Stick Up for Child Care!
Posted: March 28, 2024 Filed under: Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Development Fund, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, Early Childhood Education Mississippi, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Health Department, MS Department of Health, MS Department of Human Services, Ole Miss, SECAC Mississippi, Uncategorized | Tags: Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, child care Mississippi, equal access, Graduate Center for the Study of Early Learning, SECAC Mississippi Leave a commentSTICK UP FOR CHILD CARE!
MONDAY, APRIL 1, 2024
Deadline to order FREE Child Care Aware Stickers for Child Care Awareness Day!
Complete the form below if you would like to take the opportunity to help recognize the importance of early childhood professionals on “Work Together Wednesday” by providing stickers for parents to wear on Wednesday, April 10th as a Child care Awareness Day. Please complete the application linked below and return today!!
TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 2024
Stand for HB907 Substitution for Increased Child Care Staff Wages News Conference in Jackson!
If your program is enjoying the MDHS Directive Incentives Bonuses, you will want to participate in this call for political action in the development of a more permanent solution to remedy low child care wages! Join us on April 2nd at 9:30 a.m. as we stand together on the South Capitol Steps at the Mississippi State Capitol.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 2024
“Work Together Wednesday”: Pass out stickers to your clients on the afternoon of the 9th or morning of the 10th and ask them to wear them!
Wearing the sticker is one way to remind the community of the importance of child care in the reality of people going to work every day. Complete the form linked below and return to Gena Puckett at: gpuckett@olemiss/edu
Child Care Awareness Day
Graduate Center for the Study of Early Learning
April 10, 2024
I want to participate in the Week of the Young Child by providing stickers to all the parents whose children attend my program and asking them to wear them on April 10, 2024. This is to help raise awareness in the community of the importance of child care workers (directors, teachers, assistants, cooks, bus drivers, and maintenance staff) in their lives and in their ability to work worry-free since you are providing a safe and nurturing program for their children to attend.
If you would like to participate, complete the form, and return to Gena Puckett at gpuckett@olemiss.edu no later than April 1 so the stickers can be mailed in time for you to pass out on the afternoon of the 9th or morning of the 10th. Wearing the sticker is one way to remind the community of the importance of child care in the reality of people going to work every day.
If possible, take a picture of parents proudly wearing their sticker for us to share on our social media and send to Gena Puckett (gpuckett@olemiss/edu). Remember to get their permission for the use of their photo.
Name of Person Completing the Form ________________________________________
Name of Center ___________________________________________________________
E-mail address ___________________________________
Center phone number _______________________________
Mailing Address (include zip code) ___________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
Number of stickers needed (number limited to 100 stickers per center) ________________
Return this form to Gena Puckett at gpuckett@olemiss.edu by April 1.
Free COVID-19 Testing Now Available For Child Care Facility Workers
Posted: September 10, 2020 Filed under: Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Health Department Leave a commentSeptember 9, 2020
Free COVID-19 Testing Now Available
For Child Care Facility Workers
JACKSON, Miss. – Child care facility workers in Mississippi can now receive free drive-through COVID-19 testing at selected Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) community testing locations conducted at many county health departments, and at the West Street Farmers Market in Jackson.
K-12 teachers, staff, school administrators and child care workers of Mississippi licensed child care facilities can be tested regardless of whether they show symptoms or have had close contact with someone positive for the virus. They must receive an appointment by completing an online questionnaire found at https://covidschedule.umc.edu/.
For a list of scheduled testing sites, visit http://HealthyMS.com/page/14,22406,420,874.html.
Keep up with the latest COVID-19 information by downloading the free MS Ready mobile app or follow MSDH by email and social media at www.HealthyMS.com/connect.
