Early Head Start May Prevent Child Abuse

by Helen Shum | Nov 20, 2018 | Research and Evaluation, National Research

Participation in Early Head Start (EHS) can help prevent child abuse and other maltreatment, as well as support other positive long-term family stability outcomes. That’s according to a study published in Child Trends this month, which linked EHS enrollment data to child welfare reports in 15 states, over 16 years.

Beth Green, Portland State University’s Director of Early Childhood and Family Support Research at the Center for Improvement of Child and Family Services, and one of the study’s co-authors said that the ability to look at not just program outcomes, but the factors that drive those outcomes was the most important takeaway from the study.

“The validating thing to me was that we were able to pull out some of the key mechanisms [of change], supporting the idea that you have to address family-level characteristics and issues as well,” she said. “Those can really set families and kids on a trajectory that is protective.”

Though a reduction in child maltreatment is not an explicit goal of Early Head Start, Green and her PSU colleagues, Carrier Furrer and Mary Beth Sanders, along with researchers from Child Trends and Boston Children’s Hospital found that children participating in the program at age three were 10–22 percent less likely to be involved in the child welfare system.

Authors credited this to improved parent-child relationships fostered through reductions in family conflict and parenting-related stress, parent education to support warm and nurturing relationships, and the children’s improved cognitive development. The study also found long-term reduction in child maltreatment, defined as substantiated reports of child neglect, physical, and/or sexual abuse.

Green noted two major challenges in conducting the study: Overcoming barriers to access child-level data sets and reconciling the variability in how states maintained those records. Negotiating agreements just to obtain the data took anywhere from 7–42 months, while acquiring the data took another 9–12 months, requiring an attitude and approach that Green summed up as, “Don’t ever say die. We were committed. I described our approach as a friendly pit bull.”

In the end, Green was pleased to find that, “we were actually able to match a reasonable number of kids and the data made sense…It’s incredibly validating and important for the field.”

Early Head Start, one of the largest federally-funded programs for infants and toddlers ages 0–3, currently serves just a small percentage of eligible families. It touts a two-generation approach to early childhood programming that includes parent education and support as a key element.

Read the Child Trends Study Brief Here

All Hands on Deck as Baker City Plans for Improvements in Early Learning

by Helen Shum | Nov 15, 2018 | Preschool, Community Engagement

More than two dozen education, health, and community leaders met in October to begin mapping out the future for Baker City’s youngest citizens.

Early childhood advocates in Baker City, a frontier Oregon town with a population of 10,000, were hopeful that passage of school bond measure I-88 would fund the transformation of Brooklyn Primary School into a dedicated early learning center.

The renovation was one of a number of facility updates and additions that supporters argued were needed to better address the modern safety, security, and programming needs for Baker students. In addition to the early learning center serving students and families from birth to kindergarten, planners wanted to build a new school for grades 1–6.

Baker had not passed a school bond since 1948, when voters committed funding to build four new schools, including Brooklyn Primary, completed in 1955. Brooklyn, now operating as K–3 school, is overcrowded with 465 students in a school built for 348. Last week, residents voted the measure down by a more than two to one margin.

Creative Problem Solving to Meet Student Needs

Brooklyn Primary Principal Phil Anderson is doing his best with limited resources and working creatively to meet the needs of 21st century students within the structure of a building created for an earlier generation.

The school counselor works out of the old shower room and P.E. and meal services operate out of a shared space, with students weaving in and out on a carefully choreographed schedule. Music classes, a behavior-focused classroom, and health services are all provided in modular classrooms located outside the school.

When asked about the space challenges, Anderson focuses on the positive. “We believe in every child and we are committed to educating and inspiring all children to their highest level of learning…our building does limit the potential of current instructional practices, but it never limits what we believe our students are capable of.”

Baker City is one of 68 school districts in Oregon that operate on a four-day school week. For students who need more academic support, meals or other services, there is Friday Academy—a district-wide K–12 program. Witty notes that Friday Academy exists because, “We have an opportunity gap. And as we close them, we help every kid in our system. The question is, how do we get services across the board to all people? How do we get equity across the state?”

Partnership and Community Building

At a kick-off meeting at the school district’s headquarters, a coalition of the willing began formulating a plan. The folks around the table represented multiple sectors of early childhood care and services. The local librarian was present, as was a nutritionist, multiple preschool teachers, experts in behavioral health, school administrators, medical service providers, and other early childhood advocates.

Many wear multiple hats in the community, like Rob Dennis, Baker’s 5J community liaison who also serves as the town’s high school football coach, and who is about to welcome a 3-year-old girl into his family.

