Check out our latest news and events! Florida's Legislative Session: an Early Learning Recap Florida's 2024 Regular Legislative Session officially ended on Friday, March 8th. Nearly 2,000 bills were filed, but only 324 made it through the House and Senate chambers. In addition, legislators approved a $117.4 billion budget. Several early learning bills were introduced this year, more than in the previous decade, although not all were passed. A summary of how some early learning programs and initiatives fared during the legislative session is provided below: Legislators approved child care tax credits (up to $5 million) for corporations that provide or pay for child care expenses. This is fantastic news for businesses that invest in and support their employees with children, as they tend to have higher retention rates and less absenteeism in the workplace. $936 million was allocated in School Readiness funding which provides financial aid to help make child care more affordable for families with low incomes. In addition, the state budget included setting statewide School Readiness reimbursement rates for child care providers, with some rates increasing by up to $15 per day. Funding was approved for a new program that assists families who no longer qualify for School Readiness but may still have difficulty paying for high-quality child care. A summer bridge program was funded to help children struggling in VPK prepare for kindergarten. The program enforces early literacy and early math skills. Help Me Grow® Florida received $4.5 million in funding, allowing more families and caregivers access to developmental, behavioral, and educational community-based services for their children.  The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program received an unprecedented $17 million in funding. This additional funding provides even more opportunities for early educators to earn child care credentials and college degrees.  We are grateful for all legislators and their unwavering support of serving Florida's youngest citizens. Another Successful Children's Week is in the Books!   We hope you had a great time during the 29th annual Children's Week FloridaTM - we sure did!! The Children's Forum is proud to be the Organizing Partner for Children's Week FloridaTM, which is held each year during Florida's legislative session. As the largest event held in the state that celebrates and honors a commitment to children, youth, and advocates, Children's Week FloridaTM brings partners, advocates, teachers, and families together to speak as One Voice and deliver the message that every child should be healthy, ready to learn, and able to achieve their full potential. Children's hand artwork from all across the state was proudly displayed in the Capitol Rotunda for the Celebration of the Hands. Congratulations to our former President and CEO, Dr. Phyllis Kalifeh this year's Chiles Advocate Award recipient. We were also honored to have Jim Haj (The Children's Trust), and Maurits Acosta (Virtutem Populo), who were our 2024 Impact and Youth Advocate Award recipients. There were plenty of interactive activities, fun exhibits, and celebrity readers at the Capitol for Storybook Village and Legislator Lane, including FSU head football coach Mike Norvell. Teen Day at the Capitol allowed middle and high school students from across the state to see the legislative process in action. We are so proud of Kyle Baltuch, recipient of the inaugural Early Learning Leader of the Year Award. Kyle is also a Children's Forum board member. Our virtual Thoughtful Thursday event featured webinars on the impact of trauma and advocacy for afterschoool programs. View a photo gallery from this year's Children's Week events Check out our newsroom Forum Welcomes New Board Members We are excited to announce that Dr. Christian Winterbottom and Rebecca Falcon Kapusta have joined the Children's Forum Board of Directors! Originally from Manchester, England, Dr. Christian Winterbottom is an Associate Professor and Department Chairperson at the University of North Florida. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in early childhood education. Christian previously taught preschool and elementary students in Japan before moving to Florida, where he worked extensively with preschools and Head Start programs. While attaining his doctorate, he was Director of Child Care Training and Accreditation in Florida, where he administered a contract for the Florida Department of Children and Families while working at the Children's Forum. Christian's award-winning research has been featured in multiple publications, books, journals, and reports, and he has presented his work all over the world.   For more than 20 years, Rebecca Falcon Kapusta, J.D., has served Florida’s children and families. She is an attorney in good standing with extensive experience in public and private practice. As an excellent communicator, leader and change agent, Rebecca has a proven record of success in operational strategies and fiscal outcomes. Currently, she serves as Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel for Health Connect America where she is responsible for compliance practices across all programs in eight different states. Rebecca’s previous roles include Chief Operating Officer for Youth and Family Alternatives, Vice President and Chief of Community Based Care at Eckerd Connects, and Interim Secretary at the Florida Department of Children and Families. We are thankful for Christian and Rebecca and all of our Board members who guide the Forum's vision and bring a unique perspective to our work. Voices from the Field: A T.E.A.C.H. Scholar Shares Her Story Did you know that the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program provides scholarships for child care teachers, directors, facility owners, and family child care educators to work towards credentials and degrees in early childhood education? A T.E.A.C.H. scholarship covers the majority of expenses including tuition, books, and