MSDH and Interested Parties Invoke Child Care Emergency Rules Citing Rising Covid-19 Spread
Posted: July 23, 2020 Filed under: Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, COVID-19, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Board of Health, Mississippi Health Department, Mississippi Legislature, MS Department of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services | Tags: Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Licensing, child care Mississippi, Mississippi Child Care Licensing 2 Comments
Zoom Meeting On MSDH Emergency Regulations
Posted: July 19, 2020 Filed under: Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Development Fund, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, COVID-19, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Health Department, Mississippi Legislature, MLICCI, MS Department of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services | Tags: Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, child care Mississippi, Mississippi Child Care Licensing, Mississippi Health Department Leave a comment
Get rid of the “bad” ones? (Dr. Chad Allgood is Stigmatizing Child Care!)
Posted: September 18, 2019 Filed under: Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, DECCD-MDHS, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Board of Health, Mississippi Health Department, MS Department of Health, MS Department of Human Services, NAEYC, NSparc, Office of Govenor Phil Bryant, SECAC Mississippi, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Uncategorized | Tags: Administration for Children and Families, child care licensing Mississippi, DECCD, DECCD-MDHS, Mississippi CCDF State Plan, Mississippi Child Care Licensing, Mississippi Health Department, proposed amendments to the regulations governing child care, SECAC Mississippi Leave a commentGet rid of the “bad” ones? (Dr. Chad Allgood is Stigmatizing Child Care!)
Prepare for fines and/or closure or contact your legislators today!
My Facebook friend and I have been having lively debate regarding the role of child care licensure and her Facebook friend, Dr. Chad Allgood, formally of MSU Quality Stars Q.R.I.S. (That program was abolished in 2015 by popular demand! According to paid consultants, after millions and millions of CCDF dollars spent in Q.R.I.S. administration over eight years, only 63 child care facilities out of 1,700 actually held a quality rating or measured up to national bench marks because his organization did not update the scoring scale. Coincidentally, DECCD did not have sufficient funding to provide quality incentive bonuses to all providers who participated. Could that have influenced scores and choice of obsolete scales?)
Likewise, I do not support reducing the number of child care facilities down to a number that will allow Child Care Licensing to begin unannounced, long and disruptive “Observation Based Inspections” or four inspections per year where fines may be imposed as they are often in the hundreds and thousands of dollars.
I do not support the act of Child Care Licensing interfering in voluntary quality improvement exercises by asking the technical assistance coaches with other agencies to lodge complaints with Child Care Licensing on child care centers rather than correct any errors on site for the those seeking quality improvement. I find that counterproductive to quality improvement and to be a little too desperate and eager to rack up fines and demonstrate power.
I do not support inspecting a child care provider 12 times over an 8 week period and/or alleged stalking (allegedly picked up on surveillance cameras) as that meets the legal definition of harassment – that’s not conduct any state actor should be engaged in! (It is precisely why the number of inspections is preset by lawmakers. It also demonstrates that legislators should add specific verbiage to the words “one and more as needed” as well as look into the agency’s process of screening “complaints” and/or abuse of power.)
I do not support reducing the number of licensed child care programs down to a number to promote any state actor’s need for recognition, relevance or to duplicate services, push a personal agenda or embed his own program of unfunded national bench marks/recommendations into licensing, particularly when there is only statutory authority to promulgate minimum standards. (See the Economic Impact Statement – fines/business closures are not addressed.)
I do believe my Facebook friend is right about one thing, however, and that is that work of Dr. Chad Allgood is to get rid of child care centers. He has already revoked many child care licenses based on fines imposed in a single licensing period and at least one excited licensing official has already announced that she can close down a child care facility anytime she wants!
State actor contempt has become so intense, in fact, at a recent meeting on obesity, an employee of the Mississippi State Department of Health revealed that because so much animosity and hostility has been demonstrated towards licensed child care providers, she actually removes her MSDH name badge before trying to collaborate with child care providers because otherwise, they will have nothing to do with her.
I think it is clear that new leadership is needed in Mississippi.
My Facebook friend feels I just have no respect for the leadership and asked me to name just one I respected.
It took a minute!
I listed Dr. Micca Knox of the Child Care Academy for having the professionalism and strong character to refuse to allow her technical assistance coaches to file complaints with the Office of Child Care Licensing following technical assistance sessions with unsuspecting child care providers she truly wishes to empower. (She is a former elementary school assistant principal with experience in effectively guiding and training teachers.)
My Facebook friend did not attend the Road Show so I have agreed to post clips of what I did film.
I was having camera issues – I switched it off!
I just didn’t feel I could watch a replay of smooth-talking doublespeak and I was so hoping Dr. Chad Allgood would see the error of his ways and make the decision not to bully and stigmatize child care or technical assistance opportunities with fines.
That has not happened…and Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss.
So now, I yield and hope you and she can feel the mood and determine for yourself if measurable improved quality or improved health and safety is even a possibility under this leadership in this environment.
I, for one, do not exonerate him when he says he was once a Director, for I do not identify any relatable kinship as he is conducting himself and his office – this is some serious stuff!
I think it is more about who he thinks he is today and who he wants to be.
He has been pushing four inspections per year since he arrived from Q.R.I.S. He once announced four inspections for the Delta only because it was the only district with sufficient licensing officials or few enough centers to carry it out. I suppose by January, when this is scheduled to begin, he feels he will have closed enough child care centers and/or generated enough money to support his quality team and carry out four inspections per year state wide. He will surely be seen and heard then – to hear him tell it as he did in Hattiesburg, he will be known and called upon for his quality program nationwide!
So, prepare for fines and/or closure or contact your legislators today!
The Mississippi Legislature sets the number of times a child care facility may be inspected!
According to Dr. Allgood, one inspection is still a viable option and remains on the table.
Get rid of the “bad” ones? (Chad Allgood is Stigmatizing Child Care!)
I don’t think that program is new!
PRIOR TO THIS POST: I tried speaking to a member of Dr. Chad Allgood’s Quality Team at the Road Show but she walked away from me. I tried speaking to him, but I didn’t have time to wait. I telephoned his office and left a message. He made no effort to contact me in return.
For on site technical assistance sessions in transitional activities, effective discipline of young children, age appropriate lessons, nutrition, emergency preparedness and more that are not an inspection or held under threat of any monetary penalties to be reported online, contact the Child Care Academy in your area or Email Dr. Micca Knox at: mknox@mccb.edu
The Road Show Video
Technical Assistance Inspections Scheme
Posted: September 12, 2019 Filed under: Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Licensing, Mississippi Board of Health, Mississippi Health Department, MS Department of Health | Tags: child care licensing Mississippi, Mississippi Child Care Licensing, proposed amendments to the regulations governing child care Leave a comment
Public Hearing Today: Proposed Increase in Child Care Licensing Fee Coerces Political Action!
Posted: September 9, 2019 Filed under: Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Development Fund, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Board of Health, Mississippi Health Department, Mississippi Legislature, MS Department of Health, NAEYC, Office of Govenor Phil Bryant, QRS Mississippi, Quality Rating System, SECAC Mississippi, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Uncategorized 1 CommentPublic Hearing Today: Proposed Increase in Child Care Licensing Fee Coerces Political Action!
“It has been determined that a direct appropriation by the Mississippi Legislature that would sufficiently cover the expenses of operating a quality child care facility licensure program would eliminate the need for a fee increase.”
The Mississippi State Department of Health Division of Child Care Licensure has proposed a 25% increase in child care licensing fees because, as stated in its Economic Impact Statement, the Mississippi Legislature has never appropriated sufficient funds to cover completely the cost of administering the child care licensure program at a level to meet national benchmarks.
The Mississippi State Department of Health Division of Child Care Licensure has partnered with MDHS/SECAC to require adherence to most costly NAEYC performance standards as outlined in the now embedded yet un-adopted Standard Application which determines which child care facilities will be allowed to serve low-income children and which will not from this time forward. (The current number of licensed child care programs in Mississippi who have met the most costly standards is 23 facilities out of 1,481. Click here to confirm. Please also note that the accredited programs receive funding other than from very unstable CCDF child care subsidy. Further, less than 10 percent of all child care centers, preschools, and kindergartens nationally achieve this recognition.)
Dr. Charles Allgood, formally with the unsuccessful Quality Stars Q.R.I.S. at Mississippi State, plans to increase the number of child care inspections to four by presenting additional (2) two hour inspections under the guise of helpful technical assistance to be conducted during the busiest and most distracting times of day…which may result in fines.
Desperate to punish, the Division of Child Care actually manipulated a non-profit providing quality technical assistance to entrap and report perceived child care violations to its office following voluntary quality improvement training sessions with unsuspecting child care providers in order that licensing officials could go in immediately after and issue fines based upon the “complaints” of those who provided the technical assistance; the agency only has the statutory authority to conduct one inspection each year and others “as needed”
Dr. Charles Allgood has revealed that selected child care facilities have been inspected 12 (twelve) times in 2 (two) months!
This feeding frenzy – the aggressive and competitive group attack on licensed and CCPP child care providers – is relevant narcissistic manner and Hubris in the dysfunctional MDHS/SECAC Kingdom of Contempt where state actors and policy makers jockey for position.
FACT: Neither MDHS/SECAC or the Division of Child Care Licensing have the statutory authority to require the costly national bench marks that make up the Standard Application.
Review the proposed amendment including the Economic Impact Statement by clicking here. 
Engage in the political action needed to prevent an increase in your child care licensing fee and more by contacting your Senator and Representatives today.
Enter your support or objection to this proposed agency rule into the official rule-making record by attending the public hearing:
Monday
Sept. 9, 2019
9:15 AM
MSDH Osborne Auditorium
570 E. Woodrow Wilson Blvd.
Jackson, MS 39215
A Proper Economic Impact Statement Should be Required. To Act Otherwise is Irresponsible.
Posted: March 19, 2019 Filed under: "Race to the Top", Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, Child Care Advisory Council, Child Care Development Fund, Child Care Licensing, Child Care Mississippi, DECCD-MDHS, Early Learning Guidelines (ELG), HHS ACF Office of Child Care, Mississippi Building Blocks, Mississippi Health Department, Mississippi State University, MS Department of Health, MS Department of Human Services, NAEYC, NSparc, QRS Mississippi, Quality Rating System, School Readiness Mississippi, SECAC, SECAC Mississippi, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Uncategorized | Tags: "Race to the Top", Administration for Children and Families, CCPP-approved Provider, Child Care Licensing, child care licensing Mississippi, child care Mississippi, child care quality rating systems Mississippi, DECCD, DECCD-MDHS, Early Learning Guidelines (ELG), Market Survey Rates, MDHS, Mississippi CCDF State Plan, proposed amendments to the regulations governing child care, QRS Mississippi, Quality Rating System; DECCD-MDHS; CCDF Quality Improvement, SECAC Mississippi 1 CommentA Proper Economic Impact Statement Should be Required. To Act Otherwise is Irresponsible.
“Whenever I walk in a room, everyone ignores me.”
(Click here.) See page 15 of 23 of the Administrative Procedures Law (APL).
§ 25-43-3.109. Contents, style and form of rule.
(3) An agency may incorporate, by reference in its rules and without publishing the incorporated matter in full, all or any part of a code, standard, rule or regulation that has been adopted by an agency of the United States … if incorporation of its text in agency rules would be unduly cumbersome, expensive or otherwise inexpedient. The reference in the agency rules must fully identify the incorporated matter with an appropriate citation.
Because HHS does not require Standard and Comprehensive Centers, SECAC/MDHS should include 658G(a)(2), the code that is available in the federal statute mandating the choice of 1 out of 10 quality activities from which SECAC/MDHS were to have allowed a proper (and not manipulated) Mississippi needs assessment to determine:
- Training and professional development.
- Improvement of early learning guidelines.
- Implementation of a quality rating system.
- Improving the supply and quality of infant and toddler care.
- Expanding resource and referral services.
