Strong Foundations Matter SYMPOSIUM 2015 TOGETHER4CHILDREN

The Early Years Matter for Our Future M ARILOU H YSON, P H.D. E ARLY C HILDHOOD C ONSULTANT U NIVERSITY OF M ASSACHUSETTS B OSTON

What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas BUT... What happens in the early years doesn’t stay in the early years. The ripples move out. And together we can influence their impact.

The Impact of the Early Years for Babies and Toddlers 40% of babies and toddlers are in low quality programs (Halle et al., 2011; Zero to Three, 2009) Low quality caregiving environments can create harmful stress and insecure attachment. BUT Home visiting programs like the Nurse-Family Partnership can lead to positive cognitive and academic outcomes in later years (Olds et al., 2007)

The Impact of the Early Years for Preschoolers Most child care for preschoolers is mediocre, with less than 10% being truly excellent (Halle et al., 2011) BUT Good quality preschool has lasting benefits, even into the teenage years and adulthood (Vandell et al., 2010; Yoshikawa et al., 2013)

The Impact of the Early Years for Children Living in Poverty Children in poverty are more likely to attend low quality ECE programs or no programs at all (Peth- Pierce, 2002) BUT Comprehensive interventions can make a huge positive difference even after poor children grow up (Hyson & Tomlinson, 2014).

The Impact of the Early Years for Children Experiencing Stress and Violence “Toxic stress” in the early years has severe, long-term effects on learning, behavior, physical and mental health (Shonkoff, 2012) BUT Low income children who attended a comprehensive preschool program were 52% LESS likely to become abused or neglected than children without these supports (Reynolds & Robertson, 2003).

The Impact of the Early Years for Children with Disabilities Many children with disabilities don’t receive much-needed early intervention services (Natl. Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities 2013) BUT When children with disabilities are in high quality, inclusive programs, they benefit, as do their typically- developing classmates (Odom, Buysse, & 2011)

The Impact of the Early Years for Children with Challenging Behavior Young children who have severe, persistent CBs are likely to have both social and academic difficulties and be at risk of dropping out later on (TACSEI 2004). BUT High quality early interventions, such as those based on the Pyramid Model, can reduce CBs, improve self-regulation, and increase academic success (TACSEI, 2004).

The Impact of the Early Years for Children in Immigrant Families 43% of children in immigrant families—compared to 23% of non-immigrant children—never participate in a preschool program (Fortuny et al., 2009). BUT When children from immigrant families are enrolled in early childhood programs, their school readiness is improved, even more than for other children (Gormley et al., 2004).

So, What Needs To Happen? Professional Practices and Public Policies

Priorities for Professional Practices Together, we can work to help all early childhood professionals—directors, teachers, and others 1. Create inclusive, high quality environments that promote development and learning 2. Base program decisions on the best available evidence 3. Respond to every child as a respected individual 4. Collaborate with families and colleagues 5. Prevent and intervene early and well

Priorities for Public Policies Together, we can advocate for policies that 1. Increase investments in comprehensive services 2. Support evidence-based quality improvement 3. Support excellent professional development for directors, teachers, and other early childhood practitioners 4. Support program innovations, scale-up, and effective implementation 5. Support families so they can support their children 6. Reduce child care costs while compensating practitioners adequately

Together, YOU Are the Key to Strong Foundations and a Strong Future  For our children  For our families  For our education system  For our society

Thank You and Have a Wonderful Symposium !

CPPP. org Jennifer Lee, Research Associate, Center for Public Policy Priorities April 23, 2015

Texas is ranked the 43 rd best state to be a kid.

To be the #1 state for KIDS!

c

Health

27% of Texas kids (1.9 million) live in food-insecure households.

CACFP helps feed nearly 200,000 kids in more than 14,000 child care sites throughout Texas.

Texas is ranked 49 th for children with health insurance.

Child uninsured rates have decreased in Texas

“Welcome Mat” effect: Insure more parents, Insure more kids

Family of 4 making $24,500 (101% of the poverty line) No Medicaid for parents Access to subsidies Monthly Premium = $43 (2.2% of income) Kids covered through Medicaid

Family of 4 making $23,500 (96% of the poverty line) No Medicaid for parents No access to subsidies Monthly Premium = $440 (21.6% of income) Kids covered through Medicaid

Don’t insure more parents, Insure fewer kids NOT

women of childbearing age in Texas does not have health insurance.

babies in TX are born to women who receive late or no prenatal care, increasing the likelihood of health problems.

Close the Coverage Gap and expand health insurance options for families!

Child Poverty and Family Economic Security

Truth: 1 in 4 Texas kids lives in poverty.

Child poverty is pervasive throughout Texas

Texas Bexar Dallas Tarrant Travis 25% 24% 30% 22% 21% Child poverty differs by region

Texas has low parental unemployment rates and high child poverty rates

Why should I care?

Representing 90% of kids in Texas living apart from their parents in Texas live in informal or voluntary kinship care 253,000 kids TRUTH:

$93 $1,000 Monthly cash assistance One-time payment to grandparents 11,000 kids 648 families Available assistance is low and not accessible to caregivers

Provide more support for informal kinship caregivers.

Change the state law that prohibits Texas cities from setting their own minimum wage. Raise the minimum wage!

