Early Childhood Task Force

 

The passage of Act 151 (HB 1300) mandated the creation of an early childhood education task force to improve early childhood services and programs in the state. This task force has identified and prioritized four areas with which to focus on: Governance, Family/