1 Making a Commitment to Innovation: Supporting Families Through Effective Service Integration 2005 OSEP National Early Childhood Conference February 7, 2005 Corinne W. Garland Suzanne Bronheim Margaret Ernst

2 GOAL  To create a seamless local system, eliminating both gaps and duplication in services for infants and toddlers, birth to three, with disabilities, delays in development, or who are at-risk and for their families.

3 Partners are members of a Preschool Task Force appointed by city and county government that represented the following: –Public school administrative staff –Community and social service agencies –Health and mental health agencies –Head Start and Community Action Agency –Child Development Resources (Part C and EHS provider) –Family members

4  Preschool Task Force generated recommendations at a policy level.  Implementation recommendations continue to be made by a work group made up of: –Program managers –Providers –Family members

5 Accomplishments to Date

6 Accomplishments  Consolidation of all services under one administrative system  Leveraging local funds to draw down additional EHS funds in 1:4 ratio  Attracting a variety of public and private resources based on system efficiency

7 Accomplishments  Single point of entry to all infant and toddler services: 566-TOTS line and Spanish language line  Single application for all infant and toddler services.

8 Accomplishment  Consistent policies and timelines for: - Referral - Screening - Assessment - Development of written service plans  Development of consistent policies and procedures for public awareness, development of Family Service Plans, and transition

9 Accomplishments  Blended services for: –Play groups –Parent groups –Transportation  Cost accounting system for blended services

10 Accomplishment  Development of a single data base that will be able to generate reports required by multiple funders: –Local Part C lead agency (Colonial CSB) –State agencies (DMHMRSAS & CHIP of VA) –Local government –Two United Ways –Head Start Bureau

11 WORK IN PROGRESS  Continuing to communicate the vision to all stakeholders  Organizational changes to support supervision of blended services  Elimination of salary inequities  Training in reflective supervision for all cluster coordinators and area specialists  Adding child/family outcome measures to database

12 Parent Perspective (Margaret Ernst)

13 PUBLIC POLICY CHALLENGES  State: IFSP form as a barrier to the development of a single written plan for all families  State: Part C Ability to Pay policy requires billing of families based on 1040 form vs. Head Start requirement that families not be charged for EHS  State and Federal: Differences (between Part C and EHS) in age at which transition is required

14 PUBLIC POLICY CHALLENGES  State: 566-TOTS used as central point of entry  Federal: EHS requirement for 90-minute home visit vs. typical Part C 60-minute home visit  Federal: Reauthorization of IDEA, Head Start Act, TANF and CCDBG and resulting changes

15 OTHER CHALLENGES  Communication barriers among staff of different services  Lack of trust  Misperceptions about skill levels of providers in different service systems  Real differences in skills  Communicating systems change

16 Challenges (cont’d)  Generating funds in hostile environment for unserved children and families  Eliminating gaps and duplication in services which have not yet been integrated for children, 3-5  Turnover among interagency staff – both leadership and providers - creating inconsistencies in vision and expectations within membership of task force

17 QUESTIONS and ANSWERS