Public Policy

Are you interested in joining Maine Early Childhood Colleagues who will be attending the 2012 Public Policy Forum?  This is an exciting and unique professional development opportunity!

*Hear from senior national policymakers 

*Enhance and share your knowledge of federal and state policy     issues 

*Meet with your members of Congress

2012 NAEYC Public Policy Forum

Washington, DC 

February 28-29, 2012 

Some of the speakers at last year’s Public Policy Forum:

Roberto Rodriguez, The White House, President’s education advisor

Jeanne Shaheen, United States Senator and former Governor (NH)

Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

 All Sessions held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel except Hill visits

NAEYC will set up your Capitol Hill visits for Wednesday

For those of you who have not attended before, the Public Policy Forum is a yearly event for NAEYC members to hear from national experts and federal officials, participate in breakout sessions on key state policy topics, and spend a day visiting your members of Congress. Participants must attend the Tuesday sessions to be fully prepared for the key messages at the meetings with Congressional offices

Maine Association for the Education of Young Children will be sending a team to the annual NAEYC Public Policy Forum in Washington, D.C.  We invite any members who would like to take advantage of this opportunity for professional development to email a letter of interest to: info@maineaeyc.org by November 15th, 2011.  Maine AEYC will pay for hotel and plane/train reservations for the team.  Per Diem expenses will be the responsibility of the team members.

**************************************************************************************************************************

MEAEYC Public Policy Brief

• Increase Access to Quality Care: MEAEYC supports increased subsidies that will allow more children the ability to attend high quality early childhood settings.  Family education of the standards of quality care is also a priority for MEAEYC members. 69.5% of the members surveyed, identified the ability to pay for the full cost of childcare as the #1 barrier to families’ access to quality care.

• Increase Funding to Support Quality Improvements in Programs: MEAEYC supports increasing the investment in early childhood including low interest loans for capital improvements and increasing the financial benefits for programs meeting higher standards of quality as measured by Quality for ME- Maine’s Quality Rating System. 76.7% of respondents stated that a lack of financial support to sustain/maintain quality was the number one barrier to improving the quality of their programs.

• Equitable Wages Based on Level of Education/Experience: MEAEYC supports financial awards based on levels within the Maine Roads to Quality Provider Registry. 63.8% of members who responded stated that the wages within the early care and education system in the state of Maine are not adequate based on the professional’s level of education and experience.

• Improve Professional Development Opportunities: MEAEYC supports the increased investment in scholarships for early care and education professionals. 1/3 of respondents identified a lack of scholarships as a barrier to furthering their education and another 1/3 wanted an increased variety of training/classes offered in the state.

• Support Children’s Mental Health: MEAEYC supports investments in programs that provide mental health and crisis services for the children and families in Maine. 74.9% of respondents indicated a need for increased focus on the mental health of children and families.  45.6% stated that family crisis is the number one contributing factor to children’s well-being.