Denver Early Childhood Council

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QUALITY INITIATIVES - OUR QUALITY INITIATIVES INCLUDE THE COLORADO SHINES QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (CSQI), EARLY HEAD START (EHS) AND THE DENVER PRESCHOOL PROGRAM (DPP). THESE PROGRAMS ENHANCE QUALITY IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION TO IMPROVE THE SCHOOL READINESS OF DENVER CHILDREN BIRTH TO FIVE YEARS OLD. EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONALS RECEIVE TARGETED COACHING, TRAINING, QUALIFIED CLASSROOM LEARNING MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES TO SUPPORT THEIR PRACTICE AND QUALITY OF THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS. IN FY19-20, THE COUNCIL COORDINATED AND PROVIDED OVER 1,945 HOURS OF ON-SITE COACHING TO SUPPORT BEST PRACTICE AND NEW SKILL BUILDING FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONALS ACROSS DENVER, INCLUDING INCREASED FOCUS ON BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL PRACTICES. THE COUNCIL ALSO MANAGED OVER $1.3 MILLION DOLLARS OF ELIGIBLE QUALITY INVESTMENTS IN CHILDCARE PROGRAMS FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS, TECHNOLOGY, AND TEACHER INCENTIVES. ALL CHILDCARE PROGRAMS PARTICIPATING IN QUALITY INITIATIVES ARE REQUIRED TO BE QUALITY RATED THROUGH THE STATE COLORADO SHINES QUALITY RATING AND IMPROVEMENT SYSTEM. MOST PROGRAMS RECOGNIZE GAINS IN QUALITY AS A RESULT OF THE SUPPORTS AND RESOURCES PROVIDED.

PANDEMIC IMPACT AND RESPONSE - DENVER'S EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL QUICKLY PIVOTED TO RESPOND TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN MARCH OF 2020. THE ANNUAL ROCKY MOUNTAIN EARLY CHILDHOOD CONFERENCE A PROGRAM OF THE COUNCIL, WAS CANCELLED LESS THAN 48 HOURS BEFORE THE EVENT WAS SCHEDULED TO OPEN. THE COUNCIL RAPIDLY CONVERTED A NUMBER OF TRAININGS TO A VIRTUAL FORMAT AND WAS STILL ABLE TO PRESENT 33 TRAINING SESSIONS TO 472 EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONALS WITH OVER 2,000 TRAINING CLOCK HOURS DELIVERED. THE COUNCIL'S QUALITY COACHES AND BUSINESS SERVICES STAFF ALSO BEGAN PROVIDING TRAINING AND SUPPORT TO PROVIDERS FOCUSED ON HEALTH AND SAFETY PRACTICES AND MAINTAINING THEIR BUSINESSES DURING THE PANDEMIC. DENVER'S EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL WAS ALSO KEY IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF FREE EMERGENCY KITS CONTAINING PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE) AND CLEANING SUPPLIES TO OVER 140 CHILDCARE PROGRAMS.

EARLY CHILDHOOD SYSTEMS BUILDING - WITHIN THIS PROGRAM, DENVER'S EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL WORKS STRATEGICALLY WITH COMMUNITY, NONPROFIT, GOVERNMENTAL, FOUNDATION AND CORPORATE PARTNERS TO ALIGN POLICIES AND CREATE MORE EFFICIENT, ACCESSIBLE AND CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE EARLY CHILDHOOD SERVICES. PROGRAM ACTIVITIES INCLUDE HOSTING MONTHLY POLICY TASKFORCE GROUPS, CONVENING HOME VISITATION PARTNERS, SUPPORTING IMPLEMENTATION OF COUNTY-WIDE INITIATIVES AND PARTICIPATION IN STATE-WIDE AND NATIONAL EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP COALITIONS. DENVER'S EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL ALSO SERVES AS LEAD RECIPIENT FOR LAUNCH TOGETHER IN DENVER, A COLLABORATIVE FUNDED BY EIGHT FOUNDATIONS. IN CLOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH MANY COMMUNITY PARTNERS, THIS FOUR-YEAR GRANT FOCUSES ON BUILDING A COORDINATED SYSTEM FOR SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT SUPPORTS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN BIRTH-TO-5 YEARS OLD IN TARGETED HIGH-NEEDS NEIGHBORHOODS. THIS PROGRAM AREA ALSO LEADS WORK WITH PARTNERS AROUND THE COORDINATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF NEW POLICIES AND TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN BE SCALED AND LEVERAGED BY OTHER EARLY CHILDHOOD ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE STATE.

CAREER PATHWAYS - CAREER PATHWAYS AND THE DENVER CHILD CARE RESOURCE & REFERRAL PROGRAM EXPAND ACCESS TO HIGH QUALITY TRAINING PROGRAMS THAT PROVIDE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ON INDUSTRY BEST PRACTICE AND EVIDENCE-BASED CURRICULUM TO HELP EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONALS INCREASE THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND APPLY IT IN THE CLASSROOM. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OFFERINGS ARE OFTEN PAIRED WITH ON-SITE COACHING THAT ENHANCES THE APPLICATION AND EFFECTIVENESS OF THE DELIVERED CONTENT. TO EXPAND ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY TRAININGS AND INFORMATION SESSIONS, THE COUNCIL BRAIDS FUNDING TO OFFER ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY SLOTS TO ALL DENVER EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PROFESSIONALS WORKING WITH CHILDREN AGES 0-5, INCLUDING FAMILY HOME CARE PROVIDERS, TEACHERS AND DIRECTORS AT EARLY LEARNING CENTERS, AND OTHER EARLY CHILDHOOD STAKEHOLDERS AND CAREGIVERS.