Preschool for All Work Plan for Ventura County Creating voluntary, high quality, preschool programs. JULY 2005

Preschool for AllWork Plan

for Ventura County

Creating voluntary,

high quality,

preschool

programs.

JULY 2005


for Ventura County

Project CoordinationCarrie MurphyWanda Runcie

Writing and Editing

Dr. Sharon SeidmanDr.Abigail Thorman

ImplementationChair, Dr. Charles Weis

Workforce DevelopmentChair, Jennifer Parker

Quality & CurriculumChair, Sherri Laboon

FacilitiesChair, Patty McWaters

Family Child CareChair,Tanya McMahan-Binsted & Pegi Stenberg

FinanceChair, Sara O'Conlon

Developed byPRESCHOOL FOR ALL

COMMITTEES

Task Force Recommendations

JULY 2005

The work groups have developed the following standards that will be required for preschool programs to participate in the Preschool for All program in Ventura County. The criteria below meet or exceed best national practices for prekindergarten programs, as well as the standards developed by the California Department of Education and the state First 5 Commission.

Standards

An Overview of First 5 Ventura’s PFA CriteriaTEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

TEACHER COMPENSATION

PROGRAM SETTINGS

TEACHER-CHILD RATIOS AND GROUP SIZE

PROGRAM DURATION

CURRICULUM CONTENT STANDARDS

QUALITY RATINGS

CHILD ASSESSMENT

INCLUSION OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

CULTURALLY & LINGUISTICALLY APPROPRIATE PROGRAMMING

COMPREHENSIVE SERVICES

FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

Standards

An Overview of First 5 Ventura’s PFA Criteria

PfA will be offered in both licensed early childhood education (ECE) centers and licensed family child care homes (FCCH).The PfA plan calls for use of a combination of existing prekindergarten classes and new prekindergarten classes to create adequate capacity for all parents choosing to enroll their 4-year-old children.

TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

Within 5 years of program implementation, teachers will have a Bachelor’s degree in early childhood or child development, including:• All courses required for the current California Child Development Master Teacher Permit, and• 2 semesters (at least 90 hours) of supervised fieldwork.Associate Teachers/Aides will have at least an Associate’s degree in early childhood or child development, including at least one semester (45 hours) of supervised fieldwork.


PROGRAM SETTINGS

PfA compensation will be equivalent to that of kindergarten teacher salaries (assuming similar qualifications).

Hours per Day: PfA programs will provide at least 3.5 hours of service per day if a meal is served or at least 3 hours of service if a snack is served.Days per Year: PfA programs will meet for at least 175 days per year (assuming 3.5 hours of day per service), to guarantee a minimum of 612.5 program hours per year; other program models will adjust the days per year accordingly to offer at least 612.5 hours of PfA annually.Extended Hours: Extended hours care will be offered either on-site or at a convenient location for parents who elect to pay for full day and/or full year programs.

To ensure existing early childhood programs that meet all PfA standards may participate in PfA, First 5 Ventura has planned for three class options:• Center Option 1: Adult-child ratio of 1:8 with 24 children, one teacher, and 2 teacher aides.• Center Option 2: Adult-child ratio of 1:10 with 20 children, including 2 teachers.• Family Child Care Home: FCCH providers will be arranged into PfA pods, with instruction conducted in groups of 9 children with one PfA-certified teacher.

PROGRAM DURATION


PfA instruction in Ventura County will adhere to the current California PrekindergartenLearning Guidelines and the upcoming Prekindergarten Learning Standards. In keeping with thepredominant instruction models in Ventura County Creative Curriculum will be recommendedfor all PfA sites. Sites may utilize an alternative curriculum by documenting that the curriculummeets state and local criteria.


In keeping with the assessment goals set by the Child Development Division of the CaliforniaDepartment of Education, PfA sites will conduct at least two child assessments each year usingthe nationally recognized California Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP).

