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Issue 19

Federal Partners with Child Care

Contents

up arrowFederal Partners with Child Care

The mission and goals of many Federal Agencies include activities which strengthen and support child care services across the country. The Child Care Bureau, as the primary source of Federal funding and support for child care, works with these Federal Partners in various capacities to promote a coordinated approach to serving families. The programs funded through Federal initiatives are designed to involve state and local communities in the planning and development of services that meet the needs of all children and families.

The Child Care Bureau also works closely with other agencies in the Department of Health and Human Services to encourage collaborations. The Child Care Bureau and the Head Start Bureau work together to support local communities in the development of services that meet the needs of low-income families. The Bureau is a partner in the activities of the Healthy Child Care America Campaign, the successful initiatives sponsored by the Maternal and Child Health and Child Care Bureaus which promote linkages between the health care and child care communities. A further example of collaboration within the Department of Health and Human Services, among the Office of Child Support Enforcement, and the Head Start and Child Care Bureaus, is highlighted in this issue (see the article entitled "Housing and Urban Development Initiatives Provide Child Care Partnership Opportunities").

Also in this issue is an overview of some of the child care related initiatives that the Departments of Agriculture, Education, Labor, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development administer. In each article, program descriptions include innovative strategies at the state and local levels, such as:

  • promoting child passenger safety;
  • using technology and mapping techniques to improve transportation and other services to strengthen the workforce;
  • increasing the availability of child care facilities;
  • expanding access to school-age care; and,
  • providing funding for food and nutrition programs.

Each of these agencies may have information and resources that you can access, or ways in which you can partner to meet the needs of the children and families in your states, tribes, and communities. Through the collective efforts of all of us in the public and private sectors, a successful child care service system -- one which guarantees that each child will be safe and well cared for, and that parents will be able to work with the confidence that their children are receiving the best possible care -- will be built.

up arrowUS Department of Transportation
Livable Communities Initiative Promotes Access to Child Care

Through the Federal Transit Administration's Livable Communities Initiative, the Department of Transportation is working to strengthen the link between transit and communities by improving personal mobility, transportation system performance, and the quality of life in communities. The initiative provides opportunities for the development of on-site community services, including child care, at subway and commuter train stations and bus stops.

LogoThe Livable Communities Initiative promotes a community-oriented transit planning approach, making transit planning more responsive to the needs of neighborhoods and local communities. One objective of the Initiative is to stimulate increased participation by community organizations, low-income residents, and small and minority-owned businesses in the planning and design process. This inclusive strategy results in increased access to employment, job training and educational opportunities, other social services, and local businesses.

By placing support services at centrally-located transit facilities, communities are better able to support parents as they balance their work and family responsibilities. Many communities have found that child care centers are a natural partner for transit facilities, enabling families to integrate their child care-related travel into their daily work commute.

The following examples demonstrate how Livable Communities projects have included child care or Head Start facilities in transit centers:

  • In Columbus, Ohio, a 24-hour child care facility serving 60 children per shift will be included in a new transit center being developed by the Central Ohio Transit Authority, working with the Columbus Urban Growth Corporation. This center, which is located in an Enterprise Community, also includes a health clinic and employment assistance services.

  • In Louisville, Kentucky, the Nia Center opened in March, 1998. Nia is one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa. The word "nia" means purpose. The local community (a National Enterprise Community), the local transit authority, and the Metropolitan Planning Organization worked together through the planning process to design a "campus" which houses the Acorns and Oaks intergenerational care facility, a privately financed community development bank, the Workforce Development Partnership Center, the Transit Authority of River City (TARC) Nia Travel Center, Louisville Business Resource Center, LCDB Enterprise Group, and other employment and family support services.

  • In East Cleveland, Ohio, a 24-hour Head Start facility with extended day child care services is opening, with a capacity to serve 250 children. The project is being developed in conjunction with the Windermere Station Rehabilitation Project, through collaboration with the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) and the private non-profit Council for Economic Opportunities in Greater Cleveland.

Child care facilities also operate at transit centers in Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Miami, and San Diego. Additional child care centers are in development for transit centers in Baltimore and St. Louis. To build on the success of these types of partnerships, the Federal Transit Administration has proposed a new program to locate child care centers at existing transit facilities. Many of these projects will be specifically designed to meet the needs of families moving from welfare to work and those living in low-to medium income communities.

