NHSA Update Week of April 30, 2010
Date Posted: 04/28/2010
Week of April 30, 2010
Dear Friends:
Please read this email and share it with others in your network. It contains a Call to Action, an NHSA Update, a Legislative Update, an Administrative Update, and some Additional Resources just for you!
NHSA UPDATE AT A GLANCE
- Call To Action
- Give to Dollar Per Child
- Call Your Senator
- NHSA Update
- NHSA’s 37th Annual Head Start Conference Is Here!
- Annual Head Start Conference Policy and Research Events
- NHSA Announces Ed Condon as New NHSA Director of Affiliate Relations
- NHSA Members to Participate in Children’s Leadership Council Fly-In
- NHSA Advocacy and Training Activity
- Head Start Alumni Needed for a High Profile Initiative
- Legislative Update
- The Budget: First Steps
- S. 3206 – “Keep Our Educators Working Act of 2010”
- Administrative Update
- U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Seek Input from State Agencies on Early Learning
- Resources for You
- Head Start Legal Advisory Service Webinar: The Scoop on Non-Federal Share
- Head Start Legal Advisory Service Webinar: Head Start Eligibility
CALL TO ACTION
Give to Dollar Per Child
NHSA would like to give a big thanks to all of the programs who have donated to the Dollar per Child Campaign ("DPC") so far.
This is a special reminder for your program to send in its DPC funds in time for our Annual Conference beginning May 3, 2010 – remember, this is when public presentations will be made to the NHSA Campaign. Make sure your State’s contributions are at the top of the list!
As you know, the funds from Dollars per Child help NHSA pay for all of our legislative efforts, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Head Start Appropriations, Early Learning Challenge Fund, and other legislative efforts. Your support of the DPC Campaign is vital to NHSA's advocacy efforts on behalf of the Head Start Community. We cannot do our work without your support!
Our work is far from done. With an ever-challenging budget situation in Washington, the struggle to preserve the gains of the ARRA will undoubtedly be even more strenuous in the coming years. So don't wait!!! Please send your contributions, whatever amount you can afford, whether it is $1 per child, $5 per child, or $10 per child. You can even easily donate online on our website.
Dollar per Child funds will ensure that NHSA can continue to lead the way in all of the future advocacy efforts coming up - from regulatory issues with the Office of Head Start, to additional fiscal year appropriations, to the next Head Start Act reauthorization, which is not far off. Remember, raise your hand! Use your words! Together we can make a difference.
NHSA continues to work for you and with you on your behalf on matters of importance to the Head Start community.
Call Your Senator
As we mentioned last week, Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) circulated a “Dear Colleague” Letter requesting a $1 billion increase for Head Start and a $1 billion increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (“CCDBG”) in the FY 2011 Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill, in support of the President’s Budget. Thanks in part to your hard work and encouragement, 33 members of the Senate signed on to the Dodd/Snowe letter!
Please join us in thanking the following Senators for their dedication and sign-on, and be sure to ask them for their continued support for Head Start and Early Head Start children, their families, and community:
Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Max Baucus (D-MT), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Roland W. Burris (D-IL), Benjamin Cardin (D-MD), Robert Casey (D-PA), Chris Dodd (D-CT), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Russell Feingold (D-WI), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Al Franken (D-MN), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Tim Johnson (D-SD), John Kerry (D-MA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Carl Levin (D-MI), Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Robert Menedez (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jack Reed (D-RI), John Rockefeller, IV (D-WV), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Tom Udall (D-NM), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
Are your state’s Senators on this list? Contact your Senators, call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 or if you'd like to email them, go to: www.senate.gov and click on your Senator's website. Additionally, contact your Representative by going to www.house.gov and click on your Representative's website. On each website there is a contact or feedback form which will allow you to email him/her directly. Your calls and emails to our members of Congress are critical! Tell them how important their support is to making sure all children are ready for life!
NHSA UPDATE
NHSA's 37th Annual Head Start Conference is Here!
Our bags are packed and we are ready for our trip to Dallas, Texas for this year's Head Start Conference, Reaching Higher! We are thrilled so many of you are joining us! For those of you who have been on the fence, it’s time to hop off and sign up! With over 200 educational sessions, there is something for everyone. We hope you make the most of next week - be sure to take part in all of our informational sessions, innovative presentations, and celebrate all that makes Head Start great! We can’t wait to share great ideas and practical tips for improving your classroom and your program.
