Public Meeting May 31, 2013

www.earlylearningtexas.orgwww.earlylearningtexas.org

Public MeetingMay 31, 2013

www.earlylearningtexas.org 2

• Welcome (9:00 AM – 9:10 AM) Presenter: LaShonda Brown

• Council Update (9:10 AM – 10:00 AM) Presenter: Don Titcombe

• Public Comments (10:00 AM – 10:30 AM)

Agenda

www.earlylearningtexas.org

Council MembersChair: LaShonda Y. Brown

Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office

Michele AdamsTexas Department of Family and Protective Services

Michael BerryTexas Education AgencyMary CapelloTeaching and Mentoring Communities Deborah H. CodyMount Pleasant Independent School District Gina S. DayTexas Education AgencyAna de Hoyos O’ConnorSan Antonio CollegeBlanca Estela EnriquezEducation Service Center – Region 19John W. GaskoChildren’s Learning InstituteAngela Hobbs-LopezTexas Department of State Health Services

Texas Early Learning Council 3

Jonel Huggins

Elsa Cardenas-HaganUniversity of Houston

Reagan MillerTexas Workforce Commission

Rhonda PaverStepping Stone School

Bobby OttTemple Independent School District

Elaine ShiverMental Health America of Texas

Kim Wedel,Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative

Services

John Whitcamp


Improved School

Readiness

Parental Outreach

andCommunication

Workforce and

Professional Development

Collaborations and

Standards

Data and Quality

Rating Improvement

Systems

Texas Early Learning Council Priorities


Texas Early Learning Council Priorities


TOTS - The On-Track System: The goal of The On-Track System (TOTS) project was to create an integrated, comprehensive early childhood data collection system for Texas. The Council signed a contract to develop a strategic plan to achieve information sharing among the various early education data-collecting entities in Texas; conduct a stakeholder review; and, design a framework for the new TOTS data system. This contract has been discontinued.

Data and QRIS


Data and QRIS


Data and QRIS

Updates: – Council has approved and posted it recommendations– Recommendations' can be accessed at

www.earlylearningtexas.org/tots

http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/tots


Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS)

The Council will develop recommendations for a Quality Rating Improvement System for Texas.

Data and QRIS


Data and QRIS

Read the Council’s Paper on QRIS!

http://earlylearningtexas.org/umbraco/qris.aspx




Data and QRIS

Updates: – stakeholder meetings were conducted– Final strategic plan is published and

available at www.earlylearningtexas.org/qris

– Council members have reviewed first round of recommendations draft

– Council members will work today finalizing the recommendations

– Hope to use the recommendations to support implementation of HB 376

http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/qris


Statewide Needs Assessment: The needs assessment is the first ECE needs assessment in Texas in 40 years. The Council signed a contract with the Ray Marshall Center at UT-Austin and the Hobby Center for the Study of Texas at Rice University to conduct the needs assessment. The contract started on June 1, 2011. The needs assessment will provide: a 40-year state population projection of Texas children; analyses of current supply of and projected demand for early childhood services; and, a survey of the quality of the early childhood services available to families.

Public Outreach and Communications


Updates:• Needs assessment is completed and posted at

www.earlylearningtexas.org/needs • In addition to the final report, 3 complete reports are

available:• Texas Early Childhood Education Needs Assessment: Change in the Early Childhood

Population in Texas, 2000 to 2010, and Projected to 2015

• Texas Early Childhood Education Needs Assessment: Supply and Quality of Early Care and Education and School-Age Programs

• Texas Early Childhood Education Needs Assessment: Gaps Between Need and Availability of Early Care and Education


http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/needs


Texas Community Campaign for School Readiness:The Council is funding 4 Texas communities to implement a cutting-edge, population-based school readiness assessment tool, the Early Development Instrument (EDI). In addition to the EDI, the Council will support each of the funded communities in developing and implementing a strategic change process based on the EDI results. EDI is a comprehensive, community-level, measure of early development and school readiness for young children. It is the vision of the Council, that the selected communities will utilize the EDI data to inform the creation of long-term, sustainable, and responsive systems to better meet the needs of young children. Therefore, the Council is seeking to support lead agencies that are committed to measuring and improving school readiness outcomes in their communities and to serving as catalysts for community change.



