FALL 2008 A N e w s l e t t e r f o r P e o P l e w h o c A r e f o r c h i l d r e N

Deborah Zipkin, DirectorThe Family Resource Center at Charter Oak Academy

West Hartford, CTDeborah@bridgefamilycenter.org

860.233.4701

The call came to our West Hartford Fam-ily Resource Center (FRC) in mid-August. Summer programs were finished, and there were still ten days until school began. The woman on the phone, a single parent with two young children, was frantic. She pleaded, “Could the FRC help me get some groceries for the children? There’s no food in the house.” “Yes, of course,” was the answer from our staff, as it would have been in any of the 62 State Department of Education funded FRCs. By legisla-tive mandate, each of these school-based Family Resource Centers provides com-prehensive family support and education programs through the following seven components:

Child Care and School Readiness Programs

Many FRCs collaborate with other organi-zations to help parents access high quality early education programs. In some cases, an FRC administers its own program on site. In Norwalk, the FRC runs a pre-school for 40 children and about half of the children attending receive financial assistance. “We offer a sliding fee scale for preschool, based on the state school readiness formula,” says Mary Oster, the director of the Naramake Family Resource Center.

School-Age Child Care

This service is offered on site from 7:00 AM until school starts, then at the end of the day until 6:00 PM and during school

coPiNg with difficult times

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Family Resource Centers: 1 Providing Support in Tough Times

Talking About Food in Tough Times Part I: Lower Those Food 3 Bills Now! Part II: Building Capable Eaters 3 and Lowering Stress Using Collaboration to 4 Strengthen Your Child Care Program

Caregiver’s resourCe 5 Corner

state agenCy updates

Department of Public Health

The New Licensing Renewal 6 Process: How Does It Affect You?

Solving Maintenance Problems 6 Before They Arise

Relief at Last! Respite Service 7

Department of Social Services

Early Child Care and Education: 7Always a Good Investment

2-1-1 Child Care Mailbag 8

DEPARTMENT OF ExTENSIONCollege of Agriculture & Natural Resources

Published by

Connecticut Departments ofSocial Servicesand Public Health

In Collaboration with

From the editor...

Our first issue of this school year ad-dresses the challenges that providers and parents face as they deal with the current financial turmoil. We have included ideas and resources to help you stretch family and program budgets as well as access the unique variety of supportive services offered through the State De-partment of Education’s Family Resource Centers.

State agency updates include information on the new child day care licensing re-newal process, respite care providers, and tips for dealing with uninvited mainte-nance problems. Don’t miss the Caregiv-ers’ Resource Corner with lots of helpful

ideas, the 2-1-1 Child Care Mailbag, and an article from the CT Commission on Children about the benefits of early child care and education.

Please notice that we are modifying the All Children Considered numbering sys-tem. This issue will be Volume 17, No. 1, indicating that it is the first issue of our seventeenth year of non-interrupted publishing. We are proud to have served child care providers over these years and thankful for the grants from the CT Department of Social Service and the Department of Public Health that have made this effort possible.

Harry Mangle, Editor

Family Resource Centers: Providing Support in Tough Times

Feature artiCles

2 Al l Chi ldren Considered • Volume 17, No. 1 • 2008/09 www.cag .uconn .edu/ces /acc

vacations. Here again, FRCs may collaborate with neighborhood providers, or they may administer the program on their own. The East Windsor FRC runs a school-age child care program for 109 children. “Our rates are very reasonable. We also ac-cept Care4Kids and presently several families utilize it,” reports FRC Direc-tor Midge Pych.

Families in Training

This component provides a host of ser-vices to parents or guardians of young children. Included are personal visits often utilizing the Parent As Teachers (PAT) curriculum, screenings for cog-nitive or emotional delays, early learn-ing playgroups and meetings where information about child development and resources are shared by parent educators. “We offer free or nominal cost workshops. Our PAT program is free as well as our playgroups and story hours,” says Patty Bryant, Direc-tor, of the Family Resource Center in Putnam. In Danbury, the FRCs offer free monthly workshops for parents on topics including health, finance, and family literacy, reports program direc-tor Jennifer Traver.

Adult Education

In addition to collaborating with local adult education systems in provid-ing classes in Citizenship, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), and high school equivalency (GED), Family Resource Centers offer a range of parent leadership opportunities. In Enfield, the FRC, in partnership with a credit union, presented a free 6-week financial literacy course especially for parents (dinner and child care in-cluded!)