Additionally, don’t miss the pre-conference Special Tracks! Sign up today to ensure that one of these two-day intensive sessions put you and your program on the fast track to success. They’ll give you the opportunity to hear interactive and engaging presentations from some exceptional presenters.
For Special Tracks Information, please click here.
For more information and to register, please visit the event website here.
Annual Training Conference Policy and Research Events
We will be holding a number of policy and research events at the conference. These events include:
- Policy Luncheon: Dr. Sonya Anderson, Vice President for National Affairs at the First Five Year’s Fund, will speak about the value of Head Start as well as provide an update on early childhood developments in the U.S. Congress. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) has also been invited to speak. The Policy Luncheon will be from Noon to 2 pm on Friday, May 7.
- Research Luncheon: Noted public policy expert, Dr. Jens Ludwig of the University of Chicago will be discussing "What Do We Know about Head Start's Impacts on Children?" The Research Luncheon will be from Noon - 2 pm on Wednesday, May 5.
- Daily Focus Forums: The Daily Focus Forums are unique opportunities to hear and share innovative perspectives on topics that matter most to you, including:
New Early Head Start Grantee Issues
Edward (Ted) Waters, Esq., Managing Partner, Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLPLillian Sugarman, Director of the Early Head Start National Resource Center, ZERO TO THREE
Head Start and Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
Mary Baskett, Executive Director, Kansas Head Start Association
Linda Broyles, Director, SEK-CAP Head StartDr. Robert Morton, Superintendent, Coffeyville School District, Coffeyville, Kansas
Jim McDaniel Superintendent, Kaw Valley School District, St. Mary's Kansas
Head Start, State Pre-K, and Child Care Perspectives on State Advisory Councils. Suzanne Burnette, New Jersey Head Start State Collaboration Director, New Jersey Head Start State Collaboration OfficeRichard Gonzalez, Senior Advisor for State Advisory Councils, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human ServicesJohn Gasko, Ph.D., Chair, Texas State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care
Lauri Morrison-Frichtl, Executive Director, Illinois Head Start AssociationRhonda Paver, Executive Director/Founder/Owner, Stepping Stone SchoolStephanie Rubin, Esq., Senior Officer, Campaigns, Pew Center on the States
The New Language of Head Start
Zoë Beckerman, Esq., Partner, Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP and Managing Principal, FT Solutions LLCYasmina Vinci, Executive Director, NHSA
Home Visiting Programs
C. Robin Britt, Executive Director, Guilford Child Development
Peggy Hill, Chief Strategic Relations Officer, Nurse Family Partnership
Hazel Mallory, Program Director, SIUE Head Start/Early Head Start
John Schlitt, Pew Center on the States
Susan Stepleton, Ph.D., President and CEO, National Center for Parents as Teachers
Rural Issues
Linda Broyles, Director, SEK-CAP Head Start
Cindy Huey, Director of Children's Services, DAEOC
Lois Butler, President, Nebraska Head Start AssociationImproving Skills of Seasonal, Migrant, American Indian and Alaskan Native Head Start TeachersDennis DeMers, Chief Executive Officer, Tri-Valley Opportunity Council Inc.Guadalupe Cuesta, Director, National Migrant/Seasonal Head Start Collaboration OfficeJose Martinez, Director, MSHS – Riverside County Office of Education
Creating a Joint Position Statement on Response to Intervention (RTI) in Early ChildhoodCamille Catlett, Investigator, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute
Maternal DepressionBen Allen, Ph.D., Public Policy and Research Director, NHSAKristy Cox, STG International
NHSA Announces Ed Condon as New NHSA Director of Affiliate Relations
NHSA is thrilled to announce that Ed Condon (formerly of the Low Income Investment Fund and prior Executive Director of the California Head Start Association) has agreed to join our team as the new Director of Affiliate Relations. In this position, initially funded by a recent grant from the WK Kellogg Foundation, Ed will be working with State and Regional Head Start Associations to expand operations and build systems related to professional development, communications/marketing and advocacy efforts in alignment with NHSA's strategic goals. Please join us in welcoming Ed to the NHSA family and back to the Head Start fold!
