1.3 Consultation in the Development of the CCDF Plan

The Lead Agency is responsible for developing the CCDF Plan, and consultation with and meaningful input and feedback from a wide range of representatives is critical for CCDF programs to continually adapt to the changing needs of families, child care programs, and the workforce. Consultation involves meeting with or otherwise obtaining input from an appropriate agency in the development of the State or Territory CCDF Plan. As part of the Plan development process, Lead Agencies must consult with the following: (1) Appropriate representatives of general-purpose local government. General purpose local governments are defined by the U.S. Census at https://www2.census.gov/govs/cog/g12_org.pdf. (2) The State Advisory Council (SAC) on Early Childhood Education and Care (pursuant to 642B(b)(I)(A)(i) of the Head Start Act) or similar coordinating body pursuant to 98.14(a)(1)(vii). (3) Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s) within the State. This consultation should be done in a timely manner and at the option of the Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s). 1.3.1 Consultation efforts in CCDF Plan development Describe the Lead Agency’s consultation efforts in the development of the CCDF Plan, including how and how often the consultation occurred. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with appropriate representatives of general- purpose local government: The Office of Child Care (OCC) Advisory Council contains a broad range of state and local stakeholders. The OCC Advisory Council meets regularly and a meeting in May 2024 was dedicated exclusively to discussing Maryland’s Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) plan, including content of the plan as well as ways the State could share the plan and ensure broader engagement and input from the field to ensure content in the plan is representative of voices from the field, including providers, and families, particularly those hardest to reach. During the May 2024 meeting, OCC Advisory Council members and guests engaged in breakouts sessions to which they provided input about MSDEs drafted (and posted) state plan, along with any concerns or requests they had in relation to MSDE and CCDF funds. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with the State Advisory Council or similar coordinating body: Over the course of several months the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Early Childhood (MSDE-DEC) collaborated with various departmental teams including licensing department, workforce, scholarship team, early intervention, Fiscal team and others to collaboratively develop and revise the Draft Plan. During May and June 2024, MSDE-DEC conducted a series of community engagement sessions to inform the development of Maryland’s CCDF Plan. The goal of these sessions was to gather diverse perspectives on ensuring equitable access to child care for underserved populations, strengthening workforce recruitment and retention, and enhancing partnerships and collaboration with state and local entities and child care providers. MSDE-DEC utilized several standing meetings with representatives of general- purpose local government, State Advisory Council, and similar coordinating bodies to gather feedback, including: 1) MSDE’s Bi-weekly Early Care and Education (ECE) Stakeholders meeting 2) Office of Child Care (OCC) Advisory Council meeting 3) Maryland State Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) meeting 4) Two Child Care Information Sessions ￿ one conducted in English and one in Spanish The State's Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) and the Office of Child Care Advisory Council (OCCAC) contains a broad range of state and local stakeholders, comprised of members of the early care and education communities as well as local government, including Maryland Head Start Association, Maryland State Family Child Care Association, Maryland State Child Care Association, Local Education Agencies, Department of Human Services, Department of Health, State Interagency Coordinating Council representatives and the Maryland Disabilities Council. Participants were notified about these sessions through email communications from MSDE’s licensing and provider database, as well as targeted outreach through the Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC). The agenda of each meeting was to identify gaps and inequities in the existing early childhood education system and brainstorm solutions to inform the CCDF Plan. To ensure inclusivity and representation, these listening sessions were held virtually at various times, including evenings, and one session was offered in Spanish. Participants also had the opportunity to provide input asynchronously through an online whiteboard tool called Padlet. This tool allowed participants to provide input during and after meetings and to react to one another’s comments. Additionally, members of the Early Childhood Advisory Committee brought a Padlet to pre-scheduled focus groups with family members and providers who did not attend the State meetings. Community members engaged in the sessions included members of the workforce (teachers, educators, program administrators, center directors, family child care owners), advocacy groups (association members, Head Start, Local Educational Agency), and families from various geographies and language backgrounds. b. Describe, if applicable, how the Lead Agency consulted with Indian Tribes(s) or Tribal organizations(s) within the State: Maryland does not have any federally recognized tribes. c. Identify other entities, agencies, or organizations consulted on the development of the CCDF Plan (e.g., representatives from the child care workforce, or statewide afterschool networks) and describe those consultation efforts: MSDE met with early childhood stakeholders representing the Office of Child Care Advisory Council, the State Early Childhood Advisory Council, the Maryland State Child Care Association, the Maryland State Family Child Care Association, the Family Child Care Alliance of Maryland, the Maryland Association for the Education of Young Children, Play Center, Inc., Local Education Agencies, the Accountability and Implementation Board, the Latino Child Care Association of Maryland, Maryland Family Network, the SEIU Local 500, the Maryland Head Start Association, and the Montessori Schools of Maryland. MSDE met with these groups at least six times throughout May and June. MSDE also accepted written comments, which were incorporated in the plan as well. 1.3.2 Public hearing process Lead Agencies must hold at least one public hearing in the State or Territory, with sufficient Statewide or Territory-wide distribution of notice prior to such a hearing to enable the public to comment on the provision of child care services under the CCDF Plan. Describe the