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Co-chairs Erin McGovern and
Steve Manchester called the meeting to order at 9:30 a.m.
The meeting opened with introductions. The agenda was
approved. Jan Ellis, the featured speaker, was unable to
attend the meeting due to illness She will be at the meeting
in May.
UPDATE ON
THE BUSINESS OF THE TASK FORCE
MCCTF's response to the FIA
Child Care Report: Erin McGovern distributed an outline of
concerns drafted by the Planning Group, which will be
incorporated into a letter for legislators. The House FIA
Budget subcommittee will meet on Monday, February 14, in
room 351 of the State Capitol at 1:00 p.m. to discuss, among
other things, the Report.
Child
Care Center Rules:
Steve Manchester noted that the State has issued "final
rules" set to go into effect on July 1, 2000. The final
rules are accessible on the State's web site at
www.cis.state.mi.us/opla/childcare/htm. He also noted
that the Division of Day Care Licensing will be
responsible for enforcing the parent-provider contracts
outlined in the rules. The notion of the parent-provider
contracts raised concerns, including the potential costs
incurred by centers, and the legal implications of the
contracts, and the huge enforcement task given to the
Division.
MCCF
Children's Agenda: Steve
Manchester announced that MCCTF's draft of legislative
priorities is listed on the back of the meeting agenda.
The group decided to modify #3 to suggest that MSRP
funding be raised to $4000 per child. Barb Roth-Grondin
suggested that another item be added that requests
changing the hourly reimbursement system to a slot-based
system.
Michigan
Head Start Association news:
Phoebe Lowell, Director of MHSA, will be leaving her post
in May. The Association is currently seeking applicants
for the position. MHSA is also hosting an "Annual
Preconference and Training Conference" March 1-3, 2000.
Contact Lesley Phillip at 517.482.1504 for more
information.
School
Readiness: Barb
Roth-Grondin announced that grant-readers are needed to
evaluate this year's proposals. If you have questions,
please call 517.373.8483.
Child
Care Challenge: Susan
Safford from Representative Pan Godchaux's office
announced that applications are now available for the
2000 Child Care Challenge. Contact Representative
Godchaux at 517.373.0824 for information.
Kids
Count Data: Jane
Zehnder-Merrell announced that "The Right Start" data
book, which outlines conditions for newborns in the
nation's 50 largest cities, has been released and can be
obtained by calling 517.487.5436.
Auditor
General's Report on the FIA Child Care Program: Mark
Sullivan
A. Mark announced that
the Report noted that care provided by convicted
criminals is a major concern. The report concluded that
"FIA should improve its screening and monitoring of child
care aide and relative care provider applicants and
enrollees." Mark will generate a letter in response to
the report; ideas and suggestions should be directed to
him at 800.950.4171.
MCCTF ACTION
AGENDA 2000 PLANNING SESSION:
The group worked to develop
a set of legislative and action priorities for 2000. A draft
of the Action Agenda will be presented at the March 1, 2000
meeting.
Next month's
meeting will feature
Marianne Udow, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Strategy and
Health Care Administration, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of
Michigan. Marianne will discuss the Ready to Succeed
Dialogue with Michigan. Michele Strasz from Catalyst for
Action will speak about behavioral health managed care.
The next meeting will be at
9:30 a.m. on March 1 at the Michigan State Library, in the
Lake Ontario room on the third floor.
The meeting was adjourned at
2:05 p.m.
"The
mission of the Michigan Child Care Task Force is to advocate
on behalf
of children and their families to assure that all children
have
access to high quality, affordable, nurturing early
education and care."
This message is made
possible in part by generous support from the Frey
Foundation of Grand Rapids.
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