April  2017
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ADVOCACY

PUBLIC POLICY UPDATE




 Kate-Marie Roycroft,  Director of Public Policy




As March comes to an end and April begins, the House of Representatives is finalizing their Fiscal Year 2018 Budget. On April 10th, their budget will be released. We will have a short time frame to call, email, and meet with our Representatives to ask them to co-sponsor our budget amendment priorities, so be on the lookout for action alerts. The week of April 24th is when budget debate will begin. If you had not had a chance to register as an advocate on the NEW action alert system please do so here: ymca.net/action.

Below are our Fiscal Year 2018 Budget priorities: 

YMCA Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Priorities

Youth-at-Risk Line Item (4590-1507): $1.3 Million

-Massachusetts YMCAs were funded at $1.1 Million in Fiscal Year 2017. Unfortunately, due to mid-year spending cuts, we received $800,000 in this line item.


-Funding is matched 11:1 by Massachusetts YMCAs

-With FY16 funding, the Ys provided achievement gap services to 55,000 at risk school aged youth, 50,000 of who avoided summer learning loss and 40,000 who maintained or gained at least two grade levels of literacy competency.

-Funding also went towards providing at-risk youth with greater exposure to Technology and Science, Fitness and Healthy Eating, and allowed for Y's in Massachusetts to offer beneficial mentorship programs and grants to send at-risk children to camp at no-cost.

Early and School Age Education and Care Rate Reserve (line item 1599-0042): $36 Million

-This would be the second year of a 3-year plan to move the reimbursement rate close to 75% of market rate - the rate recommended by the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

-The reimbursement rate remains at 20-30% of market rate for early learning and out of school time.

-The turnover rate is now at 30%, and 37% of our teachers actually receive public support

Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS) (line item 3000-1020): $31,962,455

-Support the Governor's funding proposal

-Funding is necessary to provide adequate staffing levels for Background Checks

-Funding is necessary to address staffing issues - providers can be left waiting for weeks or months to hire a new staff person due in part to funding


Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS) Technical Assistance earmark (line item 3000-1020): $1 Million

-Earmark of funding within QRIS grant for EEC to provide T.A. to early education & after-school providers

-With changes in QRIS, funding is needed to assist providers to reach new quality standards

HomeWorks Program (7004-0101): $965,000

-Fund children in the Emergency Assistance Housing Program to attend after-school programs and camps

-Provides funding to nonprofit and community serving organizations to give Emergency Assistance children help with homework, socialization, physical activity, and nutrition.

-Established in FY17 budget but removed in mid-year spending cuts
Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund: Outside Section

-We request that an Outside Section of the Fiscal Year 2018 budget be added to maintain and increase funding to the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund.

-This Outside Section would go towards continuing the nine community partnerships that already exist and expand to other communities within the Commonwealth to bring preventive health to more Massachusetts Citizens.

Learn to Earn Line Item (line item 7002-1080)

-The YMCAs employ over 16,000 Massachusetts residents and are currently looking to employ more.

-This will provide the underemployed segment of the workforce with the necessary skills to find gainful employment and assist us, as the largest community service provider, with offering even more employment opportunities. 

YMCA Advocates Action Center

Sign up for the new YMCA Advocates Action Center!

Benefit from new features like viewing priority issues, logging interactions with government leaders, and having a list of your local legislators at your convenience. 

Register for the new YMCA Advocates Action Center  HERE






 
YMCA National Advocacy Days

   A big thank you to everyone who came out to support Massachusetts Ys at YMCA National Advocacy Days in Washington D.C. March 6th-8th!

HERE ARE SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS:

 

Meeting with Senator Elizabeth Warren 

From left to right: Peter Doliber (Executive Director, Alliance of MA YMCAs), Brittany Adelman (Healthy Initiatives Manager, Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs), Kate-Marie Roycroft (Director Public Policy, Alliance of MA YMCAs), Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Pam Anderson (Board Volunteer, Chair of Danvers YMCA Board), Len Merier (CEO, Danvers YMCA), and Jim Scherer (CEO, YMCA Southcoast)


Pam Anderson Alliance Past Board Chair and Current Volunteer Board Member received recognition from Kent Johnson, YMCA of the USA, for her policy volunteer work.

 

Congressman Joe Kennedy took the time to snap a photo with Jim Scherer, CEO of YMCA Southcoast after meeting with us to discuss Massachusetts YMCA legislative priorities.

 

U.S. Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy , received a YMCA Champion Award for being supportive of the Y and for his commitment to building healthier communities. Upon accepting the award, the Surgeon General praised the Y for its work to improve health access across the nation. The Y was a key partner during the Surgeon General's Step It Up! call to action on walking and walkable communities.