To further support community based initiatives to insure that transit services meet the needs of the entire community, the Federal Transit Administration recently published Planning, Developing, and Implementing Community-Sensitive Transit. This report includes an introduction to community based transit planning and features 21 demonstration projects, including child care, health services, employment training and other support services. For additional information about this publication, contact:

Effie Stallsmith, Transportation Management Specialist
U.S. DOT, Federal Transit Administration
Office of Planning, TPL-21
400 7th Street, SW Room 9413
Washington, DC 20590
Fax: (202) 493-2478
E-mail: Effie.Stallsmith@fta.dot.gov

up arrowBuckle Up America: Transporting Children Safely

To reduce the risk of injury and other losses resulting from motor vehicle accidents, the Department of Transportation's (DOT's) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sets and enforces safety standards for motor vehicles. Grants are awarded to states to help them develop and implement highway safety programs.

Buckle Up America: There's Just Too Much to LoseIn response to a directive from President Clinton, the Department of Transportation has launched a major initiative to increase the use of seat belts nationwide. Unfortunately, nearly a third of all Americans -- and 40 percent of children -- still do not use seat belts. The goal of the seat belt initiative is to increase national seat belt usage to 90 percent by the year 2005 and to reduce child passenger fatalities by 25 percent. The four major elements of the initiative are to educate the public, build public/private partnerships, enact strong legislation, and actively and visibly enforce seat belt and child safety seat laws.

DOT has identified several strategies to promote the importance of child passenger safety:

  • Develop a CD-ROM to help parents find the right restraint system for their vehicle and child;
  • Draft a final rule on the universal child restraint attachment to eliminate vehicle/child restraint compatibility problems;
  • Develop a major training effort involving groups in the public safety, public health, and child advocacy sectors; and,
  • Identify ways in which states can close the gaps between seat belt laws and child safety laws, and also eliminate exemptions to make child safety laws stronger.

Buckle Up America Campaign

States and communities are forging broad, community-based partnerships to address increased seat belt usage and child passenger safety through stronger laws and enforcement, combined with more public education. DOT's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has produced a comprehensive set of Buckle Up America campaign materials to assist states and communities in their efforts. These materials address the campaign strategy and key messages, fact sheets and guidance on how to take actions that make a difference, such as building partnerships in the community and with businesses, public education and enforcement strategies, and information about working with the media. This information is available by entering the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration web site located at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/. Enter Table of Contents, then What's New at NHTSA, and click on Buckle Up America. Campaign materials are located under Buckle Up America Action Kit.

Partnerships Promote Awareness

Partnerships which promote child passenger safety are a key element of public awareness. One such partnership is the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, a nationwide movement to prevent unintentional childhood injury. There are more than 170 state and local SAFE KIDS Coalitions in 47 states and the District of Columbia which implement community-based strategies focused on child safety.

To learn more about child passenger safety and obtain materials on this and other child safety topics, contact:

  • National SAFE KIDS Campaign
    111 Michigan Avenue, NW
    Washington, DC 20010-2970
    (202) 662-0600
    E-mail: info@safekids.org
    Web site: http://www.safekids.org/

  • Air Bag Safety Campaign
    National Safety Council
    1025 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 12th Floor
    Washington, DC 20036-5405
    (202) 625-2570
    Web site: http://www.nsc.org/airbag.htm
How you can increase child passenger safety
  • Children up to age 12 should ride in a vehicle's rear seat in safety seats or safety belts appropriate for the child's age and size.
  • Infant seats should never be used in front seats of motor vehicles with passenger-side air bags.
  • Read, follow, and keep the directions for using a child safety seat correctly.
  • Use a child safety seat until the child outgrows it -- up to about age 4 or 40 pounds. For children between 40 and 60 pounds, use a safety booster seat.
  • For children big enough to wear a lap-shoulder belt only, the shoulder strap should fit snugly. Buckle lap belts low and snug across the hips, not the stomach.

up arrowTechnology Links Workers with
Transit, Jobs, and Child Care

Transportation is critical to the success of working families. Transportation services are needed to connect low-income families in both urban and rural areas with places where they can find work and support services such as child care during hours that meet the needs of those who work full or part time, shift work, evenings, and weekends.

