News You Can Use Week of June 25 2012
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Response to Intervention (RtI) in Early Childhood Education To provide guidance on how to think about RtI within early childhood, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children (DEC), and the National Head Start Association (NHSA) launched an effort to write a joint paper that will be a resource and will inform conversations about RtI in ECE. The three associations began this effort 3 years ago growing out of a concern with the use of RtI in early childhood education programs serving children birth through age 5. You are invited to review and comment on the draft of a joint paper. The writing team will use your comments in the aggregate to revise the paper. This url: http://www.naeyc.org/content/frameworks-for-rti-in-ece will take you to the user to a landing page with a link to the paper PDF and instructions for submitting comments. Head Start Funding in FY2013: Senate Appropriations Committee On June 19, the Senate Committee on Appropriations advanced legislation providing funds for Head Start and Early Head Start in Fiscal Year 2013. The Committee recommended a $70 million increase for the next year, $45 million of which would go directly to programs to help offset the rising costs of energy, deferred maintenance, new regulations, staff salaries, and other quality measures. $25 million of the increase would cover costs associated with the Designation Renewal System competition. The committee also included language urging OHS to consider the unique challenges of programs in rural and frontier areas. We are very glad that in these tight budgetary times the Senate Appropriations Committee has stayed solidly committed to ensuring that Head Start not only survives, but thrives, in its mission to help the neediest families across the country. This legislation is now awaiting time for consideration on the Senate floor and complementary House action, however It will likely be November or December before a final funding level is set. NHSA thanks the many members who reached out to lawmakers over the past few weeks, and we hope you will stay engaged with them this summer. NHSA's Fall Leadership Institute: Early Learning at a Crossroads With the Presidential campaigns in full-swing, the Federal budget rushing toward a cliff, and results from the third-grade impact study imminent, where else would you want to be this Fall but Washington? Join your colleagues in Washington September 19-21 for:
Training: Wipfli Webinars Wipfli and NHSA are teaming up to offer three excellent 90-minute webinars this Summer! Each webinar is scheduled for 10:00 - 11:30 am EST. One webinar: $125 (NHSA Member), $145 (Non-Member); To receive member rates, use the codes NHSA125 (for one webinar) or NHSA300 (for three webinars).
The Head Start Legal Advisory Service On –Demand Webinars Available on-demand webinars cover these and other topics:
TSee the full list of on-demand webinars here! The Head Start Legal Advisory Service also conducts live webinars throughout the school year. Stay tuned for the announcement of our 2012-2013 schedule of live webinars. We hope to see you online soon!
Check Out NHSA's Expanded Events Calendar! Now it’s even easier to save the dates for NHSA conferences with our new events calendar! Take a look. Events to Keep in Mind: Fall 2012 Leadership Institute October is Head Start Awareness Month 29th Annual Head Start Parent Conference and Family Engagement Institutes Winter Leadership Institute 40th Annual Head Start Conference
Head Start "Champions of Change" Recognized at White House
Learn more about the event, or watch the recording. Wanda Smith Honored for 40 Years of Service Bammy Awards to Recognize Head Start Leaders
Web Forum: Acting on The Weight of the Nation Join civic leaders from across the nation on Thursday, June 28 from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM EDT to discuss strategies to convert the power of the Weight of the Nation™ films and campaign assets into tangible action for healthier food, beverage, social, and community environments. We will address the very practical matters of engaging your community, hosting screenings, leading community dialogues, and activating social media to catalyze action on the ground. The journey to a healthier nation begins with each of us. Join us on June 28 to advance the journey. Register now! Renew Your NHSA Membership Today! Just a year ago, Head Start was threatened by a devastating $1.5 billion funding cut. In response, tens of thousands of Head Start parents, directors, staff, teachers, and supporters devoted many hours to educating their Members of Congress about Head Start and Early Head Start. Their efforts - your efforts - resulted in federal funding for Head Start increasing by $800 million. How did this amazing feat occur? Our members came together and spoke with a single, strong voice. It is now time to build NHSA’s membership for 2013. We need every Head Start and Early Head Start voice to speak as one to keep a window of opportunity open for all vulnerable children and their families. After we worked tirelessly last year to build bi-partisan support for investments in your vital services, we now are facing the prospect that sequestration may force a cut in Head Start funding of more than $725 million, affecting more than 90,000 children. You can see that we need a strong and unified membership if we are to be successful in preserving funding for our programs. Being an NHSA member is a rich experience. Not only does it provide a unique opportunity to belong to a community passionate about being a window of opportunity for our most vulnerable children and their families, membership also provides opportunities for professional development and access to a wealth of Head Start and Early Head Start-related resources. Take a few moments to read about the many benefits of NHSA membership. If you are not already a member, join today! If you are a member, renew now! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ten Head Start parents, staff, and directors were honored last week in a White House Champions of Change ceremony. On Monday June 18th, the White House recognized Joy Trejo, Ginger West, Roxanne Hiller, Angelica Vilaverde, Rosemary Grier, Renetta Goeson, Lori Pittman, Lourdes Villanueva, Rory Sipp and Caren Calhoun as Champions of Change! Dr. T. Berry Brazelton was also recognized for his vision for Early Head Start.
Head Start of Greater Dallas and NHSA Board President Ron Herndon recently recognized CEO Wanda M. Smith for 40 years of service to the children of Dallas County by renaming the Gannon Head Start Center and the central office complex in her honor. The space is now the Wanda Meshack Smith Educational Complex, located in South Dallas. The event was hosted by the Head Start of Greater Dallas Board of Directors and the program included former Head Start student success stories and tributes by community and national leaders. 
NHSA’s Yasmina Vinci and other leaders across the field of education will be on hand for the first presentation of the Bammy Awards, recognizing excellence in education. Find out who the nominees are representing Head Start