essential technology purchases. The program is helping to increase the education, compensation, and retention of early educators who are looking to move forward with their professional development goals. We love to hear how T.E.A.C.H. has made a positive impact in the careers and lives of our scholarship recipients! Many thanks to Emily who shared her journey with T.E.A.C.H. Stories like Emily's help state leaders and policymakers better understand the importance of investing in child care programs and services. To learn more or apply for a T.E.A.C.H. scholarship, please call 877-FL-TEACH or visit https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://teach-fl.com__;!!KOmxaIYkRmNA0A!SqTLXDr0BwYqyaPmbKNssmcQNs7-sLKQbNsb01XLpu9baRkv2s4NGH0gQYDQszOco0M-rVv8sficI7OnJegsw-nSr3F1$ . Enhance Early Learning in the Classroom and at Home Founded in 2013, MarcoPolo Learning is an award-winning early childhood education company focused on developing premium content and instructional support, married with innovative technology, to elevate quality in the classroom and at home. MarcoPolo Learning's products are guided by an educational philosophy rooted in research related to how young children learn, effective ways to engage families in their child's learning, and the best ways to design digital tools for early childhood. MarcoPolo Learning is partnered with 15 Early Learning Coalitions and Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA) in multiple counties across the state of Florida. If you are a director or teacher connected to one of the partners shown above and would like to get your FREE access, please submit your info here. Click here to learn more about MarcoPolo Learning The Future of Florida’s Children Rests in Our Hands     Kyle Baltuch, a Children's Forum Board Member and Senior Vice President of Economic Opportunity and Early Learning for the Florida Chamber Foundation and Erin Smeltzer, President and CEO of the Children's Forum, co-authored an op-ed that was featured in the Tallahassee Democrat. The op-ed explains why Florida must nurture, support, and invest in its youngest residents in order to achieve continued success. Click here to read the article.   Help Me Grow® Florida Gives Hope to Families Help Me Grow® Florida (HMG) promotes the healthy development of all children by providing access to free developmental and behavioral screenings. Administrated by the Children's Forum, HMG provides a centralized access point to support families through developmental monitoring, follow-up services, parenting information and available community resources. We are always humbled by the success stories we receive from our program recipients. We are grateful to Help Me Grow Florida for assisting the Harris Family in finding the resources required to meet their son's speech development needs. To learn more about HMG, visit https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://helpmegrowfl.org__;!!KOmxaIYkRmNA0A!SqTLXDr0BwYqyaPmbKNssmcQNs7-sLKQbNsb01XLpu9baRkv2s4NGH0gQYDQszOco0M-rVv8sficI7OnJegsw4kEdjVI$ .   Op-Ed: Fidelity is Key! To effectively meet educational goals, using a curriculum with fidelity is vital.  Fidelity ensures alignment of instructional practices with curriculum goals, fostering consistency across classrooms for equitable learning experiences and maximizing children’s potential academic outcomes. Using all the materials in a curriculum and maintaining integrity in content delivery, such as when employing the study-based approach with The Creative Curriculum®; linking curriculum to assessment; and partnering with families promotes children's critical thinking and ensures comprehensive skill coverage. Fidelity of implementation is an intentional practice supported by training and coaching. Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, educators benefit from personalized professional learning opportunities to support their understanding of the curriculum, enhancing fidelity. Ultimately, children benefit from this focus on fidelity because their educators can provide high-quality learning experiences that cover a comprehensive range of essential concepts and skills. We have found that for programs using The Creative Curriculum®, prioritizing fidelity correlates with improved Classroom Assessment Scoring System® (CLASS®) scores and child outcomes. For instance, in a WA program, fidelity led to increased CLASS® scores in all domains and improved child outcomes by at least 25 percentage points. Read more about the Edmonds Case Study here. In conclusion, fidelity in curriculum use is key to effective teaching and learning, promoting coherence, and providing every child with a high-quality educational experience.    Dr. Nicol Russell is Vice President of Implementation Research at Teaching Strategies. 1.)      Mowbray, C. T., Holter, M. C., Teague, G. B., & Bybee, D. (2003). Fidelity criteria: Development, measurement, and validation. American Journal of Evaluation, 24(3), 315-340. 2.)      Teaching Strategies. (2017). The effect of training and ongoing coaching on The Creative Curriculum® implementation. Retrieved from https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://teachingstrategies.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/TS-Outcomes-Study-Effect-of-Training-and-Ongoing-Coaching-2017.pdf__;!!KOmxaIYkRmNA0A!SqTLXDr0BwYqyaPmbKNssmcQNs7-sLKQbNsb01XLpu9baRkv2s4NGH0gQYDQszOco0M-rVv8sficI7OnJegsw9kn-r4Q$    Erin Smeltzer, our President and CEO, is on the move! She was honored to be the keynote speaker at the Early Learning Coalition of Sarasota County's 2024 Early Childhood Education Conference. She was also grateful to be included in the Early Learning Coalition of Broward County's State of Childcare Panel Discussion.         Children's Forum | 1650 Summit Lake Drive Suite 210, 8504876300, Tallahassee, FL 32317 Unsubscribe [log in to unmask] Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice Sent by [log in to unmask]
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