Overview
This year’s Fall Leadership Institute offers a series of unique features designed to make the most of your time in DC. Download the complete Fall Leadership Institute agenda The features include: -
A series of three free seminars for those of you who can arrive Monday morning based off of suggestions from senior level administration officials, thought-leaders in the early learning community, and you. They focus on program governance, the Affordable Care Act, and Managing Program stress. -
State and Regional Caucus meetings that will give you the opportunity to connect and network with other leaders from your state and region. -
An afternoon of nine split sessions built for smaller more focused discussions and to cover more of your interests. -
A rally on Capitol Hill that will inspire, remind, and reinforce the importance of Head Start and the grassroots power of our community. These unique features combined with our full schedule of the latest updates from leaders in Washington and in states will make for a thought-provoking, inspiring, and entertaining Institute! We hope you enjoy.
Schedule at a Glance
Click here to view a quick rundown of the schedule
Sunday 9/29/2013 - Pre-Institutes
Full Day (9 am - 5 pm) Lunch on your own (12:30 - 1:30 pm) - Developing and Utilizing your Community Assessments
- Understanding the CLASS Instructional Support Domain and Providing Feedback to Teachers
- Governance: Effective Practices for Program Leadership
- Program Monitoring and Management for Impact
Monday (9/30) - Free Seminars and Opening Sessions 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM Training Seminars (Included with full Institute Registration)
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Affordable Care Act and Head Start 101 (9 am - 10:30 am)
In a short few months, the bulk of the Affordable Care Act will be implemented by the Department of Health and Human Services. While you probably have heard about the new Marketplaces, the home visiting program, and several other key aspects of the ACA, this seminar will focus on the relevance and impact of the ACA on Head Start and early learning programs. Bring your questions and be sure to join the Chief Medical Officer at ACF for this important conversation!
Presented by: - Dr. George Askew, Chief Medical Officer, Administration for Children and Families, Department for Health and Human Services
- Katherine Beckman, Ph.D. MPH, Senior Policy Advisor for Early Childhood Health and Development, Administration for Children and Families, Department for Health and Human Services
Compliance, Governance, and Beyond (9 am - Noon)
Presented by Brian Tipton, R. Brian Tipton, Esq. Sasser, Sefton, Brown, Tipton & Davis, P.C.
With the implementation of recompetition and changes in monitoring philosophy, having a high-performing agency is more important than ever. Increasingly, governance is viewed as the critical element for compliance and as a proxy for overall agency quality. This session takes a detailed look at recent compliance issues and trends with a special emphasis on the role of governance. However, the workshop also looks beyond governance to find the connections to other areas and systems of concern based on both data and experience. This session will provide practical information and advice to help agencies avoid compliance issues related to governance and beyond. -
Fostering Resilience in Your Staff and Program (9 am - Noon)
Presented by Paul A. LeBuffe, Director, Devereux Center for Resilient Children
www.CenterForResilientChildren.org
Early care and education professionals have vitally important but stressful careers. Charged with responsibility for caring for, educating, and nurturing the healthy development of children, the staff’s social-emotional well-being and resilience is often taken for granted. In addition to jeopardizing the staff’s adult development, the lack of attention to resilience can also place the agency at risk. This three hour workshop will discuss the nature and importance of resilience, how staff can promote their own resilience, how program managers and directors can create a resilience-enhancing workplace, and finally how the agency itself can become more resilient. This workshop will focus on the translation of research on resilience into practical, effective strategies. During this workshop you will learn how to: - Accurately define resilience and describe the risk-protective factor model for understanding resilience.
- Explain why the promotion of resilience is critical for the healthy development of the children in the program, the adults who care for and teach those children, and executive leadership, supervisory and management staffs.
- Support yourself and your staff in assessing and enhancing their own resilience.
- Understand the characteristics of organizational resilience and how to assess and enhance their agency’s resilience.
