Weekly Update October 21, 2011

Charlevoix-Emmet Great Start Collaborative Meeting

 

Susan Chowen our Child Care Specialist located in the Char-Em ISD Boyne City office and I attended the Char-Em Great Start Collaborative meeting this week. Maureen Hollocker, the new GS coordinator and Mandy Peterson, Parent Liaison, shared information about the activities they have been involved with in the communities. The Collaborative has several committees working on all areas of the Great Start Star. Transportation is one of them. Emmet County does not have a transportation system in place and this is a need that the GS Collaborative is involved in. We were given a notebook of important information about the Collaborative and future activities were discussed.

 

As the Northwest Regional Resource Center we work with three Great Start Collaboratives and their respective Parent Coalitions. In addition to Char-Em we work with the Traverse Bay/Manistee and Wexford/Missaukee Collaboratives.

 

Great Start to Quality

The Tiered Quality Rating Improvement System (TQRIS) has been launched. It has been named “Great Start to Quality”. Providers (now called Early Learning and Development Programs) will access the system through CONNECT, an online system that providers are already using. Currently, via CONNECT, the Great Start to Quality System gives providers preliminary information about the process and offers them an opportunity to update certain aspects of their profile.

 

In November a Self Assessment System (SAS) will “go live” which will be the first step for providers to actively participate in the rating system. In December the Quality Improvement Plans (QIP) will be available for implementation. The star rating system will not be public for the first year of implementation. This will allow providers one year to work towards documenting and improving their program and thus improve their rating. The Regional Resource Center will be the primary support system for Early Learning and Development Programs, providing training as well as assistance navigating the rating system.

 

Michigan’s Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge Grant Submitted

The Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge grant applications were due earlier this week and Michigan was one of 37 applicants to throw their hat into the pool.  According to the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, thirty-five states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico submitted applications for the $500 million Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge.  The federal government will distribute grants of up to $100 million to winning states by the end of this year to improve early learning.  If Michigan wins, the state would receive $70 million.

Learn more about the Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge grant and what this could mean for Michigan on the Office of Great Start website. Source: Michigan’s Children

How Does “Great Start to Quality” Affect Our Work Plan?

Integrating the Quality Rating and Improvement System into our new work plan is underway and we will continue to adjust and fine tune our work as details emerge. Participating in the roll out of such a comprehensive change to the system of child care can be challenging.  Change on this level is never completely smooth or easy. But we are firmly committed to supporting this initiative and we recognize the great potential for truly improving the lives of young children and their families. This, in addition to our relationships with child care providers throughout the region, is what keeps us motivated to “stay the course”. We’re proud to be part of the Great Start to Quality.

 

Apple and Potatoes

 For those of you who know the song, “I like to eat, eat, eat, apples and bananas…..” We are happy to report that through a partnership with a local farmer, Tom Korson of Suttons Bay, we linked area child care providers with 712 lbs of a variety of apples and 130 lbs of potatoes. This is part of an initiative that we have been offering for a couple of years now. It just (no pun intended) keeps growing! Thanks go to the Michigan Land Use Institute and the Fresh Food Partnership for assisting us in making the connections between local farmers and our most important citizens, our children.

 

Infant and Toddler Lead Caregiver Training

The training for Lead Caregivers working with Infants and Toddlers has been rescheduled. The class will meet on Wednesdays on November 9th and 16th and December 7th and 14th. Class will run from 9am – 3pm on each of these days. There will also be assignments out of class. The instructor for this class is Hillary Lang. Please contact Mary Sue Wilkinson at 941-7767 for more information.

 

Coming Up:

Preventing Power Struggles – Conscious Discipline Training

Date: November 2, 9:00 – 3:30 pm

Location: NMCAA

RSVP to NMCAA at 1-800-632-7334 no later than November 1st.

Open to all Head Start and EHS staff/providers, parents and caregivers, community parents and caregivers and caregiver professionals

 

Working with Children with Special Needs Training

Date: Wednesday, November 9, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Location: Child Care Connections, Traverse City

This course will be an overview of commonly diagnosed special needs in 0-5 year olds, including descriptions, indicators, and classroom/child care environment tips for working with each. This training also takes a look at developmentally appropriate behavior and ways that adult-child interactions (as identified in the Program Quality Assessment) can help facilitate socio-emotional growth. Available resources will be discussed, including the CSEFEL pyramid, which demonstrates many avenues to pursue with children prior to seeking a behavior referral.

This course will also be available as a correspondence course.

 

Infant Mental Health Training

“Reactive Attachment- Facilitating Attachments with Multiple Caregivers/Relatives.”

November 4th, 9:00am -4:00pm at the Hagerty Center in TC.

Sponsored by the Infant Mental Health Training Consortium

You may register for the Nov. training or the entire annual IMH series by copying and pasting this link into your web browser:

http://www.solutionwhere.com/tbaremc2/cw/showcourse.asp?993.

 

Lending Library Workshops Scheduled

Lending Library Workshops are introductory level sessions designed for providers new to the Lending Library or new to the early childhood profession. These trainings qualify for Tier 2 training hours but do not offer CEU credit. Classes are held here in Traverse City and also in Cadillac. They run from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm. The course instructor is Judy Porter. Judy has been working throughout the summer developing activity cards to support the Lending Library themed tubs. These workshops are free but do require pre-registration through Great Start CONNECT. www.greatstartconnect.org

 

Fairy Tales and Castles – The power of dramatic play in social and emotional development. October 25: Cadillac

Friends and Family – Build social skills and learn to introduce multicultural curriculum into your daily program.  November 17: Traverse City , November 29: Cadillac

 

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend, Pam