Updates:• The Council formed a strong partnership with UCLA and United

Way Worldwide to make Texas a trend setter in ECE community planning



Updates:• The Council contracted with 4 organizations/communities to participate:

− United Way of Southern Cameron County for the Brownville community

− United Way of El Paso County for the El Paso community− United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County for the San

Antonio community− North Texas Area United Way for the Wichita Falls community

• Sites submitting strategic plans reports today!• Texas recognized as an important site for innovation in this realm – the

National EDI conference is being held in San Antonio


http://unitedwayrgv.org/

http://www.unitedwayelpaso.org/

http://www.unitedwaysatx.org/

http://www.ntauw.org/


These are examples of the Community-Level Data produced by this project!

7 New Texas Communities have joined the project through Federal Home Visitation funds!



Public Awareness Campaign:The Council will fund a significant statewide public awareness campaign in Texas committed to two goals:– enhancing awareness of early childhood education availability and

quality with a focus on underrepresented and special populations– fostering optimal brain development in young children



Updates:• An RFP for the creation of the campaign and materials

was released in January• A contractor was selected and we are very close to

beginning commercial production• Radio commercials will be produced next• Media buying RFP launched and closed• Media buying to begin in early August



Infant, Toddler, and Three Year Old Early Learning Guidelines:The new Texas ITELG will improve the quality of care for infants and toddlers inside and outside the home by supporting and guiding more appropriate practices for early care and education professionals who work with our youngest children. With clearly defined statements on what infants and toddlers should developmentally know and be able to do, the ITELGs will support the healthy development of infants and toddlers because they will positively influence the design of professional development strategies, parent engagement, administrative planning, key materials, and curricula.

Collaborations and Standards


Updates:•The guidelines are complete!•Spanish is available and Vietnamese coming soon.•Approximately 35,000 copies have been distributed! – there is still high demand for more•Staff is working on the creation of a website and a mobile website for fast and easy access to the Guidelines•Staff is currently working on creating age-based guides for parents and caregivers

–These will be available in libraries, WIC clinics, and other parent focused locations

•Staff is working on creating a train the trainer on the Guidelines







Texas ECE Standards Comparison Tool:The Council will create an online early care and education comparison tool. The tool will allow early childhood stakeholders to readily investigate and compare competing sets of regulations and standards operating in Texas early care and education. The tool will be designed for multiple audiences (Parents, Providers, and Policymakers), and each audience will have the ability to query a database of program standards on key variables such as safety standards, staff qualifications, curriculum, etc.



Updates:•The Comparison tool is complete and ready for launch•It can be accessed at the Texas Head Start Collaboration Office website: http://thssco.uth.tmc.edu/


http://thssco.uth.tmc.edu/


Beginning Education: Early Childcare At Home (BEECH):The Council is funding a major Family Home Child Care quality improvement project now being called Beginning Education: Early Childcare at Home (BEECH). It will result in a study that will incorporate technology and mentoring to improve the level of quality in home –based care

– The study will include 180 providers -- computer based training modules, and mentorships for 30 of the participants



Updates:• Children’s Learning Institute has developed a 20-course online module and a mentoring and professional development strategy for the project• Both Studies are wrapping up and closing – data analysis is next•The Texas School Ready! Project is asking Lead Agents to bring home-based child care providers to BEECH•Staff is currently working on devising delivery models for other new users




Download our BEECH Paper at:

http://earlylearningtexas.org/beech.aspx




Mentoring analysis and toolkit:The Council is funding an analysis of different mentoring strategies and the development of a toolkit providers can use to implement “in-house” mentoring techniques in their programs. The analysis will detail core competencies of mentors and coaches and strengths of the various mentoring approaches in existence. The Toolkit will serve as a how-to in using existing program staff and resources to implement “in-house” mentoring strategies in early childhood programs.