Support and Training for Family Child Care Providers

Throughout the state, FRCs offer professional development for provid-ers of home based care. “We offer free trainings using the PAT curriculum, which enhances providers’ knowledge of child development. We provide screenings and also workshops for

Spanish speaking providers,” reports Kimberly Jackson, coordinator for the New Britain Family Resource Centers. In Middletown, the FRC offers home visits to relatives who provide “Kith and Kin” care.

Positive Youth Development

Through this component, FRCs provide activities that help children in grades 4 through 6 practice responsible decision making. In Torrington, the FRC provides free activities for school- age children after school. For an hour at the end of the school day, children can participate in their choice of activi-ties from flag football to book clubs.

Resource and Referral

FRCs help families make connections to additional services. The Vernon FRC holds some of its playgroups at a community center that also runs a soup kitchen, clothing bank, and shel-ter. “This collaboration makes it easy for FRC families to take advantage of the center’s services since they are al-ready there for playgroups,” says direc-tor Ardith Crampton. In Bridgeport, the FRC helps families find emergency food and also facilitates the paperwork for energy assistance.

Finally, Connecticut’s Family Resource Centers strive to meet the needs of their own unique communities. In East Hartford every Friday afternoon, the FRC sends home backpacks filled with food with the neediest students while the Torrington FRC offers free diapers. Jean Vitale, FRC director in West Haven says, “We have a small diaper bank going, also. We started it when a mother told me that she had to pawn her jewelry to buy diapers for her twins. I just pray we have a warm winter.”

For a listing of all state funded Family Resource Centers go to the Department of Education website at www.sde.ct.gov or contact coordinator Louis Tallarita at 860.807.2058.

All Children ConsideredVol. 17, No. 1 • 2008-09

All Children Considered is published by the Uni-versity of Connecticut Department of Extension. We welcome readers’ comments and contribu-tions. Please send correspondence to the editor via e-mail: Harry.Mangle@uconn.edu, or to UConn Greater Hartford, 1800 Asylum Avenue, West Hartford, CT 06117-2659.

2008-2009 ediToriAl BoArddevon Conover, Chief, Community Based Regulation Section, Child Day Care/ Youth Camp Licensing, CT Dept of Public Health

Patsy evans, Editorial Consultant, UConn College of Agriculture and Natural Re-sources

Patrice Farquharson, Director, West Haven Child Development Center

Amparo Garcia, Lead Planning AnalystChild Care Team, CT Dept of Social Services

deAnna lia, Director of Prevention, Bu-reau of Prevention & External Affairs, CT Dept of Children and Families

harry Mangle, Editor and Educator, 4-H Youth Development, UConn Dept of Extension

Melissa Mendez, Early Childhood Con-sultant, Early Childhood Consultation Partnership

Gerri rowell, Education Consultant, Bureau of Early Childhood, CT Dept of Education

Arlene swatson, Executive Director, SONCCA, Inc.

Poshen Wang, Graphic Designer,UConn College of Agriculture and Natural Resources

dean Batteson, Design Intern,UConn College of Agriculture and Natural Resources

Mary ellen Welch, Educator, Family & Consumer Science,UConn Dept of Extension

deborah Zipkin, Director, Family Resource Center, Charter Oak Academy

Tracy Zolnik, Director of Child Care Ser-vices, 2-1-1 Child CareYou are encouraged to reproduce articles or excerpts from the All Children Considered newsletter. Please give credit to All Children Considered published by the University of Connecti-cut Department of Extension and the Connecticut Depart-ment of Social Services. The University of Connecticut Coop-erative Extension System is an equal opportunity employer and program provider. To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director; Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W; Whit-ten Building, Stop Code 9410; 1400 Independence Avenue, SW; Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (202) 720-5964.

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2008/09 • Volume 17, No. 1 • Al l Chi ldren Considered 3www.cag .uconn .edu/ces /acc

Part II: Building Capable Eaters and Lowering Stress

Charles Slaughter, Prevention Services CoordinatorBureau of Prevention and External AffairsCT Department of Children and Families

Charlie.Slaughter@ct.gov 860.550.6682

Kids’ eating can drive you crazy! Their eating can also distract you from what truly is important during mealtime: giving acceptance and emotional con-nectedness. Providing these develop-mental gifts is more important than how much your children eat or whether

they eat their vegetables.Offering these gifts and meals with a positive emotional tone is especially im-portant in tough times when parents, teachers, and adults are experiencing a lot of stress. So, let’s look at one par-ticular area of mealtimes - encountering a new food.