2:45 PM - 4 PM: The Trajectory of the President’s Early Learning Proposal
In February 2013, President Obama announced the foundation of a broad plan to expand access and increase the quality of our nation’s early learning system. The plan, based on partnerships with states, local partnerships, and a diverse delivery system, has started to slowly take shape with more details and specifics being discussed and announced. But in a Congress of inaction, how does the Administration expect to get the proposal passed? What are some of the specifics and what do they mean for Head Start? Hear answers to these questions and more from our panel of Administration leaders who will be and have been making the decisions about the future of the President’s proposal. Presented by - Libby Doggett, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Early Learning, US Department of Education
- Linda Smith, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Interdepartmental Liaison for Early Childhood Development, Department of Health and Human Services
- Roberto Rodriguez, Special Assistant to the President for Education Policy, Domestic Policy Council, White House (Invited)
4:15 PM - 5:15 PM: The Next 50 Years of Head Start and Early Head Start — Kicking off the Conversation for 2015 Reauthorization
As Head Start approaches its 50th anniversary, it is clear that we look very different from the first programs that opened up in the summer of 1965. However, even as the programs evolved, the core elements — local design, comprehensive services, parent- family engagement, and federal-to-local funding — remain unchanged. With conversa- tions about a reauthorization around the corner, it’s time for us to begin to revisit those core elements and the changes that have been made over the years. We need to start thinking about what changes we want to see made and how effective those changes implemented after the 2007 reauthorization have been. This session will start to explore those questions and more. Presented by - Linda Smith, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Interdepartmental Liaison for Early Childhood Development, Department of Health and Human Services
5:30 PM - 6:30 PM State/Regional Caucuses
The State/Regional Caucuses are an opportunity to meet, network, and get to know the other attendees from your state and region. (Please check the sheet in your FLI folder for your state/region’s room location.) Tuesday 10/1/2013 - Institute Sessions
8:30 AM - 9:45 AM: Federal Budget and Sequestration – What is next? Will there be a Continuing Resolution forever? Is there any hope?
Without a doubt, the number one concern facing Head Start and the majority of federally funded programs is the sequester. The sequester has turned out to be extremely painful for Head Start children and families. While our community has done a tremendous job highlighting the impact of the sequester, it seems that most of our advocacy work is falling on deaf ears as Congress still has not made progress to resolving the sequester. So what is next? Will Congress come to any decision in the near future or will they just keep extending current funding (Continuing Resolution) forever? What does the big budget picture look like and how can our community influence it? Moderated by one of the co-founders of the Non-Defense Discretionary United coalition of coalitions, this panel will seek to discuss these questions and help get a better understanding for how to plan for the months and years to come. Panelists - Martha Coven, Associate Director for Education, Income Maintenance, and Labor Programs, Office of Management and Budget (Invited)
- Jared Bernstein, Senior Fellow, Center for Budget and Policy Priorities
10:00 AM - 11:15 AM: The Future of Early Learning - Positioning Head Start in the States
With the push for an increased federal role and investment in early learning, the importance and role of states has often been overlooked. However, as the federal proposal has been met with skepticism and questions, many states are moving ahead with pre-k and other early learning priorities of their own, including several that are built with Head Start at their foundation. We know that all states are different and what has worked in one state may not translate in another, but the ways that the Head Start community positioned itself in many of these states provide important lessons as your state begins to think about creating their own early learning system (or to help your state start thinking about it). This panel will focus on the lessons learned about the best way to position Head Start in the states. 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM: Conversation with the Office of Head Start
With sequestration, the Designation Renewal System, and the implementation of several other new policies, the Office of Head Start has been quite busy over the past few months. This session will serve as an open dialogue with the OHS Director, Yvette Sanchez Fuentes, in order to understand all of these changes, get a sense of where OHS is trying to go, and ask any questions that you may have. Other OHS senior staff will also be present to answer your questions and ease your concerns. Presented by - Yvette Sanchez Fuentes, Director, Office of Head Start
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM: LUNCH (ON YOUR OWN) 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM: Hot Topics #1
Evaluation of the Designation Renewal System - Last year, the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) selected the Urban Institute and the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute to carry out a study of the Designation Renewal System to examine the validity of DRS and its role in improving quality in Head Start and Early Head Start. For this session, the project leaders and staff from OPRE will be joining us for an overview of the study and the role Head Start programs can play in addressing these important questions about the impact of DRS. Findings from the study will likely contribute to important conversations about DRS and ways to promote quality in Head Start for years to come. Presented by - Amy Madigan, Federal Project Manager, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, US Dept. of HHS
- Teresa Derrick-Mills, Project Director and Principal Investigator, Urban Institute
- Margaret (Peg) Burchinal, Co-Principal Investigator, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, UNC-Chapel Hill
- Iheoma Iruka, Co-Principal Investigator, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, UNC-Chapel Hill
Communications and Messaging Training - For some time, we have heard critics who make small, yet powerful comments like ‘Head Start doesn’t work’ or ‘Head Start is a waste of federal money.’ While we know we these claims are false, their short simple messages often trump veritable research-based arguments. Additionally, between the sequester and DRS, uncertainty and stress are rampant among staff and parents - no matter how hard we try to fight it. But what if we told you that the way to deal with both of these concerns, and many more, is actually quite simple - stronger communications and simpler messages. This session, led by the international leaders in corporate communications, will offer insight into the power of messaging. It will also help y ou improve your skills about how to improve our communities’ and your program’s communication ability — both internally and externally. Presented by: - Maslansky + Partners Inc.
