8.1 Coordination with Partners to Expand Accessibility and Continuity of Care

Lead Agencies must coordinate child care services supported by CCDF with other federal, State/Territory, and local level programs. This includes programs for the benefit of Indian children, infants and toddlers, children with disabilities, children experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care. 8.1.1 Coordination with required and optional partners Describe how the Lead Agency coordinates and the results of this coordination of the provision of child care services with the organizations and agencies to expand accessibility and continuity of care and to assist children enrolled in early childhood programs in receiving full-day services that meet the needs of working families. The Lead Agency must coordinate with the following agencies: a. State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care or similar coordinating body (pursuant to 642B(b)(I)(A)(i) of the Head Start Act). Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: Early Childhood State Advisory Council (ECSAC) members consist of representatives from the Lead Agency, partnering state agencies, as well as members of the General Assembly, a local education agency, an institute of higher education, the Head Start State Director, a child care provider, the Office of Coordination of Education of Homeless Children and Youth, four early interventionists, and four parents of children with disabilities. The mission of the ECSAC is to advise and assist the Lead Agency in serving children from birth to kindergarten entity, including children who have developmental delays and disabilities, in providing family-centered, comprehensive service delivery system which promotes optimal child development and family functioning. Council responsibilities include conducting statewide needs assessment, identifying opportunities for and barriers to collaboration, developing recommendations to increase program participation, and professional development. The council also helps assess the capacity and effectiveness of work force initiatives and early learning standards. b. Indian Tribe(s) and/or Tribal organization(s), at the option of the Tribe or Tribal organization. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination, including which Tribe(s) was (were) involved: [x] Not applicable. Check here if there are no Indian Tribes and/or Tribal organizations in the State/Territory. c. State/Territory agency(ies) responsible for programs for children with disabilities, including early intervention programs authorized under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency is responsible for IDEA Part C and Part B, Section 619 as part of the Office of Childhood. Under this single office, the Lead Agency is able to make decisions about child find, universal screening, and referral practices that take place across programs serving children birth to age five as a way to identify children with special needs. Coordination goals include increasing the number of developmental screenings and decreasing the number of children who are ineligible for Part C after an evaluation was conducted. Additionally, coordinating a smooth transition from Part C to Part B, Section 619 is part of the school readiness initiative being undertaken by the Lead Agency. d. State/Territory office/director for Head Start State collaboration. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency provides funding to support the Missouri Head Start State Collaboration Office in its efforts to coordinate the state’s Head Start services. An MOU between the Collaboration Office, the Lead Agency, and the Missouri Head Start Association encourages collaboration among Head Start and Early Head Start programs, early education and child care programs and services supported by the agreement parties to enhance the quality of care from birth through kindergarten entry. It also encourages the development of local agreements tailored to meet the unique needs of community programs and necessary partnerships. e. State/Territory agency responsible for public health, including the agency responsible for immunizations. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency has an MOU with Department of Mental Health and Department of Health and Senior Services for the goal of improving the quality and availability of safe and healthy child care. As part of this MOU, the Lead Agency receives reports about how many families receive immunization education. In collaboration with DHSS, the Lead Agency provides child care health consultation and/or education to child care providers related to health issues in child care settings and health promotion activities to children in child care, which includes providing immunization education through the local public health agencies. In addition, the Lead Agency has established indicators of school readiness that include the percentage of children with up- to-date immunizations as part of Health Services necessary for children to be ready for school. The Lead Agency is modifying the existing MOU with DHSS in order to collect these data as part of school readiness indicators. f. State/Territory agency responsible for employment services/workforce development. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (DHEWD) is responsible for implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) state plan. Multiple state agencies oversee nearly 70 employment and training programs. The Lead Agency conducts outreach to the WIOA steering committee, local partnerships, and other interested stakeholders to determine program efficiencies that support increases and stability in the child care sector. The Lead Agency partners with DHEWD to provide registered apprenticeship opportunities to child care providers in five areas of the state. g. State/Territory agency responsible for public education, including pre-Kindergarten. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency is responsible for the coordination of pre-kindergarten education. Missouri has made significant strides in increasing public and private pre-kindergarten opportunities in the past year with the implementation of The Missouri Quality Prekindergarten program. These efforts have resulted in 6,403 awarded prekindergarten slots in public and private programs. h. State/Territory agency responsible for child care licensing. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency began oversight of the DHSS child care licensing and regulation team on August 28, 2021. This allows for the coordination of child care licensing with other child care activities by combining professional development efforts and utilizing each other’s expertise to meet a common goal for early childhood professionals and child care providers. Licensed child care providers who participate in the Child Care Subsidy Program struggle with meeting the training requirements for each program. By combining efforts, we can ensure that trainings developed for one provider type will also meet the requirements of another provider type. In addition to professional development, the Lead Agency has the ability to develop one background screening process for licensed and subsidy providers. The Lead Agency will analyze the differences between the monitoring visits that unlicensed subsidy providers receive and will work toward a process to combine the monitoring visits with regulatory visits for license- exempt providers who are currently receiving two separate inspections/visits. i. State/Territory agency responsible for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and other relevant nutrition programs. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency coordinates quarterly meetings with representatives from the Environmental Child Care Program and the Child and Adult Care Food Program housed in the DHSS. The goal of the quarterly meetings is to maintain open communication in the activities of each participating agency, to develop recommendations on health and safety best practices in child care settings, to develop and implement healthy meal practices in child care settings, and to integrate these recommendations into the state’s professional development/training system. Evidence of this coordinated effort is in the materials developed for inclusion in the Child Care Provider Policy Manual. j. McKinney-Vento State coordinators for homeless education and other agencies providing services for children experiencing homelessness and, to the extent practicable, local McKinney-Vento liaisons. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency’s homeless coordinator collaborates with state social service agencies through participation in the Special Education Advisory Panel and Missouri Early Childhood State Advisory Council. These councils include members who are professionals working in the areas of health and mental health, preschool programs, community organizations, and other agencies. One of the goals of these councils is to improve the provision of comprehensive education and related services to homeless preschool-aged children and their families. Additionally, the state homeless coordinator conducts at least two webinars each year and presents at a number of conferences (e.g., Missouri Interagency Council on Homelessness, Continuum of Care, Federal Programs Conference, DHSS School Nurses Conference, National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Conference, and the Conference on the Young Years) in order to raise awareness on topics relevant to the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program. The state homeless coordinator and the assistant director of Missouri State Head Start Collaboration Office are participating members of the Missouri Interagency Council on Homelessness. The Lead Agency provides ongoing training to ensure all LEAs are compliant with the school of origin inclusion for preschool students and to ensure that preschoolers experiencing homelessness have equal access to public preschool programs administered by the Lead Agency and LEAs as provided to other children. The Lead Agency reviews and monitors preschool policies and practices of LEAs through the Tiered Monitoring System, including the requirement that LEAs ensure that homeless preschool- aged children are identified by school personnel. This includes children with disabilities under Part B of the IDEA or qualified students with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Finally, the Lead Agency provide trainings on the Child Care Subsidy program for community organizations who serve homeless families. One of the goals for these community organizations is to have an understanding of the policies and the necessary documentation required for the Child Care Subsidy program so the organizations can assist families in the application process. k. State/Territory agency responsible for the TANF program. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency has an MOU with DSS to share and match data for TANF and SNAP. This coordination allows the Lead Agency to quickly verify if families applying for child care assistance are participants of TANF, as TANF participants are categorically eligible for child care. l. State/Territory agency responsible for Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency has established an MOU to coordinate benefits with Missouri HealthNet, the state’s Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), to ensure therapies (e.g., physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech pathology) provided by Part C and Pat B, Section 619 programs are billable for Medicaid-eligible children for the purposes of maximizing the family’s benefits in both programs. The goal of this coordination is to ensure increased access to early intervention and school-based services for children with significant delays and/or disabilities. Data collected on Part C services indicate approximately 50% of children enrolled receive this benefit (data are not collected on this for Part B, Section 619 services). Additionally, the Lead Agency has an MOU with Department of Social Services, Family Support Division (DSS, FSD) to accept and process a coordinated application for families applying for Medicaid and CHIP programs as well as child care subsidy. DSS, FSD is responsible for eligibility determination for all of these programs, and the coordinated application is of benefit to families when they can fill out one application for access to multiple state assistance programs. m. State/Territory agency responsible for mental health services. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: There are various entities in Missouri that contribute to early childhood mental health (ECMH) supportive services in early childhood settings. The Lead Agency is contracting to provide Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) consultation services. This is implemented using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) to assist in the promotion of young children’s healthy social and emotional development and the well-being of the professionals they serve, prevent suspension and/or expulsion, implement culturally responsive practices, and provide trauma-informed care. Development of this concept was completed over a period of time with input from the Department of Mental Health and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education School Based Mental Health. Additionally, Part B 619, Part C, Early Head Start all reside within the Lead Agency allowing seamless coordination. As Missouri’s Quality Assurance Report has developed, the Lead Agency meets regularly with the Head Start State Collaboration Office Director and the Department of Mental Health, Early Childhood Wellness Coordinator to connect various perspectives when determining what quality early childhood education should look like across the state. Missouri values partnering with other agencies to ensure that there is a cohesive approach. n. Child care resource and referral agencies, child care consumer education organizations, and providers of early childhood education training and professional development. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Early Care & Education Resource and Referral agency coordinates local childhood community leaders across the state. These childhood community leaders are tasked with creating local strategic plans to strengthen the early childhood mixed delivery system in their region. One of the responsibilities of the childhood community leaders is to help keep local stakeholders informed of the Lead Agency’s initiatives including the training and professional development opportunities. This coordination between state and local communities helps the state understand the desired professional development in local communities and informs types of training and amount of training offered. o. Statewide afterschool network or other coordinating entity for out-of-school time care (if applicable). Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency collaborates with Missouri AfterSchool Network (MASN) and is a member of the Missouri AfterSchool Leadership Team, which meets regularly to discuss and set the direction for their statewide efforts. The AfterSchool Leadership Team membership includes state department representatives, statewide and regional organizational partners, and program directors and site coordinators from afterschool and summer enrichment programs. The AfterSchool Leadership Team has four standing committees: Quality & Professional Development, Public Awareness, Public Policy, and STEM. In addition to serving on the AfterSchool Leadership Team, Lead Agency staff provide presentations at the Missouri School Age Conference (MOSAC) and other statewide afterschool events. p. Agency responsible for emergency management and response. Describe the coordination and results of the coordination: The Lead Agency facilitates the Emergency Management Child Care Workgroup that consists of representatives from the Lead Agency, early childhood service providers, the Department of Public Safety Emergency Management Office, local governments, and child care providers. The goal of this workgroup is to maintain a working Child Care Disaster Plan that meets all federal and state regulations. In addition, the Lead Agency participates in quarterly meetings of the State's Children and Youth in Disasters committee to stay up- to-date on changes in the state's emergency management plan and activities and to consider necessary revisions to the Child Care Disaster Plan. q. The following are examples of optional partners a Lead Agency might coordinate with to provide services. Check which optional partners the Lead Agency coordinates with and describe the coordination and results of the coordination. i. [x] State/Territory/local agencies with Early Head Start – Child Care Partnership grants. Describe: The Lead Agency is a liaison for the EHS/CC Federal Partnerships. Lead Agency staff provides technical assistance on the state subsidy program and attends advisory meetings. Lead Agency staff also work with MHSSCO and Missouri Head Start Association in coordinating meetings and trainings as requested for the EHS/CC Partnerships. The coordination strengthens the child care opportunities by providing the comprehensive child development and family support for low income children. ii. [ ] State/Territory institutions for higher education, including community colleges. Describe: iii. [ ] Other federal, State, local, and/or private agencies providing early childhood and school-age/youth-serving developmental services. Describe: iv. [x] State/Territory agency responsible for implementing the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) programs grant. Describe: The Lead Agency is responsible for administering the Maternal and Child Home Visitation program (MIECHV). Under the new Office of Childhood, the Lead Agency consolidated Home Visiting programs from three state agencies (Departments of Social Services, Health and Senior Services, and Elementary and Secondary Education) to streamline services and ensure providers have a consistent point of contract. Over the next three years, the Lead Agency will define areas of comparable data collection and evaluate the capacity to integrate home visiting programs throughout local and state levels of the early childhood system. v. [ ] Agency responsible for Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment Program. Describe: vi. [x] State/Territory agency responsible for child welfare. Describe: DSS, Children’s Division (CD) is responsible for child welfare. CD investigates allegations of child abuse and neglect in multiple settings, including child care facilities. After an investigation, CD will make a determination whether the allegations are substantiated or not substantiated. CD works with families that need preventative services which may include child care, to assist the families in maintaining familial custody. If there is a substantiated determination in a child care setting, CD provides the Lead Agency with its decision. If the provider receives subsidy, necessary remedial action, including staff termination, must be instituted or the provider’s agreement or contract will be terminated. vii. [ ] Child care provider groups or associations. Describe: viii. [x] Parent groups or organizations. Describe: The Lead Agency has established a Parent Advisory Council (PAC) consisting of parent leaders located throughout the State of Missouri. The PAC was established with the goal of including the parent voice before, during, and after important policies or other decisions are made. The PAC meets regularly to discuss family leadership activities across the state. One of the focus areas of the PAC is safe children and communities because the PAC is involved in the prevention of child abuse and neglect at the state level and in their own communities. ix. [x] Title IV B 21st Century Community Learning Center Coordinators. Describe: The Lead Agency administers afterschool grant funding opportunities using the 21st Century Community Learning Center funds. Before and afterschool programs provide students with academic enrichment opportunities and activities designed to complement their regular school day's academic program during non-school hours by providing a range of high-quality services to support student learning and development. x. [ ] Other. Describe: