1. STRONG MINDS NETWORK
INFORMATION SESSION DM DM

2. Children’s Services Council
AGENDA
Welcome
Introductions
Presentation:
Children’s Services Council
Strong Minds Network
Questions

3. Children’s Services Council: Who We Are
Children’s Services Council, a special district created by
Palm Beach County voters in 1986, provides leadership,
funding, evaluation, program and system
development on behalf of the county’s children
so they grow up healthy, safe, and strong.

4. CSC Guiding Principles
     
Primary prevention and early intervention
Targeting the earliest developmental stages
Theoretical integrity
Minimal sufficiency
Data driven and evidence-based
Continuous learning and improvement
High return on investment DM

5. Building an Early Childhood System of Care
Education and Outreach
Healthy Beginnings
Quality Child Care:
Early Education
Afterschool
Bridges
Professional Development
Program & System Performance
Data Systems

6. Palm Beach County’s QRIS Journey
1998, Quality Rating Improvement Systems (QRIS) considered best practice
2002, Palm Beach County pilot, 6 sites
2003, the system was named Quality Rating System, 40 sites
2006, Palm Beach County and 11 other counties in Florida, formed the Multi-County Collaborative to align the standards in Florida
System renamed Quality Counts (tri-county; Palm Beach County, Miami-Dade County, and Broward County.)
2014, Quality Counts had 210 sites serving approximately 11,000 children

7. Why a New System? New evidence & research Focus on child outcomes
Return on investment (ROI)
Feedback from national experts
Feedback from stakeholders
Most intentional high quality providers

8. Strong Minds Network

9. Strong Minds Vision and Mission
Children will have quality early educational experiences that will increase their chances of achieving school success and becoming productive members of society
Mission:
To use research and data to increase the quality of early care and education programs through integrated supports and resources offered to the early learning community, children and their families.
Goals:
Children are ready for school
To improve children’s learning and development
To improve teacher-child interactions
To improve parent engagement

10. Who’s Included Children: Birth-Five in Palm Beach County
Practitioners: working with children Birth-Five in Palm Beach County
Programs: publicly-funded
Includes: School Readiness, Early Head Start, Head Start
System Partners: Early Learning Coalition, Early Head Start/Head Start, Palm Beach State College, School District of Palm Beach County, Literacy Coalition, Family Central, The Children’s Forum, Healthy Beginnings, & Bridges

11. System Elements Pre-Entry/Eligibility/Annual Requirements
Navigation Support
Registry
Valid and Reliable Child & Program Assessments
Targeted Technical Assistance & Career Advising
Professional Development Opportunities (Formal, Informal, ACHIEVE, Scholarships)
Tiered Reimbursement Supplement

12. Pre-Entry Criteria
School Readiness Agreement or Head Start/Early Head Start Contract
In good standing* with: SR Agreement
VPK Agreement
HS/EHS Contract
Licensing
*In good standing is defined as no quality assurance/compliance plan within the last 12 months
No Class 1 and no more than two of the same Class 2 licensing violations in the past 12 months

13. Pre-Entry Criteria Agree to use GOLD Child Assessment System
Gold Seal Accreditation within three years of achieving In-Network status
All professional staff are active members of the Palm Beach County Early Childhood Registry

14. Application
Online application will be available beginning March 2, 2015 at:
Notification by within 15 days regarding status:
Ineligible
Assessment Pending

15. The Early Childhood Registry
The Registry is a professional development approval system that has been created to support and promote quality assurance, formal and informal courses, and assure trainer content knowledge. The Registry helps track formal and informal education and provides a basis for planning future professional development.

16. Active Registry Membership
Before applying to Strong Minds
User Manual available at
Documents (Direct Care Program Registration User Manual)
Register your site in the Registry system
Make sure all current staff join the Registry
Make sure the viewable list of staff along with career level, position title, and registry status is accurate and up to date
Contact: Kimesha House or LaCandice James

17. Program Assessments

18. Program Assessment Program Assessments for Strong Minds
Preschool CLASS – classrooms with children 3-5
Infant Toddler Environment Rating Scale(ITERS-R)– classrooms with children 0-2 ½
Toddler CLASS – optional for classrooms with children 2 ½-3
Family Child Care Environment Rating Scale (FCCERS-R) – for Family Child Care Centers
for more information

19. Program Assessment Program Assessment Protocol
50 % of preschool classrooms assessed
50% of infant / toddler classrooms assessed
Classrooms randomly drawn by assessment staff prior to arrival at the site