Statewide or Territory-wide public hearing process held to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on the provision of child care services under this Plan. i. Date of the public hearing: 6/13/2024 Reminder: Must be no earlier than January 1, 2024. If more than one public hearing was held, enter one date (e.g., the date of the first hearing, the most recent hearing date, or any hearing date that demonstrates this requirement). ii. Date of notice of public hearing: 5/28/2024 iii. Was the notice of public hearing posted publicly at least 20 calendar days prior to the date of the public hearing? [x] Yes. [ ] No. If no, describe: iv. Describe how the public was notified about the public hearing, including outreach in other languages, information on interpretation services being available, etc. Include specific website links if used to provide noticeOn June 13, 2024, MSDE- DEC held a public hearing. The Public hearing was announced starting in mid-May through various meetings including; MSDE’s Bi-weekly Early Care and Education (ECE) Stakeholders meeting, Office of Child Care (OCC) Advisory Council meeting, Maryland State Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) meeting, and during two Child Care Information Sessions. Broader communication about these sessions was shared through email from MSDE’s licensing and provider database. The public hearing was posted on the MSDE website, along with a registration form and a draft CCDF Plan. Link: https://earlychildhood.marylandpublicschools.org/public-hearing-child-care- and-development-fund-ccdf-plan-0 v. Describe how the approach to the public hearing was inclusive of all geographic regions of the State or Territory: The Public hearing was announced starting in mid-May through various meetings. Community members engaged in these sessions included members of the workforce (teachers, educators, program administrators, center directors, family child care owners), advocacy groups (association members, Head Start, Local Educational Agency), and families from various geographies and language backgrounds. The Public Hearing was also announced on a website which was accessible to all. The registration form allowed the Public to provide written feedback and a public comment on the date of the public hearing, providing multiple modalities, and ample time to share feedback on the Plan. MSDE also sent an email communicating additional opportunities to submit written feedback after the public hearing ended. In addition to MSDE sending out announcements regarding the public hearing to stakeholders throughout the entire state of Maryland, the public hearing was held on a virtual platform, making the hearing more easily accessible for anyone to attend no matter what part of Maryland they reside in. vi. Describe how the content of the Plan was made available to the public in advance of the public hearing (e.g., the Plan was made available in other languages, in multiple formats, etc.): The Draft CCDF Plan was posted on the same page of the Public Hearing announcement website, which was made available to the public 5 business days (7 total days) in advance of the public hearing. vii. Describe how the information provided by the public was taken into consideration regarding the provision of child care services under this Plan: Each virtual meeting MSDE conducted to gather feedback from stakeholders was recorded. Participants had several options to provide feedback, including speaking, responding in chat, or providing comments through an online whiteboard tool called Padlet. In addition, discussion facilitators and note takers took detailed notes to gather information provided by the public. Following each meeting a summary of feedback and recommendations were developed based on meeting recording, chat, and Padlet responses. The summary was shared with key MSDE staff that oversaw the drafting and development of various sections of the draft. As applicable, multiple sections of the draft was revised and updated to reflect information provided by the public. 1.3.3 Public availability of final Plan, amendments, and waivers Lead Agencies must make the submitted and approved final Plan, any approved Plan amendments, and any approved requests for temporary waivers publicly available on a website. a. Provide the website link to where the Plan, any Plan amendments, and waivers (if applicable) are available. Note: A Plan amendment is required if the website address where the Plan is posted changes. https://earlychildhood.marylandpublicschools.org/2022CCDF b. Describe any other strategies that the Lead Agency uses to make submitted and approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendments available to the public. Check all that apply and describe the strategies below, including any relevant website links as examples. i. [ ] Working with advisory committees. Describe: ii. [ ] Working with child care resource and referral agencies. Describe: iii. [x] Providing translation in other languages. Describe: The plan amendments are accessible to the public in other languages through a feature on the website that allows a viewer to change the page to their desired language. iv. [ ] Sharing through social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, email). Describe: v. [ ] Providing notification to key constituents (e.g., parent and family groups, provider groups, advocacy groups, foundations, and businesses). Describe: vi. [ ] Working with Statewide afterschool networks or similar coordinating entities for out-of-school time. Describe: vii. [ ] Direct communication with the child care workforce. Describe: viii. [x] Other. Describe: Amendments to the plan, once approved, will be shared through the Office of Child Care (OCC) Advisory Council, the OCC information sessions/listening sessions, and through virtual office hours. In addition, all amendments are posted on the website. 2 Child and Family Eligibility and Enrollment and Continuity of Care Stable and reliable child care arrangements facilitate job stability for parents and healthy development of children. CCDF eligibility and enrollment policies can contribute to these goals. Policies and procedures that create barriers to families accessing CCDF, like inaccessible subsidy applications and onerous reporting requirements, interrupt a parent’s ability to work and may deter eligible families from participating in CCDF. To address these concerns, Lead Agencies must provide children with a minimum of 12 months between eligibility determinations, limit reporting requirements during the 12-month period, and ensure eligibility determination and redetermination processes do not interrupt a parent’s work or school. In this section, Lead Agencies will identify how they define eligible children and families and how the Lead Agency’s eligibility and enrollment policies support access for eligible children and families.