We believe all children should have the best start in life.
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So what are we doing about it to acknowledge the change in our community climate? This can be both power to express views, while others feel threatened by these actions. The ACCESS group used these questions to prompt a discussion.
Have you observed a change in climate or culture since the election in your school, organization or community?
What have you or your organization done to send a message of inclusion to your service users? What could you do to be more explicit?
What are your fears you have, or risks you take, talking about these topics with co-workers or clients?
The January 5th Council meeting will talk about these issues, as well as what we are actively doing to counter hate language, bullying and promote a more welcoming climate community for all families. I hope you will join us.
Wishing you peace and connection in the New Year.
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Vermont's
Blue Ribbon Commission on Financing High Quality, Affordable Child Care
released its report
with recommendations to the Administration and Legislature on how to make high-quality child care accessible and affordable for all Vermont families who need it.
The Commission's report:
- Defines the elements of a high-quality child care program
- Models how much it would cost per infant, toddler and preschooler to provide high-quality early care and learning
- Estimates the total cost of high-quality care based on the number of children under 6 who have all available parents in the labor force and are therefore likely to need child care
- Recommends how much families should be asked to contribute to child care to make it affordable for them
- Calculates the current investment gap that would need to be filled after existing early childhood funding and parental contributions are taken into account
- Recommends potential funding sources that could be used to fill this gap
The report
which can be read in full here
makes a strong case that ensuring all children have access to high-quality, affordable child care is an economic and social imperative for our state. To achieve this, the Commission's recommendations include increasing tuition assistance benefits under the Child Care Financial Assistance Program (CCFAP), expanding CCFAP eligibility and increasing tuition assistance rates to help more families afford early care and learning programs.
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Family Friendly Workplace Solutions
The need for quality, affordable childcare is on everyone's minds. So what does it mean to be a family friendly employer? If you'd like a vision for what it takes, learn from Impact Monadnock, an initiative by our neighbors to the east. They are leading the way on this work.
Click Here
to see their family friendly workplace resources they've compiled and
Here
to read what area employers are doing and using.
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Prevent Tooth Decay in Kids
The December BBF Council meeting we talked about Children's oral health.
Tooth decay hurts; it prevents play, and if a child doesn't want to eat it can impact nutrition
and thus a child's overall health.
We had to special guests including Pari Motia works with 0-5 year olds in the WIC clinic and Julie Springer from Champlain Valley Head Start (CVHS). In Burlington's WIC clinic, Pari is overwhelmed by the prevalence of decay in young children. She says decay has increased in 1-3 year olds while decay in the adult population has decreased. Julie Springer noted the same trend; of children in CVHS programs, 26% children had decay in 2008 and has risen to 40% in 2016.
Both health professionals encouraged families and caregivers to consider healthy habits for children's teeth inclu
ding,
- Clean teeth and gums after feeding with a soft toothbrush or soft cloth. You can lift the baby's lip to check and see if teeth and gums are clean. If you see white or black spots on your baby's teeth, consult a dentist immediately.
- It is recommended to not share the same utensil as your baby. This will help prevent the spread of bacteria causing tooth decay.
- Don't put your baby to sleep with a bottle or allow your child to crawl or walk around the house with a bottle or sippy cup. Juice, milk, formula or other beverages containing sugar cause tooth decay.
- Babies six months and older need flouride everyday. If you live in an area that does not have flouridated water, a supplement may be necessary. Ask your physician or dentist.*
* This and more information is found
here on the Vermont Department of Health website.
Check out the notes from the December BBF Council meeting
here.
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For your Calendar:
Chittenden BBF Regional Council meets the first Thursday of the month. The next Council meeting will be Thursday, January 5 from 5-7pm at the Howard Center 1138 Pine Street, Burlington. The next meeting will explore how we actively counter bullying and bigotry to promote a welcoming climate for all our families.
Notes from the December 1 meeting on oral health and the second part of Children's Integrated Services capacity discussion are
here
.
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Regional Networks and Building Bright Futures (BBF)
Chittenden BBF Council is one of 12 Councils State-wide
working to improve
access, quality, and affordability of early care, health, and education
for families and young
children
0-8
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Link
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Funding Provided by
SAMHSA's Project LAUNCH
L
inking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children's Health
For all children to reach social, emotional, behavioral, physical, and cognitive milestones - to thrive in school and beyond Learn more about
Learn more about Vermont Project Launch
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Stay Connected
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