The webinar focuses on the Center’s goals for the next two years; how CEELO will be supporting state early childhood goals in upcoming month; highlights signature projects building leadership and organizational capacity, birth to third grade data and policy, and financing and sustaining high-quality early learning programs; and, hallmarks state leaders from AZ, IL, KY, and NE discussing with their work with CEELO. Recording | Slides
Behind the New Benchmarks Webinar
This webinar from NIEER provides an overview of changes to State of Preschool report quality standards benchmarks, reasons for the updates and policies that should be in place to meet the new benchmarks. Presenters include NIEER Founder and Senior Co-Director Steve Barnett and yearbook co-author Allison Friedman-Krauss Ph.D., along with representatives from Michigan, Alabama, and New Mexico discussing how they have integrated or plan to integrate new benchmark criteria into state policy/practice.
Preparing for the Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy Program
The Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy Program (SRCLP) is federally funded competitive grant program intended to improve the literacy skills of children birth through 12th grade, with a priority on serving children living in poverty, English learners, and children with disabilities. The competition sets aside 15 percent of the sub-granted funds to serve children from birth through age five; and forty percent for children in kindergarten through grade 5. This webinar provided participants an opportunity to identify the opportunities of SRCLP program to increase language and literacy skills of young children and improve practice of educators; share evidence-based research to improve reading comprehension of children preschool to third grade; and discuss considerations for state leaders in designing policy and professional learning to increase effectiveness of early language and literacy instruction, particularly for dual language learners, and children with special needs.
Leading the Way: How States are Addressing Early Learning Under ESSA
This webinar provides participants with resources, examples, and strategies for including early learning in their ESSA state plans. State leaders from Arkansas, Louisiana, Michigan, and Washington describe on their strategies for integrating the following key policy areas that research shows help reduce achievement gaps for young children: Increasing access to high-quality preschool; Aligning and coordinating early learning programs from birth to grade; Preparing and supporting highly effective teachers and leaders. This webinar was co-hosted by CEELO and the REL Southwest.
Preparing for the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA): Early Learning
This webinar was held on Oct. 31 and hosted by CEELO and the National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education (NAECS-SDE). The webinar includes information from the USED Office of Early Learning on the guidance (see below)and views from three states – North Carolina, Colorado and Arizona – on their efforts to strengthen early learning in their ESSA planning. (Slide handout)
Effective Components of Successful Early Learning-to-Kindergarten Transitions
This webinar features CEELO’s Shannon Riley-Ayers who presented on three components that support a child’s successful transition to school: leadership, effective instruction, and family and community engagement. She was joined by a principal and a superintendent from Oregon who shared successful family engagement and school readiness efforts and how to increase the readiness of entering kindergartners.
Building State P-3 Systems
This webinar focuses on the SEA role in supporting P-3 system building at the state and local levels, drawing on a recent study of three states that have devoted significant attention and resources to P-3 efforts: Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Each of these states has developed state-wide P-3 policy initiatives regarding standards, assessments, and instruction as well as targeted programs to support local P-3 community partnerships. After providing an overview of each state’s P-3 work, the webinar discusses nine recommendations that emerged from the case studies.
Why Understanding the Costs of Preschool Quality is Important: A Webinar for Preschool Development Grantee States
This webinar presents and demonstrates the use of the Cost of Preschool Quality Tool (CPQ) by the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes, an Excel based model that can be used at the state or district level to estimate the cost of expanding high quality preschool for 3 and 4 year olds.
Early Childhood Teacher Education Policies: Research Review and State Trends
This webinar reviews key findings from a recent policy report by the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes which reviews published research on early childhood (ECE) workforce education and credentials as well as on the current status of ECE wages, recruitment and retention challenges, and promising practices.
Connecting with Hard to Access Families
This webinar was hosted by the Preschool Development Grant (PDG) Family Engagement Community of Practiceon February 18, 2016. It was targeted for state and program administrative staff interested in reaching and connecting with hard-to-find families. Attendees heard from Deborah Watson (CT Office of Early Childhood) about her state’s strategies. CEELO’s Melissa Dahlin presented findings from research and practice.
Highlights of the 2014 NIEER State of Preschool Yearbook: P-3 Policy in Context
This webinar discusses the major cross-state trends in the 2014 yearbook and highlight major policy changes related to publicly-funded preschool.
Approaches to State Prekindergarten Eligibility Policy: Considerations for Policymakers
This webinar reviews key findings from a CEELO policy report that provides information on state-funded pre-K program eligibility policies and considerations for policymakers as they review or revise eligibility to balance accountability and increase access for high needs children. Susan Hogge, Legislative Fiscal Analyst for Public Education, Virginia House Appropriations Committee offers remarks regarding Virginia’s recently revised eligibility policy for the Virginia Preschool Initiative.