NHSA Members to Participate in Children’s Leadership Council Fly-In
The Children’s Leadership Council (“CLC”), a coalition of child advocates from over 50 leading national policy and advocacy organizations (including NHSA), has selected seven members of the Head Start community to participate in a DC fly-in. During the fly-in, the CLC aims to focus on budget issues and child nutrition reauthorization. We are very excited the CLC is highlighting our field and look forward to sharing with child advocates the importance of Head Start and Early Head Start for our children, families, and programs throughout the nation!
For more information on the Children’s Leadership Council, please visit http://www.childrensleadershipcouncil.org/.
NHSA Advocacy and Training Activity
Yasmina Vinci, NHSA’s Executive Director, and Ben Allen, NHSA’s Public Policy and Research Director, made several presentations at the Pennsylvania Head Start Association (PHSA) Spring Conference. Yasmina spoke to the PHSA Board of Directors about NHSA’s policy agenda and made a presentation to conference attendees about communicating the new language of Head Start. Ben presented on research demonstrating that Head Start works.
In addition to their trip to Pennsylvania, Yasmina has had several important meetings over the past two weeks. She and her team have met with congressional staff, Office of Head Start administrators, White House officials, and other leaders of allied national organizations about several different and important topics. These meetings have proved to be quite successful as NHSA continues to ensure that the Head Start community’s voice is heard in Washington! Yasmina also participated as a panelist on Advocacy and Collaboration at the Policy Forum organized by the National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Association.
Head Start Alumni Needed for a High Profile Initiative
We are still looking for great alumni! Are you or someone you know a Head Start graduate with a success story to tell? NHSA is looking for stellar Head Start Alums to feature in an upcoming project. Please take a minute to nominate yourself or someone you know who was made ready for life through Head Start by contacting Tom Sheridan at NHSA at tsheridan@nhsa.org.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
The Budget: First Steps
Last week, we gave you the “snap shot view” as to Capitol Hill activities. As we mentioned then, some of the major items on the Congressional “to-do list” include next year’s budget and appropriations, jobs and employment, and child nutrition programs.
Congress has wasted no time diving into its agenda. The Senate took the first step in the budget process last week. On April 22, 2010, the Senate Budget Committee voted 12-10 to pass its FY2011 budget.
Senate and House budgets provide comprehensive funding rather than line-item program-by-program funding levels like the President’s budget and there are a few key items of note:
- The Senate Committee’s budget would provide $1.124 trillion to fund discretionary programs. (The President’s budget proposed $1.128 -- $4 billion more than the Senate Committee.)
- As expected, “non-security” funding would be frozen for a three-year period with no inflation adjustments (This is consistent with the President’s budget). However, this is not a program by program freeze, because some programs can still be increased within the overall freeze.
- Importantly, the Senate Committee’s budget “assumes additional investments in early childhood education programs, such as Head Start, which have long-term economic benefits by yielding savings in reduced social costs.”
- You can review the Chairman’s Mark and other documents at: http://budget.senate.gov/democratic/.
So what’s next? It is possible the resolution will come to the Senate floor for a vote before the Memorial Day recess. In the House, we’re still waiting to learn whether the Budget Committee will draft a budget to be brought to the floor. As we mentioned previously, some years Congress doesn’t enact a proper budget and instead, action moves directly to the Appropriations Committees. Stay tuned!
S. 3206 ? “Keep Our Educators Working Act of 2010”
Senator Harkin (D-IA), along with 16 other Senators recently introduced a bill, S. 3206, titled the “Keep Our Educators Working Act of 2010” that would, if enacted, establish a $23 billion emergency education jobs fund through the Department of Education. The fund that would be established is intended to help combat layoffs in educational systems across the country. The fund is modeled after the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund that was enacted as part of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.
S. 3206 would provide grants to states following a formula that considers each state’s share of individuals ages 5 through 24 and each state’s share of the total national population. Among other things, it would requires states to award subgrants to local educational agencies (“LEAs”) and public institutions of higher education to restore the reductions in state funding for early childhood, elementary, secondary, and post-secondary education that remain for FY 2010 and FY 2011, after ARRA funding. It would also require excess funds to be allocated to LEAs based on individual LEAs’ relative share of school improvement funds under part A of Title I of the ESEA. The bill limits the use of the subgrant funds to retaining or hiring new employees, or on the job training for education careers.
The bill was introduced and referred to the Senate’s HELP Committee.
ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATE
U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Seek Input from State Agencies on Early Learning
The U.S. Department of Education (“DOE”) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) is requesting input from various state agencies responsible for early learning and development for children. They are specifically looking at birth through third grade. From now through June, the DOE and HHS will be conducting a meeting series “Listening and Learning about Early Learning” to understand how states and others are putting into practice “innovative and successful approaches to improving early learning outcomes for children.” Ben Allen testified last week at the listening session entitled “Understanding P-3 Structures.” He highlighted the Bremerton School District as a pre-k to third grade success story. It began as a collaboration among Head Start programs, preschools and child care providers and has evolved into a cohesive early learning system. The Bremerton School District was also mentioned by Ruby Takanishi, President of the Foundation for Child Development.
While some meetings and a webinar have already occurred, there are still ways for you to participate, and we encourage you to participate! For information on the topics, individual meeting information, and how to submit your input in writing, please see below:
| On-Site Meetings | |||
| Date | Time | Location | Topic |
| Tuesday, May 4, 2010 | 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Orlando, Florida; at the Orange County Public Schools Educational Leadership Center, 445 W. Amelia Street, Orlando, FL. | Early Learning Topic Area: Family Engagement |
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 | 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Chicago, Illinois; at the Polk Bros. Lecture Hall at the Erikson Institute, 451 N. LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL. | Early Learning Topic Area: Standards and Assessments |
| How to Attend: Anyone who would like to attend or speak at a meeting must register at http://www.fsaregistration.ed.gov/profile/web/index.cfm?PKWebId=0x91942aeb2&varPage=agenda. DOE asks that anyone registering to attend one or more meetings do so at least four business days prior to each meeting they plan to attend. Seating and speaker slots are limited, so early registration is important to ensure that interested persons are able to secure seats, speaking slots, or both. Persons wishing to participate will receive an e-mail responding to their registration request. Anyone not having access to the Internet or to e-mail should call the number indicated in this notice to register. Speakers should come to the meeting prepared to provide an electronic copy of their comments (e.g., CD or flash drive). | |||
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| Submission of Written Input | |||
| All interested parties, including those who cannot attend a meeting or from whom we may not have enough time to hear at a meeting, may submit written input in response to this notice. Written input will be accepted at the meeting site, or via e-mail or regular mail at the addresses listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. DOE must receive all written submissions of comments on the four early learning topics (below) on or before 5 p.m., Washington, DC time, on Tuesday, May 18, 2010: Understanding P-3 Structures; Workforce and Professional Development; Family Engagement; Standards and Assessments Contact: Katy Chapman U.S. Department of Education 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Room 7W219 Washington, DC 20202 Telephone: (202) 453-7275 or by e-mail: earlylearning.comments@ed.gov. | |||
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To access a notice with details about this initiative, please open this link or paste it into your browser: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/2010-9276.htm.
RESOURCES FOR YOU
Head Start Legal Advisory Service Webinar: The Scoop on Non-Federal Share
As you know, Head Start programs must provide a 20% match of non-federal funds for program operations. This match (or “non-federal share”) applies to Head Start and Early Head Start funds, as well as those received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. On Thursday, May 13 at 3pm eastern time, Ted Waters of the Legal Advisory Service will tell you the scoop on non-federal share. During this webinar, we'll talk about:
- What items and services your program can count as match;
- How to document matching share;
- Why showing "overmatch" makes sense; and
- Common and not-so-common pitfalls to avoid.
Sign up today to learn about NHSA member discount pricing for both this webinar and the one below by clicking here. Then click on "Read More/Register" under "For Head Start Organizations."
Head Start Legal Advisory Service Webinar: Head Start Eligibility
The Head Start rules for determining eligibility can be confusing and difficult to follow. Is your staff ready to handle family questions about program eligibility? Are you contemplating allowing children up to 130% of the federal poverty level into your program? Do you know about prioritizing homeless children? Join Ted Waters on this webinar Wednesday, May 26 at 3pm eastern time to discuss:
- What the Head Start eligibility rules are (and, which are mandatory or optional);
- Where the pitfalls lie for your program in determining eligibility ;
- Tips for best practices; and
- How to ensure your program is in compliance with the requirements of the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act and the Head Start Policy Clarifications.
Don't miss out! Please click on the link above to register.
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