MapA first step in establishing effective transportation links for working families is determining local transit needs. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology and mapping techniques can provide spatial analysis data to determine the relative proximity of low-income families, employers, and support services such as child care to transit services; the travel times and distances between points; and how well existing mass transit systems connect riders with their destinations. While much of the analysis uses computer-based GIS mapping software, some localities may be able to conduct an effective analysis without relying on computer systems.

A basic spatial analysis requires three sets of data:

  1. GIS maps of transit routes -- many transit agencies maintain geographic data on their transit system. For areas whose transit agencies do not, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics has a CD-ROM available with maps of major U.S. transit systems. Information on private transportation, commuter, and paratransit services may also be included.
  2. Addresses of families seeking access to employment, child care, and other support services -- to maintain confidentiality, addresses can be converted to block-group-level data, or to latitude and longitude coordinates.
  3. Addresses of employers, child care, job training programs, and other critical services.

The following example shows how a local community applied GIS technology to identify transit options that meet the needs of public assistance recipients. The Department of Social Services (DSS) in rural St. Mary's County, Maryland used GIS mapping software to support their analysis. Now, DSS case workers can see where most public assistance recipients live, along with the location of suitable employment opportunities, child care services, and available public transportation. GIS mapping software makes it possible to determine the most efficient transportation routes.

The St. Mary's County Department of Social Services developed a geographic portrait of public assistance recipients and available jobs and services using these steps:

Step 1 - Enter the current addresses of welfare recipients in a computer database with coding to denote specific family characteristics, such as single teenage mothers, to be able to best address their needs.

Step 2 - Create a computer map of client locations that is GIS-based, using off-the-shelf software.

Step 3 - Generate another computer map of major employment and family service locations.

Step 4 - Compare the mapped data with existing transit services, and perform an analysis to indicate where new services will be targeted.

To learn more about this example of how GIS technology is being utilized, contact Robbie Loker, Assistant Director, St. Mary's County Department of Social Services, at: (301) 475-4700.

Partnerships and Information Sharing

While a spatial analysis may suggest ways to modify the existing transit system to meet the needs of low-income families, it is but a starting point. Improving mobility and increasing accessibility to employment, child care and other services requires active collaboration and partnerships among transportation agencies, state public assistance departments, human services agencies, one-stop job centers, private industry groups, and local employers. The Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) are exploring partnering opportunities with agencies and organizations to further the shared goal of helping families maintain self-sufficiency.

The FTA has a cooperative agreement with the National Conference of State Legislatures to develop an information clearinghouse on Welfare-to-Work transportation developments. A booklet, "Access to Jobs: A Guide to Innovative Practices in Welfare-to-Work Transportation," will provide guidance to state and local officials about planning, service development, and other promising practices. It will be available through the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) transit hotline at: (800) 527-8279. CTAA also has a Welfare-to-Work Transportation information web site at: http://www.ctaa.org/ntrc/atj/.

up arrowDepartment of Labor Supports Child Care Initiatives

The Department of Labor (DOL) seeks to assist all workers in their efforts to achieve economic security, with rising wages, pensions, health benefits, and opportunities to improve their skills in safe and healthful workplaces free from discrimination. DOL coordinates efforts among its component agencies and with other Federal government departments to effectively support its three broad goals of a prepared workforce, a secure workforce, and quality workplaces.

LogoDOL is utilizing a variety of cross-cutting collaborative strategies to implement child care initiatives that help working families:

  • tapping into the expertise of DOL's Women's Bureau and its clearinghouse to address child care and other work and family issues;
  • collaborating with the National Association of State and Territorial Apprenticeship Directors, Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training, Women's Bureau, and with state education and health and human service agencies to increase the number of states with child care apprenticeship programs;
  • working with the Department of Health and Human Services on child care and Head Start issues;
  • participating with the Departments of Agriculture and Housing and Urban Development in addressing child care issues connected with the revitalization of urban and rural areas;
  • working with Head Start on efforts to establish child care facilities at Job Corps Centers;
  • working with the Small Business Administration to provide business expertise to those starting a child care center or family child care business;
  • coordinating with School-to-Work and Welfare-to-Work programs to provide opportunities for experience and training in the child care field.

