Examining Community Councils (or Interagency Councils) in Early Childhood

Introduction
What is the Purpose of an Interagency Council?
From the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
From the Wisconsin State Improvement Grant (SIG)
Community Councils in Action
Challenges

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Introduction Back to Top

The Community, or Interagency, Council approach to services is an attempt to streamline and maximize resources within a community and provide the most useful and efficient application of these resources to the needs of the community. This document provides an overview from different sources of the Community Council (or Interagency Council) approach when applied to various communities and services. Though our focus is more specifically Early Childhood Education, many of the examples below from other services will be useful to those seeking input on creating and employing the Community Council approach in any field.

What is the Purpose of an Interagency Council? Back to Top

From the Peggy S. Hayden and Beth S. Rous document available from the University of Kentucky's IHDI (The Interdisciplinary Human Development Institute, a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research and Service). Please follow the link above for the full document. We use IHDI's introduction only.

"Why is there a need for interagency councils?

In the field of early childhood, local interagency councils can help address issues and problems that result from (1) a system of diverse service providers that can lead to service fragmentation, (2) funding inadequacies, and (3) lack of a central agency responsible for coordination, funding, and leadership in early care and education.

How can interagency councils help communities?

Local interagency councils or more specifically, early childhood services, help communities. The services they provide result in long term cost savings for society. Studies with special needs have shown that when children are provided quality early intervention and preschool services they:

(1) return to society four to seven dollars for every dollar invested,
(2) are twice as likely to be employed as adults, thereby being tax payers rather than human service burdens,
(3) have 33% higher high school graduation rates,
(4) have 40% lower arrest rates,
(5) are half as likely to be involved in teenage pregnancy,
(6) are twice as likely to function at or above the national average on competency testing, and
(7) spend only half as many years in public school special education.

What can a local interagency council accomplish?

Based on experiences of Kentucky Preschool Interagency Planning Councils (PIPC), a local interagency council can do much to improve services. For example:

1. Conduct needs assessments resulting in local, state, and federal data sources; develop comparative analyses of services.
2. Acquire grants to conduct special interagency, community-wide projects such as:

a. development of a community-wide model for the transition to school
b. provide training for staff
c. conduct needs surveys.

3. Conduct public awareness concerning the benefits of early intervention and services available in the community through:

a. development and mass dissemination of a brochure
b. interviews with the media
c. public speaking, booths at information fairs, meeting with various groups.

4. Provide dual enrollment of children in different service agencies to make the broad community services system as responsive as possible to individual child and family needs.
5. Provide cross program visitation for staff from various agencies.
6. Make available joint staff and parent training, ongoing information sharing, and the sharing of materials and equipment.
7. Provide monthly meetings to serve as a forum for ongoing coordination of services.
8. Conduct community-wide Child Find and screening activities.
9. Collaborate with local universities on special training grants.
10. Serve as advocate for early intervention and preschool services with other groups in the community such as physicians, physical therapists, the public schools, child care council, and the regional mental health/mental retardation board.
11. Have representation in local and state groups which address the needs of young children and families.
12. Conduct studies on issues common to all programs and make recommendations for policies, procedures, and/or staff training related to issues such as:

a. coordination with physicians
b. communicable diseases
c. use of medical procedures (e.g. catheterization), first aid, and CPR
d. coordination of overall policies and procedures for compliance with federal laws and as amended legal requirements related to programs for young children.

13. Conduct community-wide interagency planning regarding service expansion and further coordination.
14. Establish community-wide service coordination and direction service for children and families.
15. Help to advocate for state and federal legislation to improve services for young children and families."

From the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Back to Top

Wisconsin's Components of Community Education

"The five components of the Wisconsin Model of Community Education provide a philosophical base for program development. When established in a school district, these components can provide a guide for action. Each of the five components operates most effectively when educators and citizens work together in planning how they are best implemented in the school district. These components are: Citizen Involvement, Needs Assessment and Planning, Extended Use of Public Education Facilities, Interagency Coordination and Cooperation and Leadership and Accountability."

