Early Childhood Director's Group

Early Childhood Directors Group

NO July meeting

Our next meeting will be Thursday, August 14th

TIME: 10:00 – Noon

PLACE: Think Small on 2021 E. Hennepin Ave., Suite 250, Mpls.

 

June 12^th meeting notes: 

Farm to Child Care

Erin McKee VanSlooten, Senior Program Associate at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) and Cara Johnson-Bader, New Horizon Academy presented on the Farm to Child Care partnership between IATP and NHA. The successful Farm to Child Care program introduces young children to fresh, local foods and engages parents and staff on the path toward healthy eating habits. The projects goals included combining healthy food from local farms with experiential learning opportunities for children, garden-based education and interactions with farmers connecting young children with how their food is grown.

About half of the directors said that their program’s food is catered and half prepare food on site. At the beginning of the presentation, directors’  questions about Farm to Child Care included:

Ø  How do centers get the food? Do farmers deliver it?

Ø  What’s the difference between organic and local?

Ø  How do we know farmers’ qualifications?

Ø  What are the additional costs?

Ø  Is there funding for this?

Ø  How can programs connect with local farmers?

Components of the Farm to Child Care curriculum:

1.   Introducing Foods through experiential learning

2.   Teaching activities that fit into your current daily schedule and curriculum The format for learning activities introducing foods:

a.    What do you know about  (e.g., broccoli) ?

b.    What do you want to know about broccoli?

c.    What did you learn about broccoli?

3.   Field trips to farmers market, farm, etc.

4.   Ask your food distributor to source local food. Some distributors will deliver veggies and fruits already cut up.

Later this summer, IATP will make available a Farm to Child Care curriculum package, complete with teaching materials created with NHA and lessons learned from the pilot.

Reasons to buy local:

·         Transparency about what’s in or on the food you serve children

·         Building connections between farms, farmers and what we eat

·         Adding to the local economy

Ah Ha’s from Erin and Cara’s experience with the IATP/NHA pilot:

Ø  Starting with toddlers is easiest because you can generally get them to try anything

Ø  Give parents samples of food you’re introducing to children

Ø  Start small – have cook try recipes and new foods one at a time

Ø  Bring in guest speakers to meet with your staff (contact Erin for suggestions)

Ø  Staff can register to take the Farm to Child Care 101 training this fall through Think Small’s Training Calendar

Resources for child care programs:

IATP Farm to Child Care Curriculum (available to download soon at www.iatp.org)

Article about the Farm to Child Care project with NHA:

http://www.iatp.org/documents/farm-to-childcare-program-expands-to-62-sites-across-minnesota

Early Sprouts Cookbook and Early Sprouts : Cultivating Healthy Food Choices in Young Children books from Redleaf Press: http://www.redleafpress.org/Search.aspx?k=Early%20Sprouts

More resources:  https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=farm%20to%20preschool

 

DHS Answers Applicant Background Study Questions

Following are DHS’ answers to the questions directors’ raised at our June 12^th meeting about legislative changes to the applicant background study requirements.

Good News: The cost is much less than what we had originally heard. According to DHS, when the new system is in place, the only additional cost will be the cost of getting fingerprinted, which we expect to be between $10 and $15. (details below)

An FAQ will be on the DHS website by July. DHS will also be holding 8 stakeholder meetings starting in July to provide information and respond to questions. Check the DHS website for dates/times/locations.  

1) When will existing employees be required to be fingerprinted? When that happens, will there be a timeline to get them all through vs. being required to get them fingerprinted all at once? 

DHS Response:  Current employees will not need a new study.  There is no change about who is required to have a background study or when one is required.  Therefore, in most cases, this means that people will be required to be fingerprinted with their next background study – if and when they change jobs or are first hired.  Generally, when people have cleared a background study under the new system (i.e., with fingerprints, photographs, and use of their Social Security Numbers), they will not need to go through the DHS background study determination process again.  There are some exceptions to this, for example people with a set aside or variance, etc.    

Current employees who stay will continue to not need another background study.​

2) Several of the directors hire seasonal staff in large numbers. This will be a large cost for them at one time. Is there any financial assistance?