Early Head Start and Child Care Partnerships - One component of President Obama's early learning proposal is an expansion of Early Head Start-Child Care partnerships, yet these partnerships with family child care and center-based child care served fewer than 8,000 children last year. This session will explore a conversation among communities and states that have experience with the model about what partnerships entail, how they vary locally, and where the opportunities for growth lie. Presented by: - Rick Mockler, Executive Director, California Head Start Association
- Vanessa Rich, Deputy Commissioner for Children Services, City of Chicago
- Camilla Rand, Director, Contra Costa County Community Services Bureau
3:15 PM - 4:15 PM: Hot Topic Sessions #2
Positioning Head Start Nationally: NHSA’s Strategy on the President’s Early Learning Proposal - Even before the proposal was announced during the State of the Union Speech, NHSA has been working with the White House, Congress, the Department of Health and Human Services, and our coalition partners to ensure that the proposal will only build upon what we know works — Head Start. Our efforts have seen the tide change drastically with Head Start positioned as the leader for what children and families need to succeed. However, where do we go from here? And how can we ensure Head Start remains in the leadership role nationally. This session will provide an opportunity to directly address the challenges, concerns, and potential paths NHSA sees for the proposal. Presented by: - Tommy Sheridan, Senior Manager, Government Affairs, National Head Start Association
How to talk with Hill Staff - Advocacy Training - Meetings with Members of Congress and their staff can be intimidating, exciting, frustrating, and, hopefully, informative. Because they meet with so many different groups and people, how can we ensure that we are the most effective and maximize our time with Members and their staff? This session, led by a real Hill staffer, will discuss what to bring, how to make the best points (and have them remembered), and everything else you need to know to have a successful Hill visit! Presented by: - Therese Magnuson, Vice President, Beacon Consulting Group, Inc.
- Lisa Stewart, Executive Vice President, Beacon Consulting Group, Inc.