Updates:•The first draft of the toolkit has been completed•Staff is reviewing draft and will work to incorporate changes by mid June•Toolkit should be posted by June 30, 2013



• Act Early Texas! The Council recently approved funding to create a new website for

parents and providers to access developmental screening tools for children. Users will be able to complete a screening tool on a particular child right from their computer. The tool will have the ability to generate referrals to ECI for children identified as having developmental delays or signs of Autism.



Updates:•Lengthy requirements have been created•An RFP for the site has been created and posted•RFP closes June 21, 2013



Early Childhood Workforce Registry:The early childhood workforce registry will serve as a key workforce support for ECE professionals. This online project will be an interactive hub for all EC professionals. It will store all professional development information and users will be able to share ECE workforce data across multiple categories and populations

Workforce and Professional Development


Updates:• Council staff ran into barriers in the development of the registry: data bases and coding have proven to be more complex than expected

–Staff re-tooled and went back to the business requirement process–Re –drafted business requirements and altered the development process to go section by section, with review along the way

•RFP for system was posted, Vendor was selected, and work has begun•Development has been very positive and the system is expected to be completed by mid August•Launch may not come until after August







New Core Competencies for the ECE Workforce:This work will expand the current Core Knowledge and Skills Areas to Coaches and Mentors and enhance and expand the current ones for practitioners, administrators, and trainers. Core Competencies will inform professional development activities for Texas EC professionals.



Updates:•Core Competencies for Practitioners and Administrators are complete and can be downloaded at earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds (Spanish coming soon!)•Core Competencies for Trainers have been drafted, reviewed by the Council, and are being fine tuned•Core Competencies for Mentors will be created based on knowledge gained from the mentoring toolkit project


http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds



Core Competencies Online Training Modules:The Council will fund the development of online training modules on the new Practitioner and Administrator Core Competencies. These modules will help professionals become familiar with the key concepts in the Core Competencies and how to use them.



Updates:•Contract was signed to create requirements for the trainings•Requirements and instructional design guidance was created•An RFP for the build was posted and a contractor was selected•Work has begun•System should be ready by mid August.



ECE Career Lattice:The Council will develop a career lattice for early care and education professionals. Also known as a career ladder or career pathway, career lattices define the relationship between education, work experience, and ongoing professional development for early childhood professionals, from entry-level staff to experienced professionals with advanced degrees. The goal of the tool is to provide early care and education professionals with clear paths of professional development and career planning. As early care and education professionals progress in their development, through formal education, trainings, and work experience, they will be able to chart their progress on the career ladder.



Updates:• The Career Lattice is complete and available for download at www.earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds






Compensation StudyThe Council will conduct a statewide compensation study in order to explore compensation parity in Texas for the early care and education workforce. Ultimately the information collected will be used to develop a recommended baseline state compensation plan for early childhood professionals.



Updates:• The Compensation study is completed• Staff and contractor are still making minor changes to layout, design, and language• Study should be posted mid June• Council will use study to evaluate making recommendations on the subject



Higher Education Articulation AgreementsThe Council will conduct research to identify model articulation agreements that between 2 year and four year institutions of higher education. This initiative will identify model agreements, analyze why they are successful, and create a toolkit that will help communities to put their own successful agreements in place.



Updates:•First two deliverables of this project are complete and available for download at www.earlylearningtexas.org/ihe-articulation-agreements-toolkit •Full Toolkit is completed and available at http://earlylearningtexas.org/articulation-toolkit.aspx


http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/ihe-articulation-agreements-toolkit

http://www.earlylearningtexas.org/ihe-articulation-agreements-toolkit

http://earlylearningtexas.org/articulation-toolkit.aspx

http://earlylearningtexas.org/articulation-toolkit.aspx


Assessing the Capacity and Effectiveness of Higher EducationThe Council will conduct an assessment of higher education, in regard to early childhood education degrees and professional certificates.



Updates:•Contract was signed and work has begun•There were some data collection problems:

–Institutions were somewhat reluctant to provide responses to surveys–Difficult finding participants that meet study criteria

•Study period was extended•First report was completed – profiles early childhood educator’s thoughts about preparedness for the classroom•Full project should be complete by end of June 2013




Download our workforce paper at:http://earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds.aspx

http://earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds.aspx

Documents

Public Meeting May 31, 2013