Women's Bureau Activities

DOL's Women's Bureau is the Federal agency with primary responsibility for serving and promoting the interests of working women. The mission of the Women's Bureau is to seek to improve women's working conditions, to eliminate the barriers which restrict women in reaching their full potential in the workplace, and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment. The Women's Bureau is involved in many efforts that address issues of concern to working women, such as balancing work and family, and the availability of affordable, quality child care.

The Women's Bureau planned an all day DOL Child Care Forum to complement the White House Child Care Conference held last fall. More than 125 representatives from business, labor, education, and government participated in both and learned about business partnerships that improve the quality, availability, and affordability of child care for working families.

As a follow up to the White House Conference on Child Care, the Women's Bureau regional offices are involved in various child care activities. These include the "Ask Me About My Child Care" Initiative, an educational campaign which uses an engaging button to encourage dialogue on this important issue. This initiative and other outreach and educational efforts are designed to encourage collaboration among employers, communities, state and local governments, parents, child care providers, and advocates to expand and improve child care services. The Bureau also publishes Facts on Working Women, informative fact sheets on a variety of topics. A fact sheet about Child Care Workers is available via the Women's Bureau web site at: http://www.dol.gov/dol/wb/. [NCCIC editor's note (6-12-02): this url has changed: http://www.dol.gov/wb/] The fact sheet provides general information on the child care field and on the importance of professional development, information for employers on providing high quality child care, and informational resources for prospective child care workers.

Additional items are available on the Women's Bureau web site which relate to child care and other work and family issues. These include the publications Care Around the Clock: Developing Child Care Resources Before Nine and After Five, and What Works!: The Final Working Women Count Honor Roll Report, an initiative which encouraged employers, organizations, and individuals to implement policies and programs to improve the lives of working families.

Child Care Apprenticeship Initiative

DOL is expanding the registered apprenticeship system and assisting states in building their infrastructures for training skilled Child Care Development Specialists. DOL's Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training will work with states to replicate the West Virginia and other successful child care apprenticeship models that combine classroom training, mentoring, and on-the-job experience (see Child Care Bulletin, November/December 1997).

To learn more, contact the Department of Labor's Women's Bureau Clearinghouse at: (800) 827-5335, fax: (202) 219-5529, TTY: (800) 326-2577, or e-mail at: wb-wwc@dol.gov Visit the web site at: http://www.dol.gov/dl/wb/. [NCCIC editor's note (6-12-02): this url has changed: http://www.dol.gov/wb/]

up arrowExcerpts of Remarks by Secretary Richard Riley
U.S. Department of Education
White House Conference on Child Care

As today's conference indicates, the President understands that what happens during the school day is just part of the solution. What goes on in a child's life before and after school -- how and who he or she interacts with -- are crucial ingredients in helping our young people develop as good citizens.

We have already heard much today about the importance of early child care. It is essential that we make sure that our youngest children receive the kind of focused attention and quality care that will nurture them and prepare them for a lifetime of learning. We know that a child who arrives at school ready to learn is a child who will be that much better off in achieving personal and academic success.

This afternoon, however, I would like to spend a few minutes talking about the importance of quality child care for older children that needs to occur before and after school and in the summer. I am referring to the creation of positive and supervised environments that are filled with enriching learning activities, including access to computers and arts, and even including tutoring in basic subjects like reading and math.

It is a simple reality in our fast-paced world today that many school-aged children go home to empty houses when the school day ends or begins. Estimates are that about 5 million school age children spend time without adult supervision during a typical week.

Young people need and deserve more than an afternoon spent alone in a house sitting alone in front of the television. And, for all too many, TV looks like a good alternative. Too many young people end up on the streets, looking for something to capture their interest and imagination, and all too often finding it, in the wrong package.

It should be no surprise that the after-school period, before parents and other family members get home, is the period of greatest risk for young people, particularly those between the ages of 12 and 17. The reasons, though unfortunate, should nonetheless be clear. These young people have a greater opportunity to commit violent acts and a greater opportunity to become victims.

We need to focus on creating positive alternatives -- specifically, community based after-school safe havens for children, that offer not just a place where school-kids "do" time, but a place where they want to spend time. A positive place where they can go before and after school, where they can do community service, have the opportunity to learn in creative and enjoyable ways, and where older students can be engaged in work-study and internships.