Sites must achieve a minimum rating of 5 (Good) on a nationally recognized early childhoodenvironmental rating scale (ECERS/FDCERS) to be accepted as a PfA site.PfA sites will be expected to achieve national accreditation through NAEYC or NAFCC within5 years of acceptance as a PfA site.

CHILD ASSESSMENT

QUALITY RATINGS

PfA will provide appropriate prekindergarten education for all children. While most childrenwill be appropriately accommodated at regular PfA sites, some children with significant specialneeds may be better served in alternative settings; this decision will be made jointly by theparents, PfA staff, and partners providing services to the child.


Through collaboration with county and community-based services, PfA sites will provide orcoordinate the provision of dental, vision, and health screenings for all PfA children who havenot already received such services.All PfA sites will have access to developmental screenings for children suspected of havingspecial needs or developmental delays.PfA sites will include comprehensive nutrition programs for children and nutrition educationmaterials for parents.

PfA staff will be trained in strategies for facilitating English-language acquisition while supportingEnglish-language learners’ home language.Recruitment and training efforts will endeavor to develop a PfA workforce that matches thedemographic characteristics of the PfA clientele.



PfA sites will encourage parent involvement through• Home visits: at least one teacher visit per child per year• Parent-teacher conferences: 3 conferences per year• Parent participation in the classroom: encouraged but not mandatory to

accommodate parent work schedules• Parent education programs: at least 4 offered per year

FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

Option 1:First 5 Ventura County Appliesfor and Receives State First 5

PfA Pilot Funding

Option 2:Statewide Preschool for All

Initiative passes

Amount of FundingAnnually forVentura County

Number of ChildrenServed Annually

Timeline for Decision

Process for Decision

Requirements forResources toBecome Available

Critical DecisionMakers

Total of $8.3M needed to serve a district with 1,000 4-year olds over five years; State will provide $1.1M in matching funds

Approximately $2.3B - $2.5B will be generated statewide annually. Approximately $52.9M - $57.5M will come to Ventura County annually.

130 children in year 1, increasing to 643 children annually in year 5

11,000 children will be served annually

Application needs to be made to State by July 27

Initiative will likely go to voters in Fall of 2006

First 5 Ventura (and any funding partners) must decide if they want to dedicate local required match; upon Commission approval staff will make application, state will only be funding 6 communities, making funding decisions in October, with funding arriving in November

At least 8% of the total cast for Governor at the last gubernatorial election = 598,105 valid signatures.

The ballot initiative must pass by a simple majority.

Over 5 years a total of $8.3M will be required for the PfA Ventura County project with $7.1M required in local match

Ballot must pass

Local First 5 Commission makes decision to move forward with application; State First 5 Commission makes competitive funding decisions

Voters

First 5 Ventura CountyFirst 5 Ventura County

O Local commission established to distribute money received through Proposition 10

O $10 million per year O Early learning programs and

health and family services for children 0-5 and their families.

O Local commission established to distribute money received through Proposition 10

O $10 million per year O Early learning programs and

health and family services for children 0-5 and their families.

First 5 Progress First 5 Progress

O Eleven Neighborhoods for Learning

O 18 Family Resource CentersO Over 800 new preschool spaces

Research shows high quality preschool makes a difference

O Eleven Neighborhoods for Learning

O 18 Family Resource CentersO Over 800 new preschool spaces

Research shows high quality preschool makes a difference

Preschool for AllPreschool for All

O FundingO $9,000,000O Local, state, and federal funds O Over the next 5 years

O PfA Demonstration ProjectO Ventura County is ONE of SEVEN

counties in CA O Selected by First 5 CA

O FundingO $9,000,000O Local, state, and federal funds O Over the next 5 years

O PfA Demonstration ProjectO Ventura County is ONE of SEVEN

counties in CA O Selected by First 5 CA


for Ventura County

Creating voluntary,

high quality,

preschool

programs.

JULY 2005

The work groups have developed the following standards that will be required for preschool programs to participate in the Preschool for All program in Ventura County. The criteria below meet or exceed best national practices for prekindergarten programs, as well as the standards developed by the California Department of Education and the state First 5 Commission.

Standards

An Overview of First 5 Ventura’s PFA CriteriaTEACHER QUALIFICATIONS


PROGRAM SETTINGS


PROGRAM DURATION


QUALITY RATINGS

CHILD ASSESSMENT




FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

Standards

An Overview of First 5 Ventura’s PFA Criteria

PfA implementation begins with developing a workforce where teachers

are required to hold BA degrees.

TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS

Within 5 years of program implementation, teachers will have a Bachelor’s degree in early childhood or child development, including:

• All courses required for the current California Child Development Master Teacher Permit, and

• 2 semesters (at least 90 hours) of supervised fieldwork.Associate Teachers/Aides will have at least an Associate’s degree in early childhood or child development, including at least one semester (45 hours) of supervised fieldwork.


PfA compensation will be equivalent to that of kindergarten teacher salaries (assuming similar qualifications).

The Ventura County Preschool for All Workforce Study


Assessing early

childhood staff

and compensation

.

Assessing early

childhood staff

and compensation

.December

2005

The Ventura County Preschool for All Workforce

Study

The Ventura County Preschool for All Workforce

StudyO Workforce Development Committee

Chair, Jennifer ParkerO Data Analysis

Mosaic Network, Inc.O Data Collection

Child Development Resources of Ventura CountyTanya McMahan-Binsted and the Resource and Referral Team

O Writing and EditingDr. Sharon SeidmanDr. Abigail Thorman

O Project CoordinationFirst 5 Ventura CountyCarrie MurphyWanda Runcie

O Workforce Development CommitteeChair, Jennifer Parker

O Data AnalysisMosaic Network, Inc.

O Data CollectionChild Development Resources of Ventura CountyTanya McMahan-Binsted and the Resource and Referral Team

O Writing and EditingDr. Sharon SeidmanDr. Abigail Thorman

O Project CoordinationFirst 5 Ventura CountyCarrie MurphyWanda Runcie

SURVEY POPULATIONSURVEY POPULATION

Provider TypeSurveys

Distributed# Responses % Responses

All Child-Care Centers

302 247 82%

Preschool Centers 192 134 70%

FCCH 986 884 90%

ECE WORKFORCEECE WORKFORCE

Position Number Proportion

Centers

Aides 211 14%

Assistant Teachers

257 17%

Teachers 803 53%

Teacher-Directors

110 7%

Directors 123 8%

FCCHProviders 986 43%

Assistants 1,315 57%

Current ECE EducationCurrent ECE Education

27%

9%

30%

53%42%

33%54%

61%

47%58%

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

VenturaCounty

FCCH Center Directors CaliforniaState

PreschoolTeachersVentura ECE Workforce

College ECE Units/ AABA+

27%

9%

30%

53%42%

33%54%

61%

47%58%

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

VenturaCounty

FCCH Center Directors CaliforniaState

PreschoolTeachersVentura ECE Workforce

College ECE Units/ AABA+

ECE Coursework Among FCCH

ECE Coursework Among FCCH

Degree of Training % of Respondents

24+ ECE Units 15%

12-21 ECE Units 13%

3-9 ECE Units 23%

Enrolled in ECE Coursework 18%

Center Teachers’ Education

Center Teachers’ Education

# %

BA (any subject) 306 29%

AA (any subject) 287 27%

No College ECE Units 82 8%

Additional Training Among Center Staff

Additional Training Among Center Staff

Special Education

English Acquisition

# % # %

College Course 339 19% 340 20%

Workshop 538 31% 387 22%

None 593 34% 571 33%

% Reporting 84% 75%

Preschool for All Partnering . . . .Preschool for All Partnering . . . .

O ECE Career CounselorsO Articulation with 4-year programsO Continued dialogue

O ECE Career CounselorsO Articulation with 4-year programsO Continued dialogue



Documents

Preschool for All Work Plan for Ventura County Creating voluntary, high quality, preschool programs. JULY 2005