Kids don’t like it when you offer them a new food. They usually do a great job of communicating their displeasure, hoping you will get the message. But, let’s look at this from a different angle - a developmental one. When a new food is offered, you present a challenge

to children. That is important because dealing with challenges helps them grow in capability and experience success. There is no feeling of success without first having a challenge.

Whenever any of us have a challenge, it is easier to face and successfully deal with it when we have someone on our side. So, let’s talk about a few ways you can be on the child’s side when offering a new food.

1. Sit with children during the meal and focus on creating a pleasant

Talking About Food in Tough Times

Part I: Lower Those Food Bills Now!

Heather Pease, Education Outreach Program Assistant

Expanded Food and Nutrition ProgramUConn Department of Extension

Heather.Pease@uconn.edu 860.570.9065

As a nutrition outreach educator, I often hear that it costs too much to eat in a healthy way. Particularly at this time of rising food prices, it is difficult to make ends meet. Try some of these tips to serve healthful foods on a tight budget:

Tips for Preparing Meals

1. Most importantly, eat out less and cook at home more using more basic ingredients than highly refined, processed foods.

2. Start with a food budget and know how much money for food you have for the whole month.

3. What about snacks? Try cut-up veg-etables, popcorn, cheese, peanut but-ter, and fruit-- the original fast food; just peel and eat! (Keep in mind food allergies, especially to peanuts.) Check out this source for allergy

information: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/pubs/bibs/gen/allergy.pdf )

4. Use unprocessed foods to prepare meals. Although you need to plan to use fresh produce so it does not go to waste, bananas can be peeled and frozen in plastic wrap for use in smoothies, pancakes, or banana bread. Frozen vegetables and fruits are also good, inexpensive choices.

5. Repackage meat into single sized servings to freeze for later. Try add-ing some Italian dressing to steak or chicken before freezing for an instant marinated meal. Look for price per pound, since when buying some meats you are paying for bone and meat per pound. Cut up meat to make one-dish meals that will stretch your food dollar.

6. Use leftovers to make a soup or stew. Try to recycle meals into new ones which can save time and money. For example, a baked chicken can become chicken burritos; a double lasagna batch is a meal plus one frozen for later.

Tips for Shopping

1. Keep a pad on the refrigerator to write down food items as you run out of them so you won’t forget them when at the store. Many trips to the store cost time, gas, and can lead to overspending.

2. Get organized with a list and try to plan meals in advance. Know what you already have on hand so you can maximize your food dollars.

3. Before you go to the store, remem-ber to eat something since shopping on an empty stomach can break your budget.

4. Use the store circular to see what’s on sale.

5. Purchase fresh fruits and vegetables in season when they cost less. Some fruit and vegetables such as bananas, cabbage, spinach, carrots, potatoes and broccoli, are relatively inexpen-sive year round. Remember that beans are nutritious as well as low cost.

6. Use coupons for the things you buy regularly, especially when they are on sale. If you have internet access, try visiting coupon sites for extra savings but remember to pay attention to the fine print on the coupon. I like to list the coupon details on an old envelop then tuck them inside. If you have to buy 3 of something and only get 30 cents off, are you really saving?

By careful planning and smart shop-ping you CAN serve nutritious food AND keep your food budget in check!

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;

Using Collaboration to Strengthen Your

Child Care ProgramKen Anthony, Director of Professional Development

Connecticut After School Networkkanthony@ctafterschoolnetwork.org

860.730.2942

In these times of increased food and operating costs, directors of full day and afterschool pro-grams need to be thrifty. One cost saving measure to consider is to strengthen the collaborative relationships in your program. Three principal areas of col-laboration can benefit not only your program quality and the budget bottom line, but the children as well. Through effective collabo-ration with parents, com-munity, and schools, multiple windows of opportunity can be created.

When thinking about collabora-tion, follow these general rules:

• Be specific – partners want to know what they are getting into ahead of time.

• Be open to their ideas – collabo-

rators come to the table with their own thoughts on what the relation-ship could look like.

• Be flexible when appropriate –a solid collaboration survives because both parties are flexible as to the level and degree of their participa-

tion. • Be aware that the

quality of relationships among collaborators is important.

Collaborating with parents is

generally the easiest because

of the ac-

cess we have to them. First, examine the quality of the relationships your program has with parents. Are there opportunities for them to be involved and do they feel welcomed so that they want to do something to strengthen the quality of your program? Some afterschool program examples are: hav-ing parents “coach” a sports game after school, inviting them to talk with the children about their career, or hav-ing them help organize a collection for programmatic needs (construction paper, crayons, etc.). This can also lead to collaborating with the larger com-munity.