I have seen these kinds of successful Community Learning Centers in my trips across the country. I have seen what they can do to move young people from a world of violence, drugs, and unsupervised, unproductive behavior to a world of creativity, discipline, and enriched activity and learning.

If these kinds of programs sound good [to you] when I'm mentioning them, know, you are not alone. A survey the Department conducted earlier this year, for instance, revealed that four times as many elementary and middle school parents want these programs than have access to them. And a majority of these parents would be willing to pay for such a program if it was offered, despite limited financial means.

Unfortunately, while these kinds of enriching extended learning experiences do work, they are still few and far between. Fully 70 percent of all public elementary and combined schools did not offer any before or after school programs. This, in turn, contributed to the fact that just 3.4 percent of all public elementary and combined school students were enrolled in such a program. That is a travesty. We already know many of the answers. We already know what works. Now, we just have to get it working. Thank you so much.

up arrowU.S. Department of Education Partnerships

The U.S. Department of Education supports programs, initiatives, research, and demonstration projects related to child care.

Early Childhood Research

The National Institute on Early Childhood Development and Education sponsors research, development, and dissemination activities to improve early childhood development and education.

United States Department of Education LogoThe Institute funds the National Center for Early Development and Learning which conducts research on critical policy and practice issues and disseminates information. The center is conducting follow-up research on the Cost, Quality, and Outcomes study to analyze the relationship between the quality of preschool child care centers and children's developmental levels at the end of kindergarten and first and second grades. The center is also conducting a best practices survey of child care, Head Start, and preschool teachers and case studies of practices in child care centers. The center published an Early Childhood Research and Policy Brief on "Quality in Child Care Centers" in 1997. Future Briefs will address infant and toddler care, child care regulations, and transitions to kindergarten.

Along with the National Institute on Student Achievement, Curriculum and Assessment, the Institute supports the Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement to focus on young children's literacy. The Institute, the National Institute on Child Health and Development (NICHD), and the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) funded the recently released National Research Council study, Major Implications for Literacy Development in Young Children.

The Institute also funds field-initiated research through an annual competition process. It currently funds three child care field-initiated projects: tracking home and child care environments during welfare reform; measuring child engagement as an outcome of child care center quality; and testing a social competence curriculum for toddlers with disabilities in inclusive child care centers.

The Institute coordinates the Early Childhood Research Working Group comprised of nearly 30 federal agencies across 8 departments that support research for young children and their families. An interagency agreement with the National Institute of Justice funds The Relationship Between Early Nonparental Child Care Quality and Later School Readiness: The Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods. The Young Children's Synthesis and Profile Project is a collaboration between the Institute, NICHD, and the Office of Planning and Evaluation in DHHS to synthesize findings from large-scale early childhood studies over the past 25 years. In addition, OSEP funds various research and development activities for young children with disabilities.

Serving Preschool Children

The Office of Compensatory Education administers Title I funds. Part A of Title I may be used for eligible preschool children, those at risk of failing to meet the State's student performance standards. A participating school may use its Part A funds to operate a preschool program or to complement or extend Head Start programs.

Part B of Title I is the Even Start program, which provides funds for family-centered education to help parents become full partners in their children's education, to assist children in reaching their full potential as learners, and to provide family literacy training for their parents.

The Office of Special Education Programs administers programs included in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which requires that all children with disabilities ages 3-21 have a free appropriate public education and that all infants and toddlers with disabilities receive early intervention services. Part B helps states fund services for children 3-5 and Part H supports services for infants and toddlers and their families. Funds can be used to expand and improve available services and to fund direct services that are not provided by other sources.

School-Age Programs

New funds are available from the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program for grants to rural and inner city public schools to address educational and community needs during after school hours, weekends, and summers. The Office for Reform Assistance and Dissemination expects to award 3-year grants in May to establish or expand 300-400 centers. Vice President Gore, Secretary Riley, and other leaders conducted a teleconference on April 16 on creating quality after-school programs. The President's child care proposal includes $1 billion to fund after-school centers over the next 5 years.

For more information about Department of Education programs, check the web site at: http://www.ed.gov/ or call: 1-800-USA-LEARN.

up arrowUnited States Department of Agriculture
Partnerships Promote Good Nutrition

The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a federal program to provide meals and snacks in child and adult care programs. Funded and administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the child care component of CACFP provides funds for foods served to children in family and group child care homes, Head Start, child care centers, and before- and after-school programs. At a state level, the USDAeducation, health, or human services agency usually administers CACFP.