20. Network Status
In-Network
Promising
Emerging

21. Minimum Assessment Scores
In-Network Status
Minimum Assessment Scores
(Tier 1)
(Tier 2)
Available Supports
4.0 on identified items of ITERS-R/FCCERS-R
*CLASS Domains:
5.0 Emotional Support
4.0 Classroom Organization
1.5 Instructional Support
 *not applicable to FCCH
5.5 on identified items on ITERS-R or FCCERS-R
6.5 Emotional Support
5.5 Classroom Organization
3.0 Instructional Support
*not applicable to FCCH
Targeted Technical Assistance
Professional Development
Career Advising
ACHIEVE Salary Supplement
Full access to SEEK Scholarship
Tiered Reimbursement Supplements

22. Minimum Assessment Scores
Promising Status
Minimum Assessment Scores
Available Supports
on identified items of ITERS-R/FCCERS-R
*CLASS Domains:
Emotional Support
Classroom Organization
Instructional Support  
*not applicable to FCCH
Limited targeted technical assistance
Professional Development
Career Advising
ACHIEVE Salary Supplement
SEEK Scholarship

23. Emerging Status Assessment Scores Available Supports
Less than a 3.5 on identified items of ITERS-R/FCCERS-R
*CLASS Domains:
Less than 4.5 on Emotional Support
Less than 3.5 on Classroom Organization
*not applicable to FCCH 
Limited targeted technical assistance
Professional Development
Career Advising
SEEK Scholarship

24. Network Eligibility & Supports

25. Technical Assistance

26. Technical Assistance
TA Specialists provide technical assistance to programs with In- Network and Promising status in the following targeted areas:
Accreditation
Assessment and Documentation
Behavior Management / Special Needs
Curriculum, Planning and Instruction
Interactions
TA supports can be offered on site, via phone, virtually, and in groups

27. Career Advising
To provide individual professional development guidance and support to the Early Childhood Workforce of Palm Beach County
Strong Minds Network programs are assigned a Career Advisor
Appointment, extended hours, walk-in during business hours, on-site
One on one, face to face, through technology and group settings
Tutoring services

28. Professional Development
Registry approved community based training
Informal/non-credit courses
College Credit Certificates
AS Degree in Early Childhood Education
Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education
Master Degree in Early Childhood Education
Early Childhood degrees at other institutions of Higher Education

29. SEEK Scholarships *Specific Eligibility requirements must be met
Available to staff* in licensed Early Childcare Sites
GED Test Fee
Translation/Evaluation of Foreign Higher Education degrees
PBSC Test Fees (PERT, TABE, COMPASS)
ECPC/FCCPC coursework ▪ Director Credential coursework
Non-Credit Coursework (HEO) ▪Community Based Training
Associate Degree in ECE
(including Prep, General Education and Language course)
Required books/materials for coursework
*Specific Eligibility requirements must be met

30. SEEK Scholarships
In addition the following are also available to Strong Minds programs (any status)
Bachelor Degree in ECE
Master’s Degree – up to 12 ECE Credits
Handbook, Deadlines and Application Forms available at
*Specific Eligibility requirements must be met

31. ACHIEVE Salary Supplements
Available to staff*in Strong Minds sites-
In-Network and Promising Status only
*Specific Eligibility
requirements must be met

32. What is Tiered Reimbursement?
Strong Minds Tiered Reimbursement Supplement Program issues differential payments to programs that participate in the county’s voluntary quality child care network and meet In-Network Status. The purpose of the Tiered Reimbursement Supplement is to assist in offsetting the cost of quality for high performing programs.

33. Tiered Reimbursement Supplement
(Daily reimbursement Rate)
Tier 2
High Needs Area 6%
($1.74) 8%
($2.32)
Not in High Needs Area (Publicly Funded)
Not in High Needs Area (Private Pay) 4%
($1.16)
High Needs= High Poverty Zip Code & High Poverty Census Tract Area

34. GOLD Child Assessment System
WHAT IS IT?
-Teaching Strategies GOLD is an authentic and formative early childhood assessment tool.
-TS GOLD requires early education practitioners to observe, document, and assess the demonstrated abilities of children from birth to Kindergarten across several areas of development.
- It is designed to support a cycle of ongoing observation, documentation, assessment, planning, and reporting.

35. GOLD Child Assessment System
What supports are available for the GOLD Program participants?
GOLD Program – application available to programs with In-Network status at:
GOLD Introductory Training and ongoing TA provided upon request by the Assessment Team at the ELCPBC. Additional supports offered by ELCPBC: Webinars, Newsletters, GOLD Provider Meetings, Video Tutorials, and Online Resources.
Technology Support - Provided by NonProfits First
Informal trainings at Palm Beach State College
Ongoing TA provided upon request by Strong Minds Technical Assistance Specialists.

36. For More Information
Please visit the website of the Children’s Services Council at: Information Session PowerPoint Presentation Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Strong Minds Network Provider Manual Please Contact Strong Minds Navigators at: