Which one of you invited Madea to a SECAC meeting?
Posted: May 20, 2012 | Author: Debbie Ellis | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Attorney General Jim Hood; Quality Rating System; Quality Star Step; DECCD-MDHS;, Early Learning Guidelines (ELG), Mississippi child care, Mississippi Child Care Quality Steps, Mississippi early childhood education, Mississippi early learning system, Quality Rating System; DECCD-MDHS; CCDF Quality Improvement |4 CommentsOkay! ‘Fess up! Which one of you invited Madea to a SECAC meeting?
I cannot imagine why SECAC feels it is necessary to address the possibility of disruptive conduct at its meetings from child care providers, most of whom are so fearful of possible threats and retaliation from state agencies, they will not open their mouths to speak even at the appropriate time.
Okay. It has been reported that alleged disparaging and unauthorized remarks from the gallery about the child care industry were injected or shouted into the Council’s meeting by one “not recognized” representative of a CCDF funded member organization, but no action was taken and no point of order was called.
Overall, I just think the SECAC lecture on the rules addressing disruptive behavior at its meetings goes to its control issues and the negative attitude and tone it has set towards child care providers in general, but it gives way to great humor! (click) (Click)
Guidelines for Public Comments to the State Early Childhood Advisory Council: (click)
Disruptive Conduct
Meeting attendees shall refrain from private conversations and interrupting Council members and/or speakers while the Council meeting is in session. Unauthorized remarks from the audience, hand clapping, cheering, whistling, yelling, stamping of feet, and/or similar demonstrations shall not be permitted in the meeting room. No placards, commercial flags, banners or other signs will be permitted in the room in which the Council is meeting. [Note: Exhibits, displays, and visual aids which pertain to presented agenda items to the Board are permissible.]
Removal for Disruptive Conduct
Any person engaging in disruptive conduct as defined above or who makes profane or slanderous remarks or who engages in personal attacks during the Council meeting will be asked to leave or, if she or he refuses, will be removed from the meeting as directed by the Chair. Any person engaging in disruptive behavior on more than one occasion may be barred from attending future Council meetings.
A History Lesson:
In the oldest wing of Westminster Abbey, a small section of broken floor tile (slabs) is cordoned off with velvet rope. Placards announce that visitors are not allowed to touch any part of the sacred area. It is highly regarded as the secret meeting place where knights of long ago gathered to protest the abuses of King John and demand rights for both noblemen and ordinary Englishmen. During these meetings, they shouted and stamped their feet so loudly and were so disruptive that eventually, the Benedictine Monks threw them out.
The knights carried on with their work elsewhere, including in a field at Runnymede.
I give you the Houses of Parliament and the Magna Carta. (click) (click)
Order! Order!
Delta Licensed Providers 
If SECAC had complied with the rest of the Open Meetings Act and not been such a well-kept secret, children and child care would be in a better place today! The Law isn’t like Burger King – you can’t just have it your way!
Nonetheless, I went to the most recent SECAC meeting and thought everyone well behaved – except “she who shall be nameless” who waited until I left to feed the parking meter to insult child care providers.
Since QRIS has not been successful in improving school readiness, one might opine that the only thing that has succeeded is the alienation of 97% of Mississippi’s child care industry.
If a member organization or “nameless” public citizen feels, as this one apparently does, that child care cannot provide quality, then why do they accept CCDF dollars to provide a program designed to improve quality?
Perhaps they should consider new projects that would be more fulfilling and worthwhile to them.
SECAC worked behind the scenes because it knew or should have known that it could not take my budget on Martin Luther King Drive and provide the quality they insist I be measured by in order to be rated – never mind that there is no school readiness in the equation.
The plan on the SECAC site states that it intends to “pilot” its proposal in “select” communities. (I am speculating that even more quality dollars will be taken from the Certificate coffers.) This leaves many providers in low-income communities and regions of extreme poverty at an unfair disadvantage and subject to more name-calling such as “babysitter” and “subpar”.
Shakespeare said it best. “Me thinks they doth protest too much!”
Of course, with the right leadership, Mississippi child care could provide school readiness.
The Governor is now looking to others to determine best practices.
All should write to Governor Bryant to thank him and encourage him to seek new early learning appointments.
After six years and untold millions of dollars – over 11.1 million in fiscal year 2012 alone – only 61 centers – 3% of Mississippi’s child care industry is worthy of a rating.
That rate of return will not draw investors.
It is a bust!
It’s the Quality Steps rating system that isn’t worthy of a rating Ms Debbie. My center provides quality child care but ours is the kind of quality that gets our children ready for school. We put our time and money where it counts and don’t fool around with those QRS interior decorators.
Now, that’s good humor!
We must laugh to keep from crying!
Thanks for sharing that!
🙂