from 230 sites that use various approaches in serving children and older adults. A final report and directory of programs is planned for September 1997.

To request a copy of the interim report and directory now, or the final report and directory in the fall, contact: Amy Goyer, Intergenerational Coordinator, AARP, (202) 434-2218.

up arrowNational, Regional, and Local Linkages with Tribal Nations

Nationally, the Child Care Bureau sponsored its fourth annual conference for those who administer federally funded child care systems in tribal communities. The National American Indian and Alaska Native Child Care Conference, Children and Families: The Heart of All That is Sacred, met April 28-30 in St. Paul, Minnesota. More than 300 participants learned about legislation, policies, and trends affecting child care, as well as about developing partnerships to deliver services for children and families.

One example of regional efforts to develop effective linkages is the meeting convened by ACF Region X to promote tribal and state collaboration in child care service delivery. The Tulalip Tribes hosted the meeting among child care administrators from Washington state and several tribal nations. They have now formed a State and Tribal Workgroup that meets bimonthly to discuss government to government collaboration efforts.

An example of linkages on a local level is provided by the Suquamish Tribe in Washington which links with an Indian Health Service representative in tribal certification for child care along with licensing through the state, quarterly inspections, health and safety issues, immunizations, and reviews of medical records for children and staff. Another linkage through the tribal government and the Southern Puget Sound Inter-Tribal Housing Authority has helped to use a Housing and Urban Development (HUD) home as a child care center.

up arrowTools for Linking Child Care with Housing Development

Jan Stokley and Emily Heumanna

Collaboration between child care providers and housing developers increases the quality and stability of child care facilities and the communities in which they are located. Strategies to link these two areas can be implemented at state and local policy levels and in the housing development process.

State and Local Housing Policies

Consolidated Plan: Every state and entitlement city is required to have a Consolidated Plan to establish priorities for the use of federal housing funds and Community Development Block Grants. In North Carolina, a coalition of child care and community development advocates took steps to ensure that state planning gave priority to multi-family housing projects that address child care needs.

Contact: Rhonda Rainey, President and CEO, North Carolina Association of Community Development Corporations, at: (919) 831-9710.

Developing new housing finance programs: California's Family Housing Demonstration Program includes child care facilities in the financing for low-income housing. Centers may receive contracts from the state Department of Education for operating subsidies. Currently, all funds are committed.

Contact: Teri Bressler, California Department of Housing and Community Development, at: (916) 327-2896.

Modifying existing housing finance programs: The Oregon Child Care Resource and Referral Network (OCCRRN) is collaborating with the Association of Oregon Community Development Organizations to encourage the state Department of Housing and Community Services to give a competitive advantage to low-income housing tax credit applicants who assess child care needs and propose programs and facilities.

Contact: Debra Orman, Executive Director, OCCRRN, at: (503) 375-2644.

Land use policies: Several states have preemption laws that vary widely in scope, content, and impact. These statutes typically state that family child care homes may not be prohibited in residential zones.

Contact: Maria Gil de Lamadrid, Attorney, Child Care Law Center, at: (415) 495-5498.

Local sustainable growth policies: Since the need for child care increases with family housing development, Santa Cruz County, California, requires housing developers either to provide child care facilities or to deposit "mitigation" funds into a loan fund that is used to help finance child care centers and homes.

Contact: Marcia Meyer, Director, Child Development Resource Center, Santa Cruz County Office of Education, at: (408) 479-5321.

Site child care centers in residential communities: In California, Los Arroyos is a 57-acre residential development which will include 300 subsidized and market-rate single family homes and 50-60 subsidized apartments as well as a school and park. South County Housing, a nonprofit housing developer, is incorporating child care into the overall community plan. The goal is to have child care centers be an integral part of the project's planning, finance, and public approval process.

Contact: Marie Juncker, Executive Director, South County Housing, at: (408) 842-9181.

Development Partnerships

Family child care homes in new apartments: South County Housing also developed Depot Commons, a housing development in which the 2-bedroom unit has extra space to care for up to 12 children. A local resource and referral agency supplied technical assistance.

Contact: Marie Juncker, Executive Director, South County Housing, at: (408) 842-9181.