The CACFP supports caregivers through monthly payments to child care providers who serve meals that meet specific nutrition requirements. The meal reimbursement rate is based upon the provider's income or the income of the families of the children in care. This reimbursement helps providers to continue to purchase nutritious foods for the children in their program.

According to the USDA's report released last summer, Early Childhood and Child Care Study: Summary of Findings, in fiscal year 1995, the program served an average of 2.3 million children daily. Forty-two percent of these children were served through child care homes and 58 percent through centers. The participation rate in the CACFP continues to increase.

The USDA is involved in several initiatives to increase awareness of the CACFP Extended Day Programs and the Breakfast Program and to help make these food programs more accessible to the children who can benefit from them.

Nutrition Resources in Public Housing

The USDA and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) have begun a pilot program to make USDA's nutrition, education, and child care food programs more accessible to residents of HUD's public housing developments.

At 8 pilot sites, USDA nutrition programs such as food stamps, Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), child care food program, summer food service, and education programs offered through USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service are available to residents through their housing complexes.

"The partnership we're establishing between HUD and USDA will help children in public housing grow up healthier and help their parents move from welfare to work by providing education, job training, and child care services," Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo said. The two agencies will work cooperatively to locate space and establish sites for nutrition and education programs at public housing sites, provide special consideration for grants to public housing developments that incorporate program operation in public housing, refer residents to appropriate programs, disseminate information about the programs, and cooperate in other ways.

USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, working with HUD and appropriate state and local agencies, will establish nutrition programs in public housing developments. The Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service will provide educational programs in nutrition, child care, life skills, money management, and other areas.

The eight cities selected to host pilot projects are: Boston; Massachusetts; Charleston, South Carolina; Baltimore, Maryland; Dallas, Texas; Detroit, Michigan; Oakland, California; Jefferson City, Missouri; and Seattle, Washington.

For more information, contact Stan Vosper, HUD, at: (202) 708-0685, or Phil Shanholtzer, New Branch Chief, Public Affairs, USDA, at: (703) 305-2286.
USDA web site: http://www.usda.gov/
HUD web site: >http://www.hud.gov/

Nutrition During Out-of-School Hours

In Northern California, the Bay Area Partnership is a public/private coalition of government, business, community, philanthropic, and service leaders who work together to develop more effective approaches to the ways that health, social, educational, economic, and community development programs are planned, funded and implemented.

Among the Partnership's activities are efforts to increase children's access to structured, safe, and developmentally appropriate out-of-school hours activities along with increasing participation in extended day and school nutrition programs. The USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, Western Region developed a media outreach campaign in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Education to promote both nutrition programs and extended school day programs. The campaign began primarily with the school breakfast program, but has expanded to include outside school hours child care and the Summer Food Service Program. In addition to generating public information regarding the importance of nutrition and structured time for learning and healthy child development, members of the Education Sub-Committee have made presentations to a variety of groups including the Northern California Superintendents Association, the California School Food Service Association, California School-Age Consortium, and several local school boards. Through these public awareness efforts the Bay Area Partnership is helping to build healthy communities.

For more information, contact Karen Howard, Director of Special Nutrition Programs, USDA Food and Nutrition Service, Western Region, at: (415) 705-2229.

USDA Rural Development Program

USDA's Community Facilities Program under the Rural Housing Service makes direct and guaranteed loans and grants available to rural areas and towns with populations up to 50,000 to develop essential community facilities such as adult and child care centers. Funds can be used to construct, enlarge, or improve community facilities, and can include costs to acquire land for a facility, pay construction costs and necessary professional fees, and purchase equipment required for its operation.

Beginning in fiscal year 1996, a high priority was placed on funding child care services in rural areas through USDA's Child Care Initiative for Rural America. Through outreach efforts, 42 loans and/or grants funded 31 projects nationwide during fiscal year 1997.

Rural Development Program: Activities in Louisiana

To get the word out about these funds to the local child care community, the USDA Office of Rural Development in Louisiana contacted the Bureau of Licensing and the Office of Family Support in the State Department of Social Services to compile a listing of eligible child care programs. Information about available USDA loans and grants was sent to more than 300 programs, generating interest in these resources that were previously not known. Since January, more than a dozen programs have applied for funds, and already at least one project of approximately $750,000 has been approved for funding.

