- State Budget Deal for Child Care
- COVID Accommodations
- Daily Time for Free Play
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Get to Know the Validators and Assessors
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State Budget Deal for Child Care |
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On Tuesday, September 21st, Governor Whitmer, Senate Majority Leader Shirkey, and Speaker Wentworth announced a state budget deal that will fully spend $1.4 billion in federal funding for child care.
Lawmakers are moving quickly to advance the budget deal announced on Tuesday, and Governor Whitmer is expected to sign the deal into law. Once the bill is signed, the Michigan Department of Education will announce how to apply for the Child Care Stabilization grants.
You can prepare for the grant application process now by accessing and updating your public Great Start to Quality profile and ensuring the program’s contact information is correct.
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Need support? Contact your local Great Start to Quality Resource Center at 1-877-614-7328.
Watch for more information soon.
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Validation
Many adjustments have been made to the validation process to work with programs to determine their specific circumstances and the best way to move forward during the pandemic. These adjustments have allowed many programs to complete the process, even those who were closed. These adjustments include award credit for qualifications as long as all staff have an individual account with MiRegistry, have a current individual membership or are in membership process with MiRegistry, and are connected to the Organization Profile. These scoring accommodations were originally scheduled to be in effect until December 31, 2021, but due to COVID-19 numbers increasing they will now be in effect until March 31, 2022.
Beginning on April 1, 2022, all programs will need to be implementing all indicators on the Self-Assessment Survey in order to receive credit, as scoring accommodations will no longer be made unless stricter guidance is issued prior to that time.
It is important to note that Professional Development hours, taken for the purposes of Great Start to Quality, will still be required to be taken through MiRegistry on January 1, 2022.
Assessment
Many adjustments have been made to the on-site assessment process to better support the program’s needs and maintain safety during observations since the COIVD-19 pandemic began. Throughout the process our top priority has been to ensure the children and staff we visit in child care programs across the state, and our Assessors, stay safe and limit the potential spread of COVID-19. As such, we continue to follow guidance from public health officials which includes but is not limited to the following procedures:
- Assessors will sanitize all materials brought into the program, wash hands or use hand sanitizer frequently, and sit or stand away from children and staff as much as possible.
- Assessors will wear a mask indoors, whether they are vaccinated or not. As a visitor in your program, the Assessor is happy to follow any additional policies you have in place related to COVID-19, such as completing a health screening.
- With the recent findings that vaccinated individuals have a possibility to contract and spread the virus as well as the inability of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers to receive the vaccine, Assessors will follow Great Start to Quality policies of a ten-day waiting period or negative test before visiting programs that have had close contact exposure to or a diagnosis of Covid-19.
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Assessors will ask additional questions about what has changed in the program or routine and will take this into account while scoring rows in the Program Quality Assessment (PQA).
- These scoring accommodations will be in effect until March 31, 2022. Beginning on April 1, 2022, all programs will need to meet the rows in the PQA in order to earn credit as scoring accommodations will no longer be made unless stricter guidance is issued prior to that time.
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One of the most important activities children engage in at early childhood programs is free play opportunities. Play is essential to development because it contributes to the cognitive, social, and emotional well-being of young children. The benefits of free play include allowing children to use and develop their imagination and encouraging them to interact with and explore the world around them. Free play helps children adjust to school and enhances their learning readiness, behavior, and problem-solving skills as well as helps children learn and practice self-regulation and decision-making skills. In Michigan’s Core Knowledge and Core Competencies for Early Care and Education Workforce (CKCC), Competency Area: Teaching and Learning, Competency Statement C, Page 38 states that educators should “Demonstrate knowledge of the value of play, skill in play interactions, and an understanding of how children use play to translate experience into understanding.”
As you reflect on or make changes to your daily schedule, please remember to build unstructured free play time into the main part of your routine. Free play time must be included during the main part of the day, when most children are present, to achieve credit in the Choice Time indicators for all the PQA tools.
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Get to Know the Validators and Assessors |
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Over the next few issues, we will introduce you to one team member from both the Validation and Assessment Teams. |
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Tracie Guild became a Great Start to Quality Validator in 2017 where she focuses on the integrity of the Great Start to Quality rating system by reviewing the evidence submitted as a part of the Self-Assessment Survey.
Ms. Guild has worked in the field since 2008 serving children from birth to 12 years old. Tracie has gained knowledge and experience in early childhood best practice, program management, writing curriculum, and family engagement.
Ms. Guild received her Bachelor of Science in Family Community Services specializing in Youth, Program Management, Health and Kinesiology from Michigan State University.
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Hayley Norris, Assessor
Hayley Norris became a Great Start to Quality Assessor in January 2013. Her current work is focused on conducting on-site observations based on the Program Quality Assessment (PQA) tools for the Great Start to Quality rating system.
Ms. Norris has worked in the early childhood field for seventeen years. Through her work, she has gained experience in best practices in teaching, assessment of programs, and providing resources to improve the quality of one’s program.
Ms. Norris received a Bachelor of Science in Early Education specializing in Early Childhood from Western Michigan University. Ms. Norris is a certified reliable in the HighScope Program Quality Assessment tools.
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Great Start to Quality on Facebook |
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Great Start to Quality is on Facebook! Like and follow our page to get the latest updates for you and resources to share with your colleagues and families.
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Like Us on Facebook for More Updates: |
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If you are thinking about how to maintain or continue making quality improvements, or if you’re ready to learn more and need help, contact your local Great Start to Quality Resource Center by calling 1-877-614-7328 or visit www.greatstarttoquality.org.
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Funding from the Office of Great Start within the Michigan Department of Education supports the implementation of Great Start. |
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