Family child care homes in new single-family housing: Willow Springs Condominiums is a planned 10 home project in Los Angeles County, California. A local child development agency made low-cost design suggestions to make it easier to observe children's activities. The nonprofit developer will give sales priority for one unit to a licensed provider.

Contact: Alexander Pratt, President, Drew Economic Development Corporation, at: (310) 632-3290.

Child care centers in new apartments: Mid-Peninsula Housing Coalition often plans child care centers as part of its larger family developments. At Santa Familia, a 79-unit garden apartment complex for low-income families and seniors in San Jose, California, the cost of developing the child care center was reduced by nearly 50 percent because the developers obtained low-cost financing, an adjacent church leased the land at minimal cost, and the construction contractor donated his fee.

Contact: Matthew Schwartz, Senior Project Manager, Mid-Peninsula Housing Coalition, at: (415) 299-8000.

Family child care homes in existing neighborhoods: Eastside Community Investments in Indianapolis, Indiana, rehabilitated more than 20 single family homes and leased them on a preferential basis to family child care providers.

Contact: Dennis West, President, Eastside Community Investments, at: (317) 637-7300.

Centers and family child care homes in existing public housing projects: The Richmond, California public housing authority invited the county Community Services Department to develop a co-located Head Start and subsidized child care center on land at a public housing site. The housing authority also provided some financing for the center.

Contact: Wilda Davisson, Contra Costa County Community Service Department, at: (510) 374-3994.

The above was summarized from a longer article by Jan Stokley, Child Care Project Manager at the National Economic Development and Law Center. Emily Heumann is the Child Care Project Assistant. For more information or a copy of the longer article, contact them at: (510) 251-2600.

up arrowHealthy Child Care Update: Little Rock's Guardian Angel Project

A "Guardian Angel" is helping Little Rock, Arkansas, area child care facilities and Head Start programs improve immunization rates among preschool children. St. Vincent Health Clinic East, an outreach clinic of St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center, began the Guardian Angel Project in 1993 in an effort to improve low vaccination rates among children in child care centers. The project is a grant funded program in partnership with the Arkansas Department of Health, Rotary Club 99, St. Vincent Auxiliary, the City of Little Rock, the Department of Human Services Child Care Licensing Section, Shots For Tots Partnership, and area child care and Head Start facilities.

The concept of taking the vaccines to the children has made this program highly successful. The program focuses on underserved areas of the city, although any child care facility may participate. To date, 57 facilities have been served, and more than 2,500 children vaccinated. More than 1,000 of those children were delinquent with immunizations before being identified by a Guardian Angel nurse. Childhood vaccines administered include those for DTP, Polio, Haemophilus Influenza Type B, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Hepatitis B.

The program employs two full-time nurses. Initially, a nurse contacts a child care facility and meets with the director. If the director agrees to participate, immunization records of all preschool children enrolled in the facility are reviewed. Children are identified as either eligible for age-appropriate immunizations, or delinquent. Records are researched by accessing the Arkansas Department of Health's statewide Immunization Reporting System. Parents and guardians of those who remain eligible or delinquent receive information packets, including a cover letter about the program, a consent form and questionnaire, and appropriate Vaccine Information Statements and brochures. Typically, a $3 records fee is charged; however, if the child is enrolled in the Medicaid program or the family cannot afford it, the fee is waived.

This program has become a model for other areas of the state. The project has not only aided parents in updating their child's vaccinations conveniently, but also boosted immunization rates from about 65-70 percent to 90-100 percent in 34 of the 40 facilities currently served.

For more information about this program, contact Laurie Pearson, R.N., Coordinator, Guardian Angel Project, St. Vincent Health Clinic East, at: (501) 376-2007.

up arrowWater Safety for Children

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control

More than 100 million Americans participate in water-related activities each year. To reduce the risk of drowning and other injuries, the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control recommends careful adult supervision at all times, especially when children are near water sources such as bathtubs, buckets, toilets, large puddles, and swimming pools. Small children can drown in as little as 1 inch of liquid, and in only 30 seconds.