Make Texas THE BEST state for kids… and their hardworking families!

Education

TRUTH: “Texas’ future depends heavily on whether it meets the constitutional obligation to provide a general diffusion of knowledge… - Former Judge John Dietz, School Finance Case, District Court Ruling, August 28, 2014 Unfortunately, in recent years, Texas has defaulted on its constitutional promise.”

Why are Pre-K & early childhood so important?

Every dollar invested in Pre-K saves Texas a minimum of $3.50

“It’s easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” - Frederick Douglass

2 out of 10

Improve Pre-K quality standards and expand Pre-K to a full day for eligible kids.

Could be better.

To be the #1 state for KIDS!

Look Out for KIDS COUNT Data Center Webinar in April!

Center for Public Policy Priorities We believe in a Texas that offers everyone the chance to compete and succeed in life. We envision a Texas where everyone is healthy, well-educated, and financially

Center for Public Policy Priorities Use of this presentation The Center for Public Policy Priorities encourages you to reproduce and distribute these slides, which were developed for use in making public presentations. If you reproduce these slides, please give appropriate credit to CPPP. The data presented here may become outdated. For the most recent information or to sign up for our updates, visit our website. CPPP.org

TWC Child Care Services

Program Structure The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is the Lead Agency for the federal Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) TWC delegates the administration of workforce services and contracts with each of the state’s 28 Workforce Development Boards (Boards) to administer CCDF-funded child care services. State law prohibits Boards from directly delivering services. Therefore, Boards competitively procure child care contractors to provide child care services.

Program Structure Contractors perform the following services: determine eligibility for CCDF services; provide information to assist parents in making informed choices related to their children’s care; authorize child care subsidies with the provider each parent chooses; Reimburse child care providers; and implement services to improve the quality and availability of child care.

Performance Targets and actual performance for State Fiscal * ChoicesNon-ChoicesCombined SFY 14 TargetActualTargetActualTargetActual Average Children Per Day 7,3515,53392,40196,47199,752102,004 SFY 15 TargetActualTargetActualTargetActual Average Children Per Day 7,471 90,670 98,141

Subsidized Child Care in Texas Number of kids by age group Infants/ 0 – 17 mo. ( 10.56% of children in subsidized care) Toddler/ 18 – 35 mo. (18.44% of children in subsidized care) Preschool/ mo. (36.84% of children in subsidized care) School-age/ 72 mo yrs. (34.16% of children in subsidized care)

Subsidized Child Care in Texas Percent of providers participating 13% of regulated child care slots are filled by TWC-subsidized children 40% of ALL regulated child care facilities serve at least 1 TWC-subsidized child; – 63% of all child care centers; – 23% of all licensed child care homes; and – 20% of all registered child care homes.

Quality Initiatives In SFY 2014, the Commission approved $11.2 million for eight statewide quality initiatives: TRS Mentors and Assessors ($3.6 million) TRS Implementation ($600,000) Inclusion Training and TA to providers ($1.5 million) Child Care Professional Career Pathways—integrating Fast Start and Adult Education and Literacy programs ($2 million) Child Care Incentive and Quality Award Conference ($400,000) Pilots of individualized instruction and assessment tools ($2 million) Parent Portal ($100,000) Funding for providers serving military communities ($1 million)

Texas Rising Star Texas Rising Star (TRS) Provider Providers voluntarily exceed licensing requirements Tiered Reimbursements for Subsidized Children Approximately 1,150 child care providers or 17% percent of facilities providing subsidized child care are TRS certified FFY % of children served in TRS

HB376 House Bill 376 enacted by 83 rd Legislature  Tiered Reimbursement Rates for TRS Certified Providers  2% of Child Care Allocation for Quality Activities ($9.4 million)  Funding for TRS Mentors and Assessors  TRS Workgroup to Review TRS Criteria  TWC Develop Rules and Guidelines Based on TRS Workgroup Recommendations

Texas Rising Star TRS Categories (Rule ) Director and Caregiver Qualifications and Training Caregiver-Child Interactions Curriculum Nutrition and Indoor/Outdoor Activities Parent Involvement and Education

Texas Rising Star Implementation timeline March 2015: conduct statewide training for TRS assessors and mentors on new TRS program rules and TRS Guidelines April-August 2015: conduct assessments of current TRS September 1, 2015: New tiered rates for TRS Providers are effective.

Reauthorization First reauthorization since 1996; Provisions include HEALTH AND SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILD CARE PROVIDERS TRANSPARENT CONSUMER AND PROVIDER EDUCATION INFORMATION FAMILY-FRIENDLY ELIGIBILITY POLICIES ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF CHILD CARE

FY2015 Quality Initiatives In SFY 2015, the Commission approved: $1.5 million to improve access to infant and toddler care, and $6.4 million to assist child care providers in improving the quality of care and achieving TRS certification or attaining a higher TRS certification level.

Thank you Patricia A. Gonzalez Director, Technical Assistance and Child Care Texas Workforce Commission

Putting It All Together

Networking Social Hour 5:15 – 6:15 Rocky River Grill Embassy Suites Sponsored by

Strong Foundations Matter SYMPOSIUM 2015 TOGETHER4CHILDREN

Honoring Patricia Ayres

Thanks for All You Do On Behalf of Children and Families