- Facilitating state licensing compliance.
- Evaluating child care programs’ effectiveness, including positive impacts on children.
- Supporting voluntary accreditation.
- Supporting quality health, physical activity and nutrition standards in child care settings.
- Any other quality improvement activity that can be measured.
The quality determined by SECAC, is written to allow for the annual elimination of small business service providers (most of whom are members of a protected class – the other elephant in the room) who do not demonstrate ongoing and ever more…and still more…costly national standards over time without mention of the fact that those to be most impacted receive only 75% of 2015 market rates enacted in 2018 – the first increase in as much as 15 years and possibly the last one for 15 years more.
Regardless, all are expected to transition from a Standard Center to a Comprehensive Center which SECAC has recommended be staffed with caregivers who hold Master’s degrees – a huge investment for any small business that will likely be passed on in increased child care fees to young, middle income parents who are just starting to build careers but do not qualify for state subsidy.
SECAC/MDHS implemented this CCDF State Plan without identifying or providing the rules by which centers will be determined eligible to continue to serve low-income children.
Further attempts to redress this again would likely not be any less exhausting or any less heated than it was when I first raised this primary concern with policymakers.
In fact, it would likely just be said, as it is usually said by state actors, academia and others when we dare to question, that self-employed child care providers do not care about children. We are only interested in making money.
“I can rise from the ashes like a phoenix only so many times.”
After five years of effectively defunding the Program through no new enrollment for low-income parents entering the work force and other SECAC/MDHS patterns and practices, (coupled with heavy-handed adoptions by the Mississippi State Department of Health Child Care Licensing/BOH), I liken the needed child care provider ”buy in” of this CCDF State Plan as nothing short of a suicide pact.
Demoralizing child care providers while financially defeating small businesses providing LICENSED child care services will NEVER sufficiently serve the needs of work force development or bring about quality child care or school readiness in Mississippi and has not justified any one competing early learning model, quality grant, technical assistance team, or agency as ”THE most worthy of CCDF quality funding” or as ”THE leading edge of leadership”.
More than two years in, I have not seen that this leadership can administrate a cost prohibitive quality rating system with any more expertise and success than the QRIS previously in place. Costs to low-income providers are still costs! Unstable CCPP funding is still unstable! More bias, prejudice and contempt for self-employed providers serving low-income children is, no less, bias, prejudice and contempt whatever the reigning early learning model!
What I have seen is that such conduct and conflict has driven state actor personal agenda and ambition, fostered a hostile and disruptive work environment for CCPP providers and low-income families, violated the privacy rights of private citizens working for private companies and prevented any meaningful discussion of reasonable policies and assurances needed for expanding quality resources in the existing small business infrastructure developed by the CCDF to provide LICENSED child care services to low-income children.
Just weeks ago, SECAC asked a legislator to sponsor a bill to abolish the SECAC and replace it with a Children’s Cabinet which would remove child care representatives completely from the policy making ROOM and thus, take away all Program ownership – a quest I see as more so for power than for vested quality and improvement.
Fortunately, it died on the calendar.
Given the level of contempt and disrespect all leadership has demonstrated for CCPP child care providers and small businesses over the years, it is no wonder that costs and sustainability of QRIS activities and the huge burden to providers and economic impact QRIS causes them to realize has always been the elephant in the room!
For state actors to continue to ignore costs and consequences without regard for those who are to be adversely impacted and to implement underfunded national standards/SECAC mandates without proper adoption and without a proper economic impact statement – without the tools and input needed to make sound decisions – is reckless to the stability, availability, and affordability of ALL LICENSED child care, reckless to an industry embedded in small businesses, and reckless to work force development in rural communities.
These facts are why national standards were NOT adopted when the CCDFBG was enacted.
”Houston! We’ve got a problem! What have we got on the spacecraft that’s good? We just lost the moon.” Apollo 13
Also see QRIS Rating Systems Do Not Improve Learning or Social Development of Children.
Delta Licensed Providers 
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