Building Comprehensive Systems

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Building Comprehensive Systems for Early Childhood
Governing an Early Childhood System Opening
Session September 19, 2005 National Conference
Charles Bruner, CFPC and SECPTAN Director
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State Early Childhood Policy Technical
Assistance Network (SECPTAN) Mission

• To partner with the School Readiness Indicators
  Initiative in creating indicators to foster early
  childhood policy in 17 states
• To provide help to state policy makers to move
  forward early learning/school readiness agendas
• Evidenced-based
• Timely
• Customized
• Nonpartisan

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From Indicators to Policy Most Frequently
Raised TA Questions

• How can we describe our work to get attention?
• How can we organize our work to fit together and
  achieve results?
• How can we mobilize support to produce action?

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Message Box SECPTANs Interconnected Answers

• Focus on results. (We have a problem.)
• Show ways to achieve them. (We have solutions.)
• Identify the investment gap. (We know where and
  how to invest.)
• Develop allies and mobilize support. (We all need
  to step forward.)
• -- chorus, not cacophony --

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Answering the Questions A Checklist Approach

• Focus on Results. The SRII Foundation.
• What all children need to start school ready to
  learn Equation
• Current status of children on starting school
  "ready Indicators
• Family and societal consequences of not starting
  ready Indicators
• Show Ways to Achieve Them.
• Effective programs, services, and practices to
  improve school readiness Evidenced-Based
  Strategies
• Identify the Investment Gap and How to Address
  It.
• Investment opportunities to develop system Gap
  Analysis
• Implementation design to efficiently and
  effectively develop system Governance/Management
  
• Identify Allies and Mobilize Support.
• Education and mobilization strategy to secure
  resources Political Will-Building

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Results and Evidenced-Based Strategies

• Equation Elements
• Ready Families.
• Ready Communities
• Ready Services (Health).
• Ready Services
• (Early Childhood Education)...............
• Ready Schools.

Strategies Selected home visiting, family support
programs, developmental child welfare
services Toxin removal, public awareness/action
campaigns Health insurance, medical homes and
developmental health services, early intervention
(Part C) Quality, affordable child care, supports
for FFN providers, pre-school enriched
pre-school for low-income/vulnerable
children Transition plans, community schools
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Identifying the Investment GapComposite
Nine-State DC Average Per Child Investment by
Age
7,889
4,113
1,683
709
Early Learning Left Out Closing the Investment
Gap for Americas Youngest Children
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Effective ImplementationPlanning, Governance,
and Management Issues to Address

• Form Follows Function Defining the parameters of
  the system
• Follow the Money Addressing financing issues
• Building Is Done in Stages Planning,
  implementing, and managing stages
• Governance Requires Consent of
• the Governed Building support
• Think Globally, Act Locally
• Devolving responsibility

Building an Early Learning System The ABCs of
Planning and Governance Structures
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Form Follows Function Definition of Parameters
of an Early LearningSystem of Systems

• Economic
• Security and
• Housing System
• Police and
• Fire Protection
• System
• Culture and
• Values
• Valuing Early
• Learning

Family Support System
Health and Nutrition System
Early Learning System
Special Needs/Early Intervention Systems
Early Care and Education System

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Form Follows FunctionConsiderations

• One persons integration is another persons
  fragmentation.
• Parameters define core governance.
• Single governance structure unlikely and not
  necessary.

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Follow the Money Potential Investments in
School Readiness Equation
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Follow the Money Considerations

• Multiple funders and state decision-makers
  control resources and must be brought on board.
• Major federal financing role (16 federal
  sources XIX, Title V, CHCs, WIC, EFNEP, CC Food
  Program, IDEA, Title IV-e, Title IV-a, CAPTA,
  Head Start, Early Head Start, Even Start, CCDF,
  TANF, Title I), 2/3 of current funds.

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Building is Done in StagesConsiderations

• Planning envision what new system would do and
  build awareness and commitment
• Implementation take strategic steps to expand
  and re-allocate resources to achieve objectives
• Management establish guidelines, rules, and
  procedures for ongoing operation
• -- stages involve different skills, passion,
  leaders --

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Governance Requires Consent of the Governed
Considerations

• Governed include those charged with carrying out
  changes and those for whom early learning system
  is designed
• No magic structure Attributes of good governance
• Representative
• Legitimate
• Sustainable (across changes in leadership)
• Effective (flexible, accountable, capable of
  learning)
• Authoritative (capable of marshalling resources)

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Think Globally, Act LocallyConsiderations

• Balance of Roles and Responsibilities
• Reasons for state leadership
• establishing and basic standards and objectives
• aligning resources with needs across state
• providing consumer rights to appeal and review
• Reasons for devolution
• securing local ownership and commitment
• including voluntary support system
• contouring local services to local conditions

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Developing Allies and Mobilizing Support
Strategies for Different Champion Groups
Beyond the Usual Suspects Developing New Allies
to Invest in School Readiness
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The Completed Checklist

• Focus on Results.
• What all children need to start school ready to
  learn
• Current status of children on starting school
  "ready
• Family and societal consequences of not starting
  ready
• Show Ways to Achieve Them.
• Effective programs, services, and strategies to
  improve school readiness
• Identify the Investment Gap.
• Investment opportunities to develop system
• Implementation design to efficiently and
  effectively develop system
• Identify Allies and Mobilize Support.
• Education and mobilization strategy to secure
  resources