MSNBC Political Analyst, Michael Steele, provided advocates with insight on the role advocacy can have within the current political climate. Steele is the former Republican National Committee Chairman and Maryland's former Lt. Governor. 

SAVE THE DATE: Go NAPSACC/HEPA Training

REGISTER HERE
Massachusetts Ys - Walkability Project

The Alliance, along with 49 other states, has recently been awarded a grant by Y-USA and the Surgeon General to improve walkability and pedestrian accessibility in areas across the state of Massachusetts. We have developed a strategic partnership with the Vision Zero Initiative, which seeks to eliminate all deaths and severe injuries caused by motor vehicles.

Read more about the Vision Zero Initiative HERE

We will be using grant funds to administer walk audits, walkability scavenger hunts, and similar activities for your after-school students to highlight areas surrounding local Ys where walkability could be improved, and/or where potential motor vehicle accidents can be prevented with the ultimate goal of raising awareness to your local leaders. 

 

As part of this project, we invite Ys to participate in a brief 10-15 minute survey regarding walkability in areas surrounding your Ys.

CLICK HERE 
to take the survey!

Thank you in advance for your participation. If you have any additional questions regarding this initiative, please contact Brittany Adelman, Healthy Initiatives Manager at the Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs: Brittany.Adelman@maymca.com
 
YMCA Spring Training

Upcoming RTE's:
Stoughton, MA -  Link
Mar 29th - Apr 7th
Striar YMCA

Maine RTE - Link TBA
May 28th - Jun 7th
Augusta YMCA

FULL COURSE LIST
Click links to go to the LCDC class page!

Taking a Healthy Living Course? Make sure you have all of your pre-requisites completed before the deadline. Click Here for a guide!

TEAM LEADER COURSES
Intro to Fiscal Management - Sign up
Intro to Leading Others - Sign up
Volunteerism - Sign up

MULTI-TEAM LEADER COURSES
Project Management - Sign up

ENGAGEMENT & RELATIONSHIPS
Into to Listen First - Sign up
Facilitating Change in Small Groups - Sign up

HEALTHY LIVING, AQUATICS, ETC.
EnhanceFitness - Sign up
Y Swim Lesson Instructor v6 - Sign up

BECOME A TRAINER
Facilitation Skills - Sign up
Trainer Level Courses - Trainer Level courses have deadlines, apply soon!
          
YMCA Swim Lessons - Apply
Intro to Fiscal Management - Apply
Facilitating Change Sm. Groups - Apply

Questions related to training or LCDC?
Email us! We're happy to provide guidance on LCDC, Y Trainings, or staff development for your YMCA!
South Shore YMCA Day Camp Training
Dinner and refreshments will be provided. $25 per person
For more information, contact Lisa Drennan at ldrennan@ssymca.org

Register 
Elder Behavioral Health Training
BASIC ELDER BEHAVIORAL HEALTH TRAINING

EOEA is partnering with Jewish Family & Children's Services (JF&CS) to sponsor an all-day training that examines and shares strategies to address difficult behaviors including social bullying among older adults.
*There is no charge to attend

Participants will build their skills with tips, techniques, and suggested language for a variety of situations. This full-day training will describe bullying among older adults and provide strategies/interventions to create an environment where everyone feels safe and valued, and will reinforce the value of teamwork in strategizing solutions to ease the burdens of older adults.

TRAINERS:
Marsha Frankel, LICSW and Robin Krawczyk, LICSW, Jewish Family & Children's Services

LOGISTICS:
Registration: 8:30am - 9:00am
Program: 9:00am - 5:00pm
*Lunch will be provided

DATES & LOCATIONS:
Mansfield Council on Aging, 3/30/2017
Elder Services of the Worcester Area, 4/3/2017
Mystic Valley Elder Services, 4/20/2017
Bedford Council on Aging, 5/1/2017
Northampton Council on Aging, 5/3/2017
Mashpee Senior Center, 5/23/2017
North Shore Elder Services, 6/1/2017
Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley, 6/5/2017


For Questions and Additional Information Email:  Nina.Rosenberg@state.ma.us

Alliance Seeking Qualified Interns

We are seeking interns to help us with some projects including healthy living, achievement gap, and advocacy. The positions are unpaid, but make for great opportunities to learn about public policy, advocacy, and serving our Ys. 

These positions are unpaid with flexible hours in our Boston office. It is perfect for undergrads on break, recent graduates, or as capstone projects for undergrads and graduate students. 

Please refer all interested parties to: 
Don't Forget to Follow us on Social Media!
/Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs
/@MAYMCAS
/Alliance_of_MA_YMCAs