Public Meeting September 28, 2012

1. Public Meeting September 28, 2012

2. Agenda • Welcome (9:00 AM – 9:10 AM) Presenter: LaShonda Brown • Council Update (9:10 AM – 9:50 AM) Presenter: Don Titcombe • Invited Speakers (9:50 AM – 10:20 AM) • Public Comments (10:20 – finish)

3. Council Members Chair: LaShonda Y. Brown Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office Michele Adams Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Michael Berry Office of the Governor Mary Capello Teaching and Mentoring Communities Deborah H. Cody Mount Pleasant Independent School District Gina S. Day Texas Education Agency Ana de Hoyos O’Connor San Antonio College Blanca Estela Enriquez Education Service Center – Region 19 John W. Gasko Children’s Learning Institute Angela Hobbs-Lopez Texas Department of State Health Services Jonel Huggins Texas Education Agency Elsa Cardenas-Hagan University of Houston Reagan Miller Texas Workforce Commission Rhonda Paver Stepping Stone School Bobby Ott Temple Independent School District Elaine Shiver Mental Health America of Texas Kim Wedel, Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services John Whitcamp Child Care Associates Texas Early Learning Council

4. Texas Early Learning Council Priorities • Workforce and Professional Development • Parental • Outreach • and • Communication • Improved School Readiness • Collaborations and Standards • Data and Quality Rating Improvement Systems

5. Texas Early Learning Council Priorities

6. Data and QRIS 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 with Deloitte 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.

7. Data and QRIS

8. Data and QRIS Updates: • The Council will attempt to approve its recommendations today • Once approved, they will be sent to the Governor and to the public

9. Data and QRIS Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) The Council will develop recommendations for a Quality Rating Improvement System for Texas.

10. Data and QRIS Read the Council’s Paper on QRIS! http://earlylearningtexas.org/umbraco/qris.aspx

11. Data and QRIS Updates: • We conducted a kick off meeting with the Data and QRIS Subcommittee members and agency representatives • The consultant has produced two drafts of a QRIS strategic plan • Sent out and collected data from two stakeholder surveys to inform the strategic plan • Conducted a stakeholder meeting on 9/20/2012 to inform the strategic plan • Next steps are to conduct 1 more stakeholder meeting, 1 more survey, and 1 more subcommittee meeting, and finalize recommendations with Council by Spring 2013

12. Public Outreach and Communications 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.

13. Public Outreach and Communications Updates: • The Council contracted with the Ray Marshall Center and the Hobby Center • On September 21, their final two deliverables were submitted to the Council staff • They will provide a more in depth update during our invited testimony time

14. Public Outreach and Communications 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.

15. Public Outreach and Communications Updates: • The Council formed a strong partnership with UCLA and United Way Worldwide to make Texas a trend setter in ECE community planning

16. Public Outreach and Communications 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 • Each Community has received its first Community data profile • The Council has partnered with HHSC and their home visiting program to increase the usage of EDI in Texas • Council grantees and HHSC grantees held a 3-day TA conference in Austin on 8/28/2012

17. Public Outreach and Communications 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

18. Public Outreach and Communications Updates: • The public awareness campaign will be significantly informed by the findings of the needs assessment • The Council Chair and the Subcommittee Chair have received a draft strategic plan for moving this project into action from the Council staff • Next steps include some subcommittee decisions, revising the strategic plan, and creating RFPs to begin crafting messages and buying media

19. Collaborations and Standards Infant and Toddler 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 IT ELGs 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.

20. Collaborations and Standards Updates: • In partnership with the Council, a 25-person stakeholder group has been working on developing new voluntary ITELGs for Texas since the start of Summer 2011 • Researchers at CLI, Council Staff, and a large stakeholder group have produced 11 Drafts of the ITELG • The Draft ITELG were posted for feedback for 30 days; feedback was collected, considered, and incorporated • Staff has been working with a marketing firm to design logos and outreach on the ITELG: • Market surveys have been conducted • Focus groups have been conducted • Next steps coming in a week: marketing strategies and logo selection

21. Collaborations and Standards 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.

22. Collaborations and Standards Updates: • Staff has finished collecting and “crosswalking” standards and guidelines • Staff conducted 3 focus groups on functionality and usability: parent, providers, and policymakers • Staff has been partnering with a team from ICF, trying to incorporate organization’s feedback • Staff completed detailed business requirements for the tool • development is delayed, but project should be completed by late Spring 2013

23. Collaborations and Standards 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 90 providers -- computer based training modules, and mentorships for 30 of the participants

24. Collaborations and Standards Updates: • Children’s Learning Institute has developed a 20-course online module and a mentoring and professional development strategy for the project • The first cohort of the study is finished, currently enrolling cohort 2 • BEECH was expanding to include a Spanish intervention and study – recruitment is underway, but meeting some challenges • Spanish online module is halfway finished

25. Collaborations and Standards Download our BEECH Paper at: http://earlylearningtexas.org/beech.aspx

26. Collaborations and Standards 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.

27. Collaborations and Standards Updates: • Staff and the subcommittee have developed a draft RFP • The draft RFP has been sent to UT Procurement and is awaiting posting • The Council will notify its list serve when the RFP is available

28. Workforce and Professional Development 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

29. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • Council staff has run 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 • Staff is currently drafting business requirements for the workforce section of the online registry • Once all of the business requirements have been finalized staff will release an RFP to complete the registry • Design, logos, and look have all been finalized • The Council will pilot the registry in various communities in Summer 2013

30. Workforce and Professional Development

31. Workforce and Professional Development 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.

32. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • April Crawford, Ph.D. has joined the staff of the Council and is heading up the Core Competencies effort • Core Competencies for Administrators and Practitioners were drafted and posted for public feedback • Staff is currently organizing that feedback and will work with the subcommittee to respond to and incorporate feedback- working towards Council approval in November 2012 • Staff and Subcommittee Members are currently in the process of drafting core competencies for Trainers – a draft should be ready by February 2013 • Draft mentor competencies will be a product of the mentoring RFP discussed earlier

33. Workforce and Professional Development 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.

34. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • Staff has drafted an RFP for a business analyst to help develop business requirements for these online trainings • Currently waiting for the RFP to be posted • Business requirements should be drafted before March, 2013 • Development on the modules will begin immediately once the Business Requirements are completed.

35. Workforce and Professional Development ECE Career Ladder: The Council will develop a career ladder for early care and education professionals. Also known as a career lattice or career pathway, career ladders 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. 

36. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • A draft Career Ladder was developed and was reviewed with the Council • Council members have decided to delay work on the Career Ladder until the Core Competencies are finished and approved

37. Workforce and Professional Development Compensation Study The 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.

38. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • We have contracted with the Child and Family Research Institute to conduct this study • Updates will be given during the invited testimony period

39. Workforce and Professional Development Higher Education Articulation Agreements The 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.

40. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • Staff and the Subcommittee drafted and posted an RFP for this project in August. • The Council just signed a contract with a vendor to conduct this project • Work will begin immediately

41. Workforce and Professional Development Assessing the Capacity and Effectiveness of Higher Education The Council will conduct an assessment of higher education, in regard to early childhood education degrees and professional certificates.

42. Workforce and Professional Development Updates: • Staff and the Subcommittee drafted and posted an RFP for this project in early September. • Staff conducted a pre-bid conference • The bid closes by the end of September • Staff will review and score proposals immediately

43. Workforce and Professional Development Download our workforce paper at: http://earlylearningtexas.org/tecpds.aspx

44. Invited SpeakersMonica Faulkner & Deanna Schexnayder

45. Open Testimony