One way that the community can collaborate with your program would be for civic organizations and business-es to get involved in service learning projects with children during or after school. Projects such as a recycling program or a local artist and children painting a mural over a graffiti wall

can raise environmental awareness. Likewise, the community will see the program as a place that values teaching children the importance of commu-nity.

mealtime. Those two acts provide wonderful and loving support.

2. Teach children to use “a way out.” Make sure you (or they) put a very small amount of the food on their plate, give them a paper napkin, and encourage but do not require or pressure them to try the food. Show that it’s fine to try a very small amount of the food. Then, teach them, in case they don’t like it this time, how to politely put the food in the napkin. This gives the experi-ence of dealing with a small chal-lenge while receiving your loving support.

3. Talk about the experience, mention-

ing that it was brave to try it. Ask if it tasted different than expected and if it reminded them of another food.

4. Involve children with preparing the new food. It turns out that they will be more likely to try it. Plus, kids love spending time with you as you prepare the food. You are actually providing emotional connected-ness to your child, which your child loves.

Sitting with your children, keeping the mealtime pleasant, and not pressuring or making your child eat a new food is actually giving your child the wonder-ful gift of your acceptance. Kids love your acceptance. These simple steps

also give your child a wonderful experi-ence of emotional connectedness with you.

When you use these steps, you are providing powerful parenting to your child. Each of these steps is an act of genuine love. That is priceless!

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Caregivers’ Resource Corner

Resources for Providers’ Parent Bulletin Board

2-1-1 Provides Information for You and Your Families

2-1-1 is a free community service administered by the United Way of Connecticut. It is supported by the state of Connecticut and Connecti-cut United Ways. You can call 2-1-1 twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year, to get information or to seek help in a crisis. For more informa-tion, go to www.211ct.org.

Heating Bills and Weatherization Assistance

Help is available through energy as-sistance. Contact your local Commu-nity Action Agency or call Infoline at 2-1-1 for information.

Furnace Replacement Rebate Program

Connecticut is offering this program that provides rebates of up to $500 to households to replace their exist-ing residential furnace or boiler with a more energy efficient model. Dial 2-1-1 or go to http://www.211ct.org/ for more information.

Legal Help

Statewide Legal Services Client Hotline is 1.800.453.3320.

Get Help for paying for food, child care, health insurance, prescriptions

Contact 2-1-1 Navigator at http://navigator.211ct.org/ or by dial-ing 2-1-1.

Consumer Product Safety Recalls

Important recall information for con-sumer products can be obtained by going to the on-line form for CPSC Subscription Lists and signing up for the free listserv at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx

Publications

Connecticut’s Playbook for Preven-tion is a “game plan” that parents, educators, care providers, and poli-cymakers can follow to ensure that all Connecticut children grow into happy, healthy, and productive adults. To order printed copies from the CT Commission on Children or to down-load a copy, visit http://www.cga.ct.gov/COC/

Your Family’s Money II: Managing Debt and Credit, A Handbook for Connecticut Families, 2008 is the second book in a series of handbooks

published in English and Spanish by the Connecticut Association for Human Services, Inc. (CAHS) and is devoted to Family Economic Security. It focuses on debt management, cred-it, and protecting yourself financially. CAHS focuses on ending poverty through its efforts in advocating for economic success of families, out-reach, and education. For additional information, please contact Sherry Linton, Early Care Policy Analyst, at slinton@cahs.org.

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Involving the schools in collaborative relationships is another way to main-tain quality during times of declining resources. One example of this could include the school helping to fund a tutor for students to provide extra academic help or homework assistance. The key to building a successful col-laboration with the schools goes back to relationships. Your programs and the schools are there for the children. Finding the commonalities on which to build will in turn strengthen your program.

In a time when resources are harder to find, we cannot afford to stand alone and expect the quality of our programs to stay the same. We need to seek and build effective collabora-tive partnerships that will add value for both parents and children. Sometimes by just asking, there may be a willing collaborator on the other side of the conversation.

6 Al l Chi ldren Considered • Volume 17, No. 1 • 2008/09 www.cag .uconn .edu/ces /acc

The New Licensing Renewal Process: How

Does It Affect You?

