Public Policy Platform for 2007

Statement of Quality:
The Kern County Child Care Council believes that a quality child care setting promotes:

Child development

• Physical, social, emotional, intellectual and creative development with respect to a child’s ability and culture
• Frequent, positive, warm interactions appropriate to a child's age and  development
  
• Varied learning activities appropriate to a child’s age and development

Health and safety

• Healthy, safe, and nurturing environments
• Nutritious meals and snacks
• Knowledgeable and skilled providers to respond to the needs of each child

Program Administration

• On-going communication with families and opportunities for meaningful family involvement
• Opportunities for training and support for providers
• Effective program administration which includes an on-going systematic evaluation process

(in no particular order)

1. Quality Child Development Programs

• Advocate for program practices which are developmentally appropriate for each age level and in all settings

2. Health & Safety

• Licensing –
  a) Advocate for a fully funded child care licensing system which includes annual visits
  b) Advocate for enforced health and safety standards as outlined in the Title 22, Child Day Care General Licensing Requirements, California Health and Safety Code
• Health & Nutrition
  a) Promote adequate, healthy physical activity
  b) Promote high standards related to the nutritional needs of young children including the delivery of healthy meals/snacks as well as safe serving practices
• Informal care
  a) Advocate for legislation which would limit the maximum capacity for subsidized license-exempt providers to the capacity of a small licensed family child care home
  b) Advocate for easy access to and timely processing of applications to the Trustline Registry system
  c) Advocate for the requirement of CPR/First Aid for all subsidized license-exempt providers

3. Emerging Early Education Programs

• Promote key program elements:
  a) Program practices which are developmentally appropriate for all age levels
  b) Parent involvement and input
  c) Incorporates existing early care and education system
  d) Funding for adequate teacher training and compensation
  e) Input from the early care and education field
  f) Inclusion of children with special needs and English Language Learners 

4. Workforce/Administration

• Diversity
  Promote the recruitment of culturally and linguistically diverse providers
• Education and Professional Development
  a) Advocate for articulation between community colleges and 4-year institutions and alignment with Child Development Permit/Credential
  b) Promote the importance of continued education and professional growth
• Compensation and Retention
  Advocate for compensation which is commensurate with the level of education achieved

5. Availability/Access

• Subsidies for low income families
  a) Advocate for the expansion of subsidies to fully fund all eligible families
  b) Advocate for a regular update of the State Median Income (SMI) or an alternate measure that reflects up-to-date California income in order to maintain accurate eligibility for families
• Options for parents
  Advocate for child care setting options for parents (i.e. center based, family child care, license exempt, non-traditional hour, etc.)
• Special Needs
  Advocate for improved access to child care for families with children who have special needs

6. Community Infrastructure

• Child care language in General Plans
  Advocate for the inclusion of child care language in the County and all city General Plans
• Facilities
  Advocate for facility development and/or improvement that includes accessibility and appropriate environments
• Funding
  a) Advocate for increased availability of loan products for facility development and/or improvement
  b) Promote the availability of grants and other funding sources for facility development and/or improvement

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