Dennis led the meeting by outlining a sobering picture of student demographics and academic achievement trends: 60 percent of Baker students qualify for free and reduced lunch; the student population is subject to high turnover; academic achievement is trending down.

Yet, the mood around the table was engaged and positive as representatives began discussing the need to share data, cross-collaborate, and engage parents and community partners. “This is work we need to do, but not work we can’t do,” said Dennis.

Members of the planning group were especially cognizant of the need to incorporate parent voice throughout the process. That means reaching out in virtual spaces like Facebook Moms groups as well as to places where parents already go—like the Moms, Pops, and Tots class offered through the YMCA.

That broad sense of community responsibility and connection was also reflected in the thoughts shared by Susan Townsend, a self-described concerned citizen and retired educator. “This is not a school district thing,” she said. “It is a community thing. It’s everyone at this table making a contribution for the good of our kids.”

Joint Committee on Student Success Recommends Early Childhood Services and Supports

by Helen Shum | Nov 9, 2018 | What We're Reading

After a months-long listening tour across the state, the Joint Committee on Student Success released its final policy recommendations on Wednesday. The committee, convened by Oregon State Senate President Peter Courtney and Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek, outlined a number of recommendations which recognize the foundational importance of early childhood in supporting student success.

Most of the recommendations related to early learning came out of the Students Ready and Able to Learn Workgroup, one of three workgroups formed by the committee. These recommendations include:

Expansion of home visiting programs
Increased access to early childhood services such as Early Head Start and Relief Nurseries
Full funding for Early Intervention (EI) and Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) services
Support to build an integrated birth-to-5 system that supports children and families
Expansion of state-subsidized preschool programs, particularly for families living at up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level
Increased capacity of training and certification programs to support expansion of the early learning workforce

Though not specific to early childhood, the workgroup also called for increased access to behavioral and physical health and nutritional supports for students. The High-Quality Classrooms Workgroup of the committee also recognized the need for improvements in the recruitment and retention of educators, especially those from linguistically and culturally diverse backgrounds.

The committee’s recommendations echo many of the legislative recommendations made by Children’s Institute.

Governor Kate Brown has said that she plans to make significant investments in public education and would consider the committee’s recommendations as she works to secure funding in the upcoming legislative session.

Read the full report of the Joint Committee on Student Success.

Oregon’s First Gubernatorial Debate Featured Questions From Students

by Helen Shum | Oct 3, 2018 | Community Engagement, Oregon Policy

More than a dozen young Oregonians from across the state were offered the exclusive opportunity to question gubernatorial candidates at the Debate for Oregon’s Future, sponsored partly by Children’s Institute and held at Roosevelt High School Tuesday night.

The student-centered format was a first in Oregon history, said Sharon Soliday, chair of the advocacy group Children First for Oregon. The organization was a lead presenter of the debate, which featured incumbent governor, Kate Brown, republican challenger, Knute Buehler, and independent candidate, Patrick Starnes.

Though early childhood issues were not explicit in the questions asked by the students aged 12 to 19, concerns about access to health care and mental health care, educational funding and teacher diversity were all themes that resonate with early childhood advocates and underscore the importance of investing early in the health, education, and safety of young children and their families.

Responding to a question about access to dental and mental health care for foster children, Brown also noted that addressing the root causes of family instability was important, namely substance abuse, domestic violence, and housing issues. Buehler criticized the “indifference to solving this problem,” and described Oregon’s foster care system as one of the worst in the nation, with a “fear-based culture,” in need of more rapid improvement.

Candidates also expressed broad support for more school-based health clinics and increasing numbers of school counselors, with Starnes noting that he would support a specific fund for mental health care. Brown said she was working to integrate mental and physical health care needs in future contracts with coordinated care organizations.

In response to 17-year-old Dazon Sigo’s question about underrepresentation of indigenous people in school curriculum, Bueler said, “Education is the important issue this campaign.” Buehler argued that Brown had not done enough to solve the classroom funding crisis or improve teacher diversity. Brown disagreed, citing an improved graduate rate of seven points under her leadership as governor, school funding increases of 22 percent, and significant investments in underserved communities.

“Actions speak louder than words,” she said in her closing statement.

Getting Ready for 2019: Our Recommendations for Investments in Early Childhood

by Helen Shum | Sep 25, 2018 | Benefits of Preschool, Health and Development, Oregon Policy, Professional Learning

On August 13, Children’s Institute (CI) brought together parents, advocates, and CI board members to meet with Governor Kate Brown. We shared our 2019 legislative recommendations with her and talked about the importance of investing in early childhood development.