Pamela Gardon, Child Care Licensing SpecialistCT Department of Public Health

860.509.8045

During the 2007 Legislative session, Public Act 07-129 was passed specify-ing that child care licenses renewed on and after October 1, 2008 will be renewed for a term of four years, rather than two years, per former regulation. This new legislation also requires that the renewal fee be prorated.

So how does this new renewal process affect you? To begin with, this new leg-islation simplifies the renewal process. The revised renewal applications are now only one double-sided page long. This revised renewal application will cut down on the amount of time spent processing these applications for both the providers and the Department of

Public Health (DPH) staff. Besides the obvious shorter applications, there are other important changes to be noted. For Family Day Care providers the renewal fee changed from $20 to $40. The fee for a Child Day Care Center changed from $200 to $400. Like-wise, the Group Day Care Home fee changed from $100 to $200.

In addition to the new fee schedule change, many additional documents that were previously required to be submitted with your renewal applica-tion no longer need to be submitted to the Department. Family Day Care Providers will now keep their adult medical statements and current first aid certificates on file at home for review by licensing staff during routine home inspections. For Child Day Care Centers and Group Day Care Homes, copies of all current consultant agree-ments, worker’s compensation forms, lead water test and results, bacterial and chemical water test and results (for wells only), verification of Local Health Department approval, and all

other required documentation must be maintained on file at the program and available for Department review. All licensed childcare programs will now be responsible for tracking when these documents need to be updated or renewed. Copies should be maintained in the program’s files and available for Department review at all times. Please be sure to report changes in your pro-gram, as required by regulations, within the specified time frames.

As the transition from the former renewal process to the revised renewal process occurs, questions may arise. Please feel free to contact the DPH Child Care Licensing Help Desk, which operates Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. You can reach the Help Desk by call-ing 800.282.6063 or 860.509.8045. Happy renewing!

coNNecticut stAte AgeNcy uPdAteshttp://www.ct.gov/dph Department of Public Health (DPH)

Solving Maintenance Problems Before

They Arise

Kevin Eddy, Child Care Licensing SpecialistCT Department of Public Health

Whether your facility consists of one room in your home or twenty rooms in a child care center, maintenance issues always seem to pop up.

What do you do with your last inspec-tion report after you take it off the parent’s board? Does it end up in a file drawer?

Here are a few tips to help you avoid problems down the road. Why not use that report to inspect your own facility

on a monthly basis? Share the report with your staff during staff meetings. If your staff knows why they need to do something, they are more likely to do it. Use your own staff to inspect your facility. Everyone sees things a little differently, and they may catch something you missed. You may also request technical assistance for your staff training. A child care licensing specialist will come to your facility and review the regulations and inspection form with your staff.

Still need more help? Developing your own monthly maintenance checklist can tailor your facilities maintenance issues to your site. Do you have a drop ceiling? Making sure ceiling tiles are in place and not discolored may prevent future issues. Are all the light bulbs working? Though this is not a

regulation, you may be jeopardizing the correct lighting per square foot regula-tion. Create mini-checklists for certain areas of your facility. By taping a list of required supplies to your first aid kit, you and your staff will be accountable when they take that last bandage. Next to your parent’s board, tape the list of required postings. As you pass it, you can double check to make sure they are all there.

There are thousands of licensed facili-ties in Connecticut, each being unique. Preparing now will help you and the children you serve lead a happier and healthier life.

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http://www.ct.gov/dss Department of Social Services (DSS)

Early Child Care and Education: Always a

Good InvestmentKevin Flood, Public Information Officer

CT Commission on Children www.cga.ct.gov/coc

860.240.0290

Because of the worsening economy, everyone in government – from the governor on down to your town’s board of finance – must carefully reduce spending. For strong supporters of early child care and education, who have struggled for funding even in the best of times, the present is especially perilous. This is why it’s important to be ready with information to share with our stakeholders, as we advocate for our children and their future.

Research on early childhood proves one thing over and over. So much of the way children will learn in school is de-cided before they ever walk through the Kindergarten door. Indeed, a child’s

brain develops up to 90 percent of its capacity by age five. The research also shows that investing in early childhood education pays off for the children and for society as a whole. Among the findings right here in Connecticut are:

•A Connecticut kindergarten teacher survey revealed that children with two years of preschool are twice as likely to be seen as ready for Kindergarten in language, literacy, and math skills than their peers without preschool. (April 2004)

• Children in Bridgeport who had quality early care had fewer retentions, more frequent attendance, and higher reading scores throughout grades K-2 (January 2002)

•For every dollar invested in high-quality preschool in Connecticut, the return on investment is approximately $18.89 in life-long gains (February 2006).

Fortunately, here’s something that providers can do that requires no financial investment at all: Encourage the families of the children in your care to read and re-read stories to their children. If the reading proficiency of parents is low, they still can engage their children’s language skills by tell-ing them stories and speaking to them about events in their lives.

Remember, you are providing a worthy investment for our society because what a young child does in the course of a day influences how he or she will learn throughout life. Good early care and education provides children with com-fort, fun, an active play environment, and appropriate interaction with adults and peers.

Source: “A Children’s Stock Portfolio,” a publication of the Connecticut Com-mission on Children. Copies are avail-able at www.cga.ct.gov/coc or by calling 860.240.0290.

http://www.ct.gov/dph

Relief at Last! Respite ServiceAnn Gionet, Family Advocate

Family Health SectionCT Department of Public Health

860.509.8057

“Respite money helps me pay for the care of my son while I’m at work or with my husband or taking care of our other son’s needs. It also helps with ac-tivities John enjoys which I can’t always afford.” Mom of John

“The respite money makes things pos-sible that would otherwise be unheard of.” Mom of Stephen

“I know the program help(s) me out a lot. I’m a single parent with a special needs kid, so I thank you very much. God bless you.” Mom of Dashaun

Respite is a service that provides tem-porary care, either planned or emer-gency, to an individual with special

health care needs. Children and youth with special health care needs include individuals ages 0 to 21 who have, or are at an increased risk for, a chronic physical, developmental, behavioral or emotional condition and who also require health and related services of a type and amount beyond that required by children generally.

Sixty-eight (68%) percent of CT fami-lies responding to a survey reported that their health had been affected due to the stress of caring for a special needs family member. Fifty-four (54%) per-cent believed that the amount of time spent caring for a child or adolescent with special health care needs interfered with the amount of time they could spend with their other children. Fami-lies noted that respite services, summer camp, and after school programs were needed but not available.

To assist families, the Connecticut Department of Public Health Children and Youth with Special Health Care

Needs Program has partnered with the Connecticut Lifespan Respite Coali-tion (CLRC) to develop “Get Creative About Respite,” a two-part manual consisting of both a Parent’s Guide and a Child/Adolescent Guide. The Parent Guide outlines information including types of respite care available, how to find and select respite providers, and how to prepare for respite. The Child/Adolescent Guide assists the family in documenting important informa-tion for their respite providers such as medications, health information, and how a child/adolescent spends their day. Families and providers report they have found the “Get Creative About Respite” manuals extremely helpful.

Respite manuals can be viewed on the Department of Public Health’s website at www.ct.gov/dph under the Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs Program. For more information on how to access funding for respite services, or to receive a manual, contact CLRC, toll free at 877.737.1966.

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University of ConnecticutCooperative Extension System1376 Storrs Road, Unit 4036Storrs, CT 06269-4036

NONPROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTaGe

PaIdSTORRS, CT

PeRmIT NO.3

Please share the newsletter with all staff.

Child Care Mailbag2-1-1

Child Care

Mailbag Question: In my child care program, I have seen my families struggling with the rising costs of everything from food to clothes to gas. I want to help support them by offering healthy meals and snacks to the children, but cannot afford to do so without exploring the need to raise my prices. What can I do?

Answer:

During these difficult times, parents and providers alike are searching for help with rising costs. A child care program that provides meals and snacks included in their fees may be very helpful for a family that is having dif-ficulty coping with the increasing costs of goods and services. However, adding this benefit can cause a change in a provider’s budget as well. Thankfully, there are some programs that can help.

To ensure that the nutritional needs of children receiving child care are met, the Child and Adult Food Care Pro-

gram (CAFCP) provides funds to public and private child care centers, family child care homes, before

and afterschool programs, and Head Start. Kith and kin caregivers who

reside in Bridgeport, East Hartford, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, and Waterbury and participate in Care 4 Kids are also eligible to enroll in the CAFCP.

Through participation in this opportunity, child care programs can be reimbursed for the meals and snacks they provide. Please be aware that in order to participate there are certain eligibility requirements and records that need to be maintained. Connecticut has nine sponsoring organizations that administer the food program for family day care programs, but child care centers apply directly through the Child and Adult Food Care Program.

For more detailed information on the Child and Adult Food Care Program or to get referrals to apply for the program, simply call 2-1-1 Child Care by dialing 2-1-1 or visit us our website at www.211childcare.org.