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Additional SECPTAN Resources

• Seven Things Policy Makers Need to Know About
  School Readiness (basic arguments)
• Up and Running (description of multi-site
  initiatives)
• On the Path to School Readiness (discussion of
  universal pre-k)
• Many Happy Returns (ECE economic modeling)
• Measuring Childrens School Readiness (assessment
  options)
• Child Welfare and School Readiness Making the
  Link for Vulnerable Children
• Health Care and School Readiness The Health
  Communitys Role in Supporting Child Development
  -- New Approaches and Model Legislation
• Community Building and School Readiness The Need
  to Focus on Vulnerable Neighborhoods

www.finebynine.org
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Additional Resource Basic Talking Points About
School Readiness

• 1. Learning begins at birth.
• 2. Nurture, as well as nature, matters.
• 3. School readiness is more than just what
  children know.
• 4. School unreadiness is costly.
• 5. Parents work.
• 6. Quality matters.
• 7. Investments pay off.

Seven Things Policy Makers Need to Know about
School Readiness
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Additional Resource Description of Multi-Site
Early Childhood Initiatives

• Initiatives in health, family support, early
  childhood education, economic self-sufficiency,
  child abuse prevention, pre-school, and
  comprehensive early learning initiatives
• Description, state/community locations,
• and contact information

Up and Running A Compendium of Multi-Site Early
Childhood Initiatives
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Additional ResourceConsiderations Regarding
Universal Pre-School

• Expected contribution to school success (part of
  answer, but not silver bullet)
• Parental desires and needs (culture and
  time/space needs)
• Features of effective programs (high quality, but
  different responses for different children and
  enriched pre-school for low-income/disadvantaged
  children)
• Workforce development considerations
• (importance of diversity)
• Pre-school as part of larger early learning
  system
• (integrated to other approaches and needs)
• Avoiding unintended consequences (limit
• disruptions of current early childhood programs)
• Financing (free vs. sliding scale, phase-ins,
• public/private roles)

On the Path to School Readiness Key Questions
to Consider Before Establishing Universal
Pre-Kindergarten
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Additional Resource Three Economic Development
Cases for Early Childhood Education

• Child Human Capital Development Four Seminal
  ROI Studies
• Community Capital Development Economic Modeling
  of Contribution of Early Care to Local Economy
• Adult Human Capital Development Economic
  Development in Poor Neighborhoods

Many Happy Returns Three Economic Models that
Make the Case for School Readiness
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Additional Resource Measuring Childrens School
Readiness

• Discussion of value of kindergarten assessment of
  what children know and can do for benchmarking
  purposes
• Description of issues in ensuring appropriate use
• Highlight and comparison of three state
  approaches in providing comprehensive assessment
• Annotated bibliography of resources on
  kindergarten assessment

Measuring Childrens School Readiness Options
for Developing State Baselines and Benchmarks
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Additional Resource Health Care and School
Readiness

• Current Thinking
• Health Insurance Medical Care
• Medical Care Child Health
• Needed/Reframed Thinking
• Medical care content as well as insurance
  coverage important for ensuring child health.
• Transmedical services, including those focused
  upon family pediatrics, needed to ensure child
  health.
• Health includes developmental (social, emotional,
  cognitive) as well as physical health services.
  
• Implications of Reframed Thinking
• Expanded Use of EPSDT
• Incentives for broadened practice

Health Care and School Readiness The Health
Communitys Role in Supporting Child Development
New Approaches and Model Legislation
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Additional Resource Child Welfare and School
Readiness

• Opportunities for Action - Best Practices
• Identifying developmental needs during
  investigation and assessment
• Providing developmental services and service
  referrals as part of in-home services
• Addressing developmental needs during placement
• Addressing developmental needs in adoption
• Role of judicial leadership

Child Welfare and School Readiness Making the
Link for Vulnerable Children
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Additional Resource Community-Building and
School Readiness Focus on Vulnerable
Neighborhoods

• Rich in young children (50 more young children
  as percent of population)
• Significant in size (9 of all children, but
  one-quarter of school unreadiness population,
  with 2-5 times the rate of single parenting,
  child poverty, low education, lack of savings and
  home ownership)
• Diverse in ethnicity (83 children of color, and
  where 23 all African American and Hispanic
  children live)

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Community Building and School Readiness
Implications for Policy and Practice

• Place matters, particularly for closing the
  countrys achievement gap
• Color blind approaches (bringing credentialed
  White, non-Hispanic teachers from suburbs in to
  teach preschool) wont solve, and could compound,
  problem
• Place-based strategies can improve school
  readiness, while building community and economic
  opportunity
• staff and career development for people in
  neighborhood
• community building around school readiness
• re-entry and re-integration around fatherhood and
  school readiness

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Contact Information

• Charles Bruner, Director
• Child and Family Policy Center, SECPTAN
• 1021 Fleming Building
• 218 6th Avenue
• Des Moines, IA 50309
• cbruner_at_cfpciowa.org
• SECPTAN website www.finebynine.org
• CFPC website www.cfpciowa.org
• SRII website www.gettingready.org