Join
Your Colleagues at the
Early Childhood Directors Group
Thursday, March 13thth
10:00 am – noon
2021 Hennepin Ave. E.,
Minneapolis 55413
Ø Discussion
Topic: Having Difficult Conversations With Staff
Ø Changes
at the Center for Professional Development
Ø What
you need to know to take action on
behalf of children and families at the legislature
There is no charge for this meeting.
The
Early Childhood Directors Group meets on the second Thursday of the following months for facilitated
discussion, resource sharing and networking.
All meetings are 10:00 am – noon at
Think Small, 2021 E. Hennepin Ave., Suite 250, Mpls, 55413.
Upcoming Meetings: March 13th, April 10th,
June 12th, August 14th, October 9th, and
November 13th.
These meetings are FREE and open to all
directors and assistant directors.
Four
times/year we hold Directors Trainings. All Directors Trainings are $22 and MNCPD approved for 2 clock
hours. Trainings are from 10:00 am – noon at Think Small on 2021 E. Hennepin
Ave., Suite 250, Mpls, 55413.
The next Directors Training:
THURSDAY - May 8th – The Kindness Curriculum,
with author Judith Rice
Registration must be made 7 days in
advance on www.mnstreams.org or by calling the Training Registration Line: 651-641-3549.
Questions? Nancy Johnson 651-233-2260
or njohnson@thinksmall.org.
Also
plan on joining us for the 2014 Tour of Quality Programs next Fall.
Help us tell ECE success
stories
To be successful at the legislature we have
to put a face on why quality child care and scholarships are important and what
they mean to children, parents, providers and our communities. Send your stories
so that the MinneMinds Coalition can share them with the Governor, legislators
and the media. If you need some story prompts, click here. Then email
your stories to stories@minneminds.com.
CCAP Higher Reimbursement Rates
Effective February and March 2014
Providers with a three- or four-star Parent Aware rating are
eligible for higher rates effective March 3, 2014.
Providers with a three-star Parent Aware rating are eligible
for up to 15 percent above the standard maximum rate, not to exceed the
provider charge.
Providers with a four-star Parent Aware rating are eligible
for up to 20 percent above the standard maximum rate, not to exceed the
provider charge.
Parent Aware programs are NOT required to submit additional CCAP
paperwork to receive the higher reimbursement rates.
Programs’
Parent Aware ratings will be entered into the CCAP rates authorization system
to alert case workers to approve new Service Authorization rates for individual
programs.
For specific rates, see the CCAP 15 Percent Quality Differential Maximum Rates - Effective
February 3, 2014 (DHS-6442B) and
the CCAP 20 Percent Quality
Differential
Accredited programs eligible for higher rates
Licensed
and license-exempt centers accredited by certain accrediting organizations are
eligible for a 15 percent higher rate for quality, not to exceed the provider’s
charge. For List of Accrediting bodies,
see DHS BULLETIN #14-68-03
Accredited programs must verify their accreditation to
receive higher reimbursement rates
In
order to receive the 15 percent higher CCAP rate for quality,
the provider must request the higher rate and submit
verification showing that they hold one of the approved
accreditations. Programs may request the higher rate
on their Registration and Acknowledgement Form(DHS-5190 and DHS-5191) or on the
Quality Differential Rate Request Form (DHS-4795) or by sending a qualifying
accreditation certificate with a written request.
Be An “In The Know” Advocate
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Join Minnesota's Future at the next Policy Hour on March 4th Noon – 1pm.
Policy Hour is a monthly opportunity for early childhood and
school-age care professionals to connect with each other and learn about
current policy issues in an informal setting. Policy Hour is held the
first Tuesday of each month, through June 2014, from Noon-1:00 p.m. at Think
Small - 2021 East Hennepin Avenue E.,
Suite 250, Minneapolis, MN 55413. No RSVP is required. Feel free to
bring your lunch.
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Curious about Parent
Aware Ratings?
Come to a FREE Quality Tune Up
Learn
about the components of Parent Aware
Stop
by between 5:30—8:00 p.m.