Community Education Tool Kit Interagency Cooperation/Coordination

Objectives:
"A regular contact with community agencies and organizations for the purposes of a) joint planning, b) avoiding duplications of services/efforts, and c) insuring expanded community services through the existing community infrastructure."

From the Wisconsin State Improvement Grant (SIG): Back to Top
Networks & Councils / Community Planning page.

Community Councils in Action Back to Top

IDEA Preschool Demonstration Projects 2005-2006: From CESA #4--Four communities that completed three years of planning & implementation minigrants and demonstrated exemplary outcomes on behalf of young children with disabilities and their families received an additional year of funding for expansion and dissemination efforts as a Demonstration Project. Sponsored by the WI Department of Public Instruction IDEA State Preschool Initiatives.

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Juda Early Childhood Council
The mission of the Juda Early Childhood Council is to work collaboratively with care providers, school, local agencies and the community to provide a seamless system of support for high quality, affordable and integrated early care and education experiences.

The mission of the council-supported After-School Child Care program is to coordinate and align the delivery of such care for students through fifth grade in the out-of-school hours while intentionally offering young children with broad differences in their abilities access to all learning opportunities.

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Los Angeles Children’s Planning Council Uses the Power of Outcomes and Indicators from Planning to Budget: "Since its inception in 1991, the Los Angeles Children’s Planning Council has recognized the power of data as a tool for change. In ten years, the Council has measured outcomes and indicators by geographic region and ethnic groups; established one countywide (American Indian) and eight regional councils to plan and coordinate children’s services; and begun to integrate results and performance accountability into the county’s new strategic plan and budget."

"The Children’s Planning Council, comprised of 36 leaders from county government, cities, schools, private sector service providers, advocacy organizations and the various philanthropic, business, ethnic and geographic communities of Los Angeles was established in 1991 by the county Board of Supervisors to “promote, coordinate and evaluate the effectiveness of programs for children countywide,” guided by the vision that 'Los Angeles County children should reach adulthood having experienced a safe, healthy, and nurturing childhood which prepares them to become responsible and contributing members of the community.' "

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The Los Angeles County Children's Planning Council: The Los Angeles County Children's Planning Council - a countywide public/private collaborative - is dedicated to improving the lives of children and families by encouraging partnerships, promoting the use of data, developing resources and tools, and emphasizing the importance of outcomes and results. Our goal is to build stronger and more effective systems that serve families and children, build linkages between government and community, and improve planning efforts so that we increase the probability of successful actions that enhance child and family well-being throughout Los Angeles.

The Council's work is guided by our Vision for Children and five outcomes of child well-being: good health, safety and survival, social and emotional well-being, economic well-being, and education/workforce readiness. For the Council, these outcomes are the bottom line.

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Local Interagency Coordinating Councils (LICC): Membership in the 100 county level organizations includes parents and representatives of the different service delivery agencies. Examples of their responsibilities include screening referrals for services and determining eligibility, planning Child Find and public awareness campaigns and identifying and planning for local service delivery needs. A consortium is often a sub-group that focuses on infants and toddlers. The Preschool IEP Team is often a sub-group that focuses on 3- and 4-year olds.

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The Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Project: The Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Project (ECCS) is looking at ways that groups at the local, regional, and state-level addressing early childhood efforts can become more knowledgeable and supportive of each other’s work. In order to most effectively support current efforts, a survey of local groups who focus on early childhood issues is being conducted. The ECCS Project hopes to learn from them, share information with them, and support future efforts in working together more effectively.

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Challenges: Back to Top

Feds call on Bush to support interagency councils: Interagency councils are helping government leaders solve tough problems, but finding the funds to keep these efforts afloat is a huge challenge, according to current and former federal executives.

During last week’s annual Association of Government Accountants federal leadership conference in Washington, Jim Flyzik, chief information officer at the Treasury Department, said funding will be a big issue for interagency councils during the next few years.