To identify more child care facility projects at the initial development stages, the state Bureau of Licensing has agreed to include information about USDA's Rural Development program in child care licensing application packets. More than 150 packets have been distributed since mid-January, and the hope is that this outreach effort will identify additional fundable projects.

For more information, contact Austin J. Cormier, State Director, USDA Rural Development, Alexandria, Louisiana field office, at: (318) 473-7920 or James Alsop, USDA Deputy Administrator for Community Programs, at: (202) 720-1490. Visit the web site at: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/

Nutrition Resources

  • Food and Nutrition Resource List for Child Care and Preschool Staff

This publication is a compilation of resources for those involved with child care includes food and nutrition education print materials, audiovisuals, and other resources for classroom use. Teaching materials for children and adults include: food models, games, kits, videocassettes, and lesson plans. Books, reports, and journal articles offer ideas for training staff and volunteers. Available from USDA Agricultural Research Service, National Agricultural Library, Beltsville, MD 20705-2351, or call: (301) 504-5755. The document can also be accessed through the NCCIC web site at: http://nccic.org/. Visit USDA's Food and Nutrition Information Center web site at: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/

Healthy Child Care AmericaHealthy Child Care America

Action Step Six: Strengthen and Improve Nutrition Services in Child Care

Nutrition education and health promotion programs help to inform families and providers of the nutritional needs of all young children. When young children share nourishing meals and snacks together, they grow healthier, think more clearly, explore their world eagerly, develop language and social skills, and feel comforted and cared for.

Source: Healthy Child Care America Campaign's Blueprint for Action

up arrowHealthy Child Care Update: Partnerships Increase
Healthy and Safety of Children in Care

As part of the Healthy Child Care America Campaign, a collaborative initiative of the Child Care Bureau (CCB) and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, states and territories are implementing statewide and community based health systems in child care. Funding from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau supports these collaborative efforts among child care, health, and other support services for families. Currently, 48 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Palau have launched Healthy Child Care Campaigns. These projects were funded for a three year period beginning in October 1996. States have formed collaborative partnerships to increase the immunization rates of children in child care, provide health consultation to child care programs, conduct child care training sessions, and other local activities.

Healthy Child Care AmericaThrough an agreement with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the CCB has made technical assistance available to states, tribes, territories, and local communities to support campaign activities. A toll-free number (1-888-227-5409) connects communities with campaign materials.

The Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has also joined the Campaign and will support train-the-trainer sessions at 10 sites to train child care educators on the safe transportation of children in child care. This will ensure that skilled technicians are available in communities to provide ongoing training to child care providers.

The Child Care Bureau and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau have been partners for many years, working together to improve the health and safety of children in child care. The Bureaus jointly sponsored a national forum, from which child and health care professionals drafted the "Blueprint for Action," a guide that States and communities can use to plan and build linkages to launch local child care campaigns.

To learn more about Healthy Child Care America Campaign activities, contact: 1-888-227-5409 or send email to: childcare@aap.org

up arrowChild Support Enforcement, Head Start, and
Child Care Collaborations

Six states have been awarded grants to develop models of collaboration among Child Support Enforcement, Head Start, and child care programs at the state and local levels. The grants were awarded to the state Child Support Enforcement agencies, which will form a team of child care and Head Start program staff to develop state-specific collaboration activities that will be implemented in local child care and Head Start programs. These collaborative efforts will promote and facilitate access to child support services through local child care and Head Start programs, while furthering a broader understanding of child support and parenting issues within the three programs. The six states awarded the demonstration grants are: Alaska, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Department of Health & Human Services, USAMinnesota, and Missouri.

Collaboration efforts in Illinois focus on empowering parents to use the system of paternity establishment to collect child support and increase children's involvement with both parents. Through cross-training and outreach activities, parents and providers who work with families will learn how child support enforcement works, why legal paternity is important to a child's future, and how obtaining child support contributes to the long-range plans of a family.

  • The Division of Child Support Enforcement worked with training coordinator of the Illinois Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies to draft a training module about Head Start and child care for child support staff.
  • Child support enforcement staff are working with the Illinois Head Start Association to develop a brochure about child support services for the families of children in Head Start and child care.
  • In Chicago, several Head Start sites will become pilot sites to offer services on paternity establishment.

