The 2019 Leadership Institute has come to an end, and we are in full planning mode for our 2020 Symposium – Breakthrough Barriers, Breakout Solutions on May 3 - 6 in Crystal City, Virginia. But before we put the 2019 Leadership Institute to bed, I wanted to share some of the highlights from the week.

When the Flint, MI water crisis hit the news in 2015, people around the world took notice. Hundreds of children across Flint had alarmingly high blood lead levels. Many still do. The problem was quickly traced back to lead contamination in the city’s water supply. The water that Flint’s families and caregivers used to cook, drink and bathe in was poisoning their children. 

Now a new water crisis is making news, this time in Newark, NJ. Once again, families in a major U.S. city are being poisoned by lead in their environment. Newark is in the news now, but children’s blood lead levels in places like Milwaukee, Baltimore and Philadelphia are actually much higher than in Flint.  And the children most in danger of lead poisoning are children from families with low incomes and children of color. 

For more than 50 years, Sesame Street has worked to build stronger, smarter and kinder communities. Now, they’re coming to your neighborhood. Sesame Street in Communities, together with Child Care Aware® of America, is excited to provide free resources for parents and providers working to get every child in their lives school ready. We are recruiting Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) staff serving families and providers to participate in one of two cohorts that use Sesame resources for school readiness. CCAoA Members can sign up to participate today! 

The problem

Providers are committed to promoting children’s health and safety, both in the child care setting and at home. However, many providers report that they are uncertain about how to talk to family members about difficult or potentially sensitive issues. 

July is the hottest time of year for much of the United States, according to the Weather Channel. With relative humidity and actual air temperature both peaking during the later summer months, the end of summer can be especially hazardous to children playing outside. Rather than just sweating it out and complaining about the heat, it’s critical to learn how to keep parents, child care providers and children safe when playing outside this summer. 

The problem 

To protect the well-being of children in child care programs, federal law mandates that states set minimum health and safety training requirements for providers. What if a program seeks to go beyond the minimum?