Bob Harding, president of Portland markets for Columbia Bank and early childhood advocate told Governor Brown, “Head Start changed my life.” Earl Boyles Elementary School parent Christian Montes explained to the governor the role preschool has played in preparing her son for kindergarten this year, “Preschool helped my son develop self-regulation skills, so he could enjoy learning.”

The experiences of Bob Harding and Christian Montes are prime examples of the benefits of high-quality preschool and early childhood programs that set the foundation for future learning and lifelong success.

Children’s Institute envisions an Oregon where every child has the best start in life. To get there, we advocate for proven early childhood program and services for young children, prenatal to 8 years old. In the 2019 legislative session our recommendations are focused on prenatal to five years old because that phase is the most profound period of brain development and the area with the largest state investment gap.

While the 2019 legislative session begins on January 22, 2019, planning for the session has already begun. Over the summer, advocates and state agencies crafted recommendations to seek funding for program and/or policy issues to be included in the governor’s budget, which will be published in early December.

In addition to making our own legislative recommendations, Children’s Institute has advised and participated in early learning workgroups convened by the Confederation of Oregon School Administrators (COSA), Oregon Business Council (OBC), and the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet to help formulate their early childhood proposals. We are also working in collaboration with early childhood partners from around the state in the Early Childhood Coalition (ECC) to develop a shared legislative and policy agenda for early childhood investments.

We are thankful to Governor Brown for her support of early childhood education and healthy development as outlined in her proposals to enhance the health, safety, and education of Oregon’s children.

CI recommends investing in young children and their families in these areas for the 2019 legislative session.

Preschool and Early Learning Workforce Development

Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education (EI/ECSE)

Child Care

Healthy Families

Read on for highlights of CI’s recommendations, including estimated costs. Children’s Institute’s full legislative and budget recommendations are available here.

Highlights of Children’s Institute’s 2019 Legislative Recommendations

PRESCHOOL AND EARLY LEARNING WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

Expand access to high-quality preschool
Why: High-quality early learning experiences result in myriad benefits for children’s future educational, health, and economic prospects. Offering publicly funded high-quality preschool to an additional 10,000 low-income children in the next biennium will keep Oregon on track to serve all eligible children by 2025. Preschool expansion requires more educated, well-trained, better compensated, and linguistically and culturally diverse teachers to improve program quality and outcomes for children.

Expand preschool: $160 million
Fully fund Oregon Head Start Pre-Kindergarten(OPK): $80 million
Invest in the early childhood workforce: $10 million

EARLY INTERVENTION AND EARLY CHILDHOOD SPECIAL EDUCATION (EI/ECSE)

Increase service levels for children with disabilities and delays
Why: Current service levels for children with disabilities and delays are grossly inadequate; only 29 percent of infants and toddlers enrolled in Early Intervention (EI) programs receive the recommended level of service. Among children enrolled in Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE), only 63 percent of those with low needs, 8 percent of those with moderate needs, and 1.5 percent of those with high needs receive the recommended levels of service. Early Intervention (EI) and Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) services are highly effective. They increase school readiness, reduce the impact of disabilities and delays, and would result in fewer children needing services in preschool and K–12.

$75.8 million

CHILD CARE

Build the supply of quality care, create better training options for providers, and increase provider wages
Why: Recent reports of deaths and abuses of infants in child care are unacceptable. Oregon is an infant-toddler child care desert with significant child care access problems for children with disabilities, families living in rural areas, and those needing evening and weekend care. Parents in Oregon pay amongst the highest child care co-pays in the nation while providers earn poverty wages. Investing in the child care system will improve the quality and increase the supply of care, raise provider wages, and provide parents with the peace of mind they need to enter and remain in the workforce.

Build the supply of quality infant-toddler care: $25 million
Improve child care subsidies: Investment to be determined
Create pathways for child care providers to access training: $15 million

EARLY CHILDHOOD EQUITY FUND

Increase the capacity and reach of culturally specific and linguistically diverse early childhood providers
Why: Children of color and dual language learners (DLLs) face the greatest opportunity gaps and are Oregon’s fastest growing population of young children. The Early Childhood Equity Fund would meaningfully support providers who could close access and opportunity gaps and improve outcomes for the 50,000 children of color and dual language learners ages 0–4 in Oregon living below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

$20 million

HEALTHY FAMILIES

Connect families to critical services from birth
Why: Nurturing and supportive parent-child relationships are essential for children’s physical, social, and emotional development and foundational to life-long heath. Investing in effective programs and services that support strong parent-child relationships and stable families like those offered by Relief Nurseries, Healthy Families Oregon, and Parenting Education Hubs would reach more of the 129,000 young children in Oregon living at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

Launch universal home visiting: $3.5 million
Invest in programs proven to strengthen parent-child bonds and prevent abuse: $20 million