How you can prevent drowning

  • Watch children constantly. If you supervise young children, do not talk on the phone, mow the lawn, read, or play cards when watching children near any source of water.
  • Never swim alone or in unsupervised places. Make sure that young children are always accompanied by an adult and that older children have a buddy. Water wings are not advised for children of any age.
  • Learn to swim.
  • Check the water depth before allowing children to enter. The American Red Cross recommends 9 feet of water as a minimum safe depth for diving and jumping.
  • Use Coast Guard-approved personal flotation devices (life jackets) for all boaters, regardless of swimming ability, size of the boat, or distance traveled.
  • To prevent choking, do not chew gum or eat while swimming, diving, or playing in the water.
  • Keep children away from buckets, and empty all containers of liquids immediately after completing chores.
  • Many communities mandate isolation fencing with self-closing and self-latching gates for pools to prevent direct access from a house or yard.
  • Get certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
  • Make sure there are telephones near residential pools.

The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) works with public and private organizations to conduct and evaluate research on the causes, risks, and preventive measures for injuries outside of work. The research includes: unintentional injuries caused by accidents, as well as injuries caused by violence, injury-related disabilities, and reducing the impact of injuries by improving trauma care and rehabilitation systems.

To learn more, contact NCIPC's Office of Communication Resources at: (770) 488-1506.

up arrowResources in Child Care

School's Out, Let's Eat: FRAC's Guide to Using the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to Expand Afterschool Opportunities for Children
Food Research and Action Center (FRAC)

This guide is designed to help school-age child care programs link with resources provided by the CACFP. It emphasizes the benefits for children and the program resources that can be gained by these linkages, and it highlights 12 successful models from across the country. (Available for $10 from FRAC, 1875 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 540, Washington, DC 20009, Attention: Publications, or call: (202) 986-2200).

Welfare Information Network (WIN) Issue Notes, May 1997: Transportation and Welfare Reform
April Kaplan

The Welfare Information Network (WIN), a clearinghouse for information, policy analysis, and technical assistance on welfare reform, publishes Issue Notes that address the emerging issues that confront states and communities. They provide an overview of key policy questions, a brief summary of research findings, promising practices, and resource contacts. (Free publications, available from WIN at: (202) 628-5790, or e-mail at: welfinfo@welfareinfo.org Visit the WIN web site at: http://www.welfareinfo.org).

Serving Families
G. Link and M. Beggs, with E. Seiderman

A handbook for program developers, this publication gives concrete information on building effective family support systems applicable to a variety of early childhood programs. Based on a series of fact sheets and training materials developed by the Parent Services Project, Inc. (PSP). (Available for $10 from the San Francisco Study Center, 1095 Market Street, Suite 602, San Francisco, CA 94103, or call: (888) 281-3757. Visit the web site at: http://www.studycenter.org).

NAEYC Accreditation as a Strategy for Improving Child Care Quality
National Center for the Early Childhood Work Force

This study examined 92 child care programs in northern California over a three year period to document changes in program quality resulting from participation in the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation process, the impact of support models on achieving accreditation, and the extent to which NAEYC accreditation contributes to building a skilled, stable early care and education work force. (A full report and an executive summary are both available from NCECW at: (202) 737-7700).

Children and Welfare Reform Issue Brief 3 The New Welfare Law and Vulnerable Families: Implications for Child Welfare/Child Protection Systems
Jane Knitzer and Stanley Bernard

One of a series of issue briefs from the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) on children and welfare reform for policymakers, community leaders, and others. This issue examines the potential impact of P.L. 104-193 on vulnerable families already in or at risk of entering the child welfare/child protection systems. (Available for $5 from NCCP at: (212) 304-7100. Visit the web site at: http://www.nccp.org).

Passages To Inclusion: Creating Systems of Care for All Children Prepared by the National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC) for the Child Care Bureau

This technical assistance monograph was compiled as a resource for the development of high quality, inclusive child care services for all children and families. It provides strategies for addressing issues critical to the creation or expansion of successful programs that include children with disabilities in child care. (Free publication, available from NCCIC at: (800) 616-2242, and at the National Child Care Information Center web site: http://nccic.org/).

This page is being maintained on the NCCIC web site for historical purposes. As a result, not all information may be current.

 
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