- Nicole Kunko, Former Congressional Staffer, Committee on Appropriations
Partners for Success - Head Start and PreK Models - The President's Preschool for All proposal addresses the need for more children to access high quality early learning settings at age four - but the means of expanding access is an on-going conversation. NHSA's recent policy report explored models of Head Start and Pre-K collaboration from 11 states as examples of how mixed delivery systems could include Head Start. This conversation will build on that work with speakers from four states sharing their experiences and discussing future opportunities. Presented by: - Maureen Short, President, Oregon Head Start Association
- Robin Bozek, Executive Director, Michigan Head Start Association
- Lucy McClintic, Director, Capital Area Community Services, Inc. Head Start (MI)
- Dr. Marvin Hogan, Executive Director, Friends of Children of Mississippi
4:30 PM - 5:30 PM: Hot Topic Sessions #3
Financing Facilities in a Difficult Funding Environment - Every year, when NHSA puts out its policy agenda survey, facilities and funding their improvement always arrive in the top 2-3 most important policy priorities. Yet we continue to face cuts and tight budgets, which make it quite difficult for programs to achieve significant capital development. This session will discuss some alternatives and some tools that programs can use to plan for and finance facility development despite the challenging and difficult funding environment. Presented by: - Ann Linehan, Deputy Director, Office of Head Start
- Connecticut Institute for Families, Inc, Danbury, Connecticut
Conversations with Authorizing Committee Staff - The Senate’s HELP committee and the House’s Education and Workforce committee are the two Congressional committees with oversight over Head Start, child care, and other education and health programs. While neither committee has considered legislation on Head Start yet this Congress, it is clear that early learning is on their radar. For this session, we will be joined by representatives of both committees to talk about their plans for the coming months and to hear from you! Presented by: - Scott Groginsky, Education Policy Advisor, Minoriy, Committee on Education and Workforce, Congressman George Miller, United States House of Representatives
- Mario Cardona, Professional Staff Member, Majority, HELP Committee, Senator Tom Harkin, United States Senate
Home-Visiting and the Future of MIECHV - The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program included in the Affordable Care Act expanded home visiting access over the past 5 years through various models including Early Head Start. As the President's proposal calls for significantly greater investment in home visiting, there may be additional opportunities to reach infants and toddlers with Early Head Start services. Join us for a discussion of the future of MIECHV and home visiting. Presented by: - Deborah Frazier, Executive Director, National Healthy Start Association
- Karen Kavanaugh, Director, Home Visiting, The Pew Charitable Trusts
- David Jones, Home-Visiting Specialist, City of Chicago, Office of Head Start, Administration for Children and Families, HHS
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM: Networking Reception
Sponsored by:  Wednesday 10/2/2013 - Day on the Hill
9:00 AM: Buses Depart  U.S. Capitol Grounds
October 2, 2013
10 am Join hundreds on Capitol Hill - stand with Head Start against the sequester! Tell Congress with a strong united voice to end the sequester now before any more at-risk children lose their seats in classrooms.
11:30 AM - 5:30 PM: Capitol Hill Visits - Schedule on your own View a checklist of items that will help you plan for your Capitol Hill Visits!
5:00 PM - 6:30 PM (OPTIONAL): Designation Renewal System Listening Session Round One of DRS is in the books and the grants for Round Two will be due a few weeks after the Institute. This optional listening session with NHSA staff will provide an opportunity to share some of the lessons of successful grantees and offer suggestions as to how to best navigate the often-turbulent DRS process. Presented by: - Yasmina Vinci, NHSA
- Tommy Sheridan, NHSA
- Emmalie Dropkin, NHSA
Thursday 10/3/2013 - Institute Sessions and Closing
8:30 AM - 11:15 AM Update from the Office of Head Start — 5-Year Grants and Monitoring Updates
The final morning of the Institute will feature an update session hosted by senior staff from the Office of Head Start. The topics discussed will include an in-depth discussion of the new five-year grant process and the latest new monitoring system revisions. There will also be ti me for questions and answers. Presented by: - Yvette Sanchez Fuentes, Director, Office of Head Start
- Ann Linehan, Deputy Director
- Ross Weaver, Director and Quality Assurance Division, Office of Head Start
- Adia Brown, Social Science Specialist (Monitoring Lead), Office of Head Start
- Colleen Rathgeb, Director Policy and Planning Division, Office of Head Start
11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Telling Our Story - The Powerful Voices of Head Start Alumni From Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez to businessman and veteran Chuck Mills to the newly appointed head of the Ford Foundation Darren Walker, the lives and successes of Head Start alumni tell our story better than anyone else. NHSA has embarked on a massive alumni outreach campaign to document and identify the more than 27 million Head Start alumni working, learning, and supporting communities across our nation. The Institute will close this year by hearing some of these powerful stories and how you can help tell our story. Presented by: - Sam Stein, Political Reporter, Huffington Post
- Cedric Lawson, Field Associate, Leadership Conference on Civil rights & Head Start Alumnus
- Caroline Adams, Alumni Advocacy Associate, National Head Start Association
Closing Remarks by Yasmina Vinci, Executive Director, National Head Start Association |
