State CCDBG Plans to Support a Diverse and Culturally Competent Workforce
Dec 22, 2009 | Child Care & Early Education
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) is the largest source of federal funding for child care available to states. Every two years, states must lay out their plans for using all CCDBG funds to help low-income families access child care and to improve the quality of child care for all children, including infants and toddlers. Below are examples of promising child care licensing, subsidy, and quality enhancement policies and initiatives supporting infant/toddler care as reported by states in their FFY 2008-2009 CCDBG plans.
Actions taken by states to support a diverse and culturally competent workforce included:
- Adapting early learning guidelines to address diverse children and providers
- Making intensive infant/toddler training appropriate for diverse communities
- Offering professional development for infant/toddler providers in English and Spanish
Adapting early learning guidelines to address diverse children and providers
- Minnesota reported that the state addressed the cultural and linguistic diversity of families in the state's early learning guidelines for infants and toddlers.
- Arkansas' Framework for Infant and Toddler Care included strategies for working with children of limited English proficient (LEP) families as well as children with special needs.
- South Dakota included strategies for addressing the needs of bilingual learners in the state's early learning guidelines.
Making intensive infant/toddler training appropriate for diverse communities
- Minnesota planned to adapt the core content of the state's Infant Toddler Training Intensive, which is modeled on PITC, for use in specific cultural communities.
Offering professional development for infant/toddler providers in Spanish
- Florida reported support for developing a state-approved Infant and Toddler Florida Child Care Professional Certificate Program in English and Spanish.