DHS Response:  Currently, there is no financial assistance.  However, there will be no changes until January 2015, which may provide some time for budget planning.  DHS plans to phase-in the new background study system, including the fingerprinting requirement, beginning in January, with all entities using the new system by April 2015.  

When the new system is in place, the only additional cost will be the cost of getting fingerprinted, which we expect to be between $10 and $15.  This can be the last background study for these seasonal workers, no matter how long they may be away from the program, as long as the provider keeps the person on the program’s “active roster.”  So, there will be a little extra cost for the next background study, but that could be the last background study ever required for the subject.

3) Is it the responsibility of the employer to pay for the fingerprinting or the employee?

DHS Response:  The law does not specify who pays the fee for fingerprinting.  Some providers have mentioned ideas such as reimbursing employees for the fee after a certain amount of time (e.g., six months of employment or successful completion of training, etc.). As with the current fee, employers can handle this any way they like. 

We expect the fingerprinting fee to be a one-time cost, and the amount to be between $10.00 to $15.00.

4) This last session, language was changed to allow for 120 days until a new background study is required. But with the fingerprinting, when is a background study now required? 

DHS Response:  Under the new background study system people remain “affiliated” with an entity by being on the entity’s “active roster.”   As long as a person is on an active roster, a new background study for that entity is not needed, and there is no time limit for how long a person may be on an entity’s active roster.  When employer rosters are set up in the new background study system, they will also include people who cleared a background study under the current system, too, not just people who have fingerprint-based studies.   So, while the current people’s studies may not be transferable to new employers (without the fingerprints and photo) they will still be the last study necessary for any employer with the person on the employer’s roster – no matter how much time the person may be away from work.  

Once someone has been cleared by a background study in the new system, they will be available to any employer for immediate employment as long as they are on someone’s active roster or on our “inactive roster.”   If a person leaves a position, and is removed from all rosters, or they initiate a background study on themselves, we will keep the person on our “inactive roster” for six months (or longer if requested by the subject) so that the person remains immediately available. 

This roster is very significant, because it is the list of people against which we will compare all new criminal records.  We won’t need to repeat studies on these people because we will be informed if the person (on a roster) commits a new act we are concerned about.

When the new system is operating, we will eagerly pursue the deletion of all reference in the law to that 120 day affiliation requirement! 

5) If a center has a volunteer, can you choose the background study vs. fingerprinting or must they also be fingerprinted​? 

DHS Response:  As you know, not all volunteers are required to have a DHS background study.  If a DHS background study is required and the request is received after implementation of the new background study system, fingerprints will be required. 

 

Look Before You Lock

As temperatures across the country continue to escalate above average highs, it is more important than ever to understand the health effects for children. Infants and young children are particularly sensitive to the effects of extreme heat and must rely on others to keep them safe. When left in a hot vehicle, a young child’s body temperature can increase three to five times as quickly as an adult’s.

On average, every 10 days a child dies from heatstroke in a vehicle (http://www.safekids.org/heatstroke). These deaths are preventable, and everyone in the community, especially Head Start and child care providers, has a role to play in protecting our children.

Here are a few simple things you can do:

         Make it part of your everyday routine to account for all children in your care. Set up backup systems to check and double-check that no child is left in the vehicle. Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle—even if the windows are partially open or the engine is running with the air conditioning on. Vehicles heat up quickly; if the outside temperature is in the low 80s, the temperature inside a vehicle can reach deadly levels in only 10 minutes, even with a window rolled down 2 inches.

         Always make a habit of looking in the vehicle—front and back—before locking the door and walking away.

         Get in touch with designated family members if a child who is regularly in your care does not arrive as expected.

         Create reminders to ensure that no child is accidentally left behind in the vehicle. Place an item that is needed at your final destination in the back of the vehicle next to the child or place a stuffed animal in the driver’s view to indicate that a child is in the car seat.  

         Call 911 or your local emergency number immediately if you see a child alone in a hot vehicle. If he or she is in distress due to heat, get the child out as soon as possible and cool him or her down rapidly.

 

Take Ray Ray’s voluntary pledge for providers and parents to make a commitment to working together to keep children safe.