Monday,
March 10th, 2014
Think
Small, 2021 Hennepin Ave. East, Mpls,55413
The Quality Tune Up Open House includes information
on:
Options
for Training and Education
Completing
your Learning Record on the Registry
Daily
Schedules, Lesson Plans and Curriculum
Child
Observation and Assessment
Resources
to Share with Parents
Early
Learning Scholarship Information
In 'brainpower' study, MN's children really are above
average
Mpls St Paul Business Journal |
February 27, 2014
Garrison Keillor’s signoff
from Lake Wobegon, Minn., promises as much, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that
the Minneapolis-St. Paul region ranked 9th out of 102 metros in an analysis by
American City Business Journals of education levels of residents in the area,
based on 2012 U.S. Census Data. [Read More]
Staff Need Training? Register & Pay Online
The online version of
Think Small’s training calendar is now available 24/7 on www.MNStreams.org . Included are
class titles, descriptions, instructors, dates, times, and fees. Mail in
registrations are no longer accepted. Please register and pay for classes on www.MNStreams.org
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NOTE: Before starting a new account on MNStreams, call Think
Small’s Training Line and ask for your ID and Password: 651-641-3549.
If you’re having trouble
finding or registering for courses online you can always call Think
Small’s Training Line – 651-641-3549.
Leave your message and a training coordinator will get back to you.
Presidential Priority:
Fund Early Childhood Education
Early
Childhood Education - EDWeek Update - Jan 30th, 2014
President
Obama renewed his pitch—kicked off in last year's State-of
the Union speech—for Congress to enact a major, early-
childhood education initiative that would entice states to expand
pre-kindergarten to more 4-year-olds, improve program quality, and bolster
access to Head Start. Lawmakers have already put a down payment on that plan,
funneling more than $1 billion in additional money to existing early-childhood
education programs—primarily Head Start.
But, so
far, lawmakers have been much cooler to the core piece of Obama's
early-childhood initiative—matching grants to help states begin expanding their
own programs. The two top Democrats in Congress—Rep. George Miller of
California, and Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa—introduced legislation that
would make much of the proposal a reality. But the legislation has attracted
only a couple of Republican co-sponsors, in part because of its price tag: more
than $30 billion over the first five years.
"I really want to get it done," Harkin said
of his preschool expansion legislation that is part of a push by President Barack Obama
to improve the economy by getting more children ready to learn.
In the meantime, however, Obama said he would pull together a coalition
of business leaders, philanthropists, and elected officials to help expand
pre-K for the neediest children. The House
Education and the Workforce Committee led by chairman John Kline, R-Minn., held
a hearing on early education on Feb 5th.
Save the Date: Voices for Children
Advocacy Day is March 26th
The 12th Annual Voices for Children Advocacy Day will be
Wednesday, March 26 at 10:00AM at the Minnesota State Capitol. The
Voices for Children Advocacy Day is an opportunity for parents, teachers,
early care and education professionals in Minnesota to stand up and counted
as a voice for children.
More details will soon be announced. You can watch for more
details at voicesforchildrenmn.org or
the Voices
for Children Advocacy Day Facebook page.
Parent Aware Update
Imagine Target Field jam packed full of people
Now imagine them all using Parent Aware Ratings
That’s the new reality. Driven in part by the
Ratings Ad Campaign on radio, TV, billboards, and the web, 39,735 “unique
visitors” have gone to the Parent Aware website over the last six months
alone. As the new ad campaign continues, the number of new users will
continue to grow.
Many parents who use the Ratings use them
silently. But they are there. An average of 6,600 brand new website visitors
every month. Month after month. Year after year.
78% of parents who recall the ads say that, all
things being equal, they would choose a Star Rated program over an unrated
one; 4% would choose an unrated program.
New families enrolling their children are only
one reward available to Parent Aware Rated programs. Free coaching, improvement
grants, community recognition and $60 million in new scholarships and CCAP
bonuses are also available to the growing number if providers volunteering
for Parent Aware.
The website’s search function is now
location-based so that parents can view a map of Parent Aware programs in
their area. Check out the updated site at parentawareratings.org
For information about how your program can get
started in Parent Aware call Carol Stromme 651-641-6644 or cstromme@thinksmall.org and visit parentawareratings.org
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