A bi-weekly e-brief of the DEC Children's Action Network
 
QUICK FIND:
 
washington
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
IN
WASHINGTON
★ "The U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Health and Human Services (HHS) have published a policy statement on the implementation of effective family engagement practices from the early years to the early grades." The Division for Early Childhood submitted comments during the beginning stages of this new policy statement and DEC's Recommended Practices are listed among the statement's recommended resources for families and practitioners. Read the full policy statement. Read more about the policy statement and ED Early Learning resources.





★ 
The Negotiated Rulemaking Committee for the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) recently completed a draft agreement concerning regulations and new testing requirements
with a request for comment on a proposed rule expected sometime in the near future. You can review the materials provided by the Department of Education to the ESSA Negotiated Rulemaking Committee 
to assist in this work.
 
★  Other updates, courtesy of the Council for Exceptional Children:
 
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
states
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
IN 
THE
STATES
 
The DEC advocacy webinar held April 29 th offered some insight into activities taking place across the states. In particular, while the Kansas Subdivision advocacy arm is well-established, and the Iowa Subdivision has collaborated with a number of other organizations given their place in the presidential election cycle, other subdivisions may be relatively new to building policy and advocacy networking and action. Other subdivisions may be working to re-energize their advocacy efforts.  Our hope within national DEC CAN is to provide guidance and support to those subdivisions that are working on their networking and advocacy efforts for children with exceptionalities and their families within their states and communities. One of the best ways to get started is to share a story with DEC to be published in a future e-brief. Submissions to the "What's Happening in the States?" section can cover policy victories, advocacy opportunities, and/or current issues in your state, whether your subdivision has had a role at the state-level or not. In other words, you can use this platform to simply disseminate information to the larger DEC audience to enhance awareness of issues occurring near you that may be of interest to other DEC members.  Please send those subdivision advocacy stories to share!


 

Contact office@dec-sped.org or DEC CAN Coordinator anlyons@kent.edu to share what's happening in your state or Subdivision in a future issue of YES DEC CAN!
 

news
DEC
POLICY 
&
ADVOCACY
NEWS
The DEC Policy and Advocacy Council is now two-years old! At this time, we are seeking new members who are interested in supporting our work. New members to the Council will be considered "at-large" and will shadow existing members to ensure a smooth transition. If you want to stay up-to-date about what is happening in the field and within DEC and would like to lend your voice, please complete our new interest survey and application so we can match you to opportunities that fit best with your interest, experience, and availability. 

events
UPCOMING DEC POLICY & ADVOCACY EVENTS
1 - DEC Advocacy Webinar
  • What: Webinar focused on action planning, particularly in regard to state Subdivision Children's Action Network (CAN)
  • When: Monday, July 18th at 11am ET
  • Where: GoToTraining
  • How to attend: Please register for DEC Advocacy Webinar on Monday, July 18, 2016 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM EDT at: https://attendee.gototraining.com/r/4788159108712740609
Registration instructions will be provided via email after sign-up. 
Be sure to complete the Subdivision needs assessment provided during the April webinar. If you were not in attendance or need a copy, contact anlyons@kent.edu 
telluswhatyouthink
TELL US
WHAT
YOU
THINK
  • Was your Subdivision represented at the last DEC Advocacy webinar?
  • If your Subdivision was represented, do you know if someone will be completing the needs assessment before the next webinar in July?
  • If you are unaffiliated with a Subdivision but interested in advocacy and/or policy, what type of support(s) do you most hope to receive from national CAN?
  • If you are a Subdivision CAN coordinator, leader, or member, what type of support(s) do you most hope to receive from national CAN!

 US KNOW!