Tribes and States Working Together: A Guide to Tribal-State Child Care Coordination
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Successful Tribal-State Collaborations
In their FY 2004-2005 CCDF plans Tribes and States describe a number of ways they are coming together to coordinate services and support each other. Seven major areas of child care coordination and collaboration have been identified, including:
- Joint planning and policy-making
- Child care subsidies and dual enrollment
- The development of Early Learning Guidelines
- Child care resource and referral delivery
- Child care licensing
- Training and professional development
- Grant and funding opportunities
The following examples highlight each of these major areas of coordination:
Joint Planning and Policy-making
The State of Washington has established a State-Tribal workgroup that brings together Tribal, State, and Federal child care leaders to get to know one another, share information, and develop joint efforts. Arizona’s Child Care Administrator has appointed a Tribal Liaison and also participates in the Arizona Tribal Early Childhood Working Group. Convened by the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, this group has adopted a set of guidelines to improve the coordination and quality of child care. In Alaska, the CCDF Lead Agency hosts regular teleconferences with the 31 Alaska Native Tribal CCDF directors.
Child Care Subsidies and Dual Enrollment
Nevada and Wisconsin are two of a handful of states that have worked with Tribes to develop formal agreements around the delivery of child care services. Wisconsin contracts with eleven Tribes to administer the State program for Tribal families within the Tribes’ service delivery areas.
The Development of Early Learning Guidelines
Increasingly, States—including Alaska, Idaho, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Washington, and Wisconsin—have ensured that Tribal CCDF representatives are an integral part of the development and implementation of Early Learning Guidelines, as called for by the Good Start, Grow Smart Initiative. Some Tribal CCDF administrators are asking to join “the Early Learning Guideline table” when they find that Tribes are not represented. This is especially important since many Tribal CCDF and Head Start programs are choosing to adopt the States’ guidelines or adapt them to meet the cultural and linguistic needs of their children and families.
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