Some of the collaboration efforts in Maryland include:

  • An outreach initiative through a statewide child care information and referral service, LOCATE, to identify and refer parents to child support services.
  • In Anne Arundel County, the Child Care Coordinator works with both providers and parents to educate them about how to obtain assistance to collect child support payments through the local child support office.
  • A regional tri-county initiative makes arrangements for child support staff to speak at child care and Head Start meetings with staff and parents, and to go to centers in the evenings to assist parents with specific child support needs.
  • Baltimore City Child Care Resource Center trains providers in child support issues and resources available through the local office of child support enforcement

To learn more, contact Lois Rakov, Illinois Department of Public Aid, at: (312) 793-8213; Claudette Sullivan, Maryland Department of Human Resources, at: (410) 767-7311, or John Doyle, Office of Child Support Enforcement, US Department of Health and Human Services, at: (202) 205-4590 or e-mail: Jdoyle@acf.hhs.gov

up arrowHousing and Urban Development Initiatives
Provide Child Care Partnership Opportunities

Among the many programs which the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds and administers, several are focused on economic development in public housing areas and initiatives which assist the residents in achieving and maintaining self-sufficiency. Through directly administering some supportive services and working with other agencies to facilitate partnerships for service delivery, HUD's efforts are helping to meet local U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developmentcommunity residents' needs, such as job training and placement, transportation, and child care.

Child care services are included in several different HUD funded and HUD/other agency partnership initiatives, such as the Bridges to Work program, Supportive Housing, Economic Development and Supportive Services, Family Investment Centers, and the newly funded Community Partnerships for Resident Uplift and Economic Development program. Whether the primary focus of the initiative is on promoting employment opportunities, assisting homeless families, welfare to work services, education and job training, economic development, or empowering community revitalization, child care needs of families are a common element of support and consideration within these programs.

Family Investment Centers

Family Investment Centers (FICs) provide families living in public and Indian housing communities with better access to educational and employment opportunities through training and supportive services. An FIC often serves as a hub for activities such as employment training and counseling, GED services, computer skills and literacy training, child care, and other resident support services, designed to meet local needs. FICs also allow for the utilization of public and private, state and local resources in the delivery of supportive services.

In Virginia, the Newport News Redevelopment and Housing Authority Family Investment Center offers a variety of services to residents, including training in computer skills, Certified Nurses Assistant instruction, life skills and job readiness, basic math and reading, and driver's education. Through a collaboration with the Newport News Office of Human Affairs Child Care Component, an Infant/Toddler Early Intervention Program provides child care and child development services while residents participate in training classes in an adjacent part of the FIC facility. Case management services, combined with constant communication among the child care staff and those working with parents, provide for close coordination of parenting skills topics and other efforts to tailor the program to address participants' needs. The FIC is also planning to develop an employment skills training program for residents seeking to become child care providers.

For more information about the Newport News Family Investment Center, contact Jackie Reed, FIC Coordinator, Newport News Redevelopment and Housing Authority, P.O. Box 77, Newport News, VA 23607, or call Jackie at: (757) 245-7619.

In Indiana, the South Bend Housing Authority Family Literacy Program is one of the Family Investment Center services available to public housing residents. Child care is provided for children from 6 weeks to 5 years old, while their parents participate in educational classes. The program has an adult education and training component, an early childhood care and education component, and a Parent and Child Together (PACT) time for learning and practicing parenting and family literacy skills. In addition to adult basic education skills, residents develop work portfolios, learn job readiness skills, and learn about child development. This program is supported by a collaboration among the South Bend Housing Authority and Community School Corporation, South Bend Workforce Development Youth Service Division, Indiana Department of Education, YWCA, and other community partners.

For more information about the Family Literacy Program, contact Barbara Lawson, Resident Initiatives Coordinator, South Bend Housing Authority, 501 S. Scott Street, South Bend, IN 46601, or call Barbara at: (219) 235-9948.

For more information about HUD's Family Investment Centers Programs, contact Beverly Hardy, Office of Community Resident Initiatives, Office of Public and Indian Housing, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW, Room 4108, Washington, DC 20410, or call Beverly at: (202) 708-4214. Visit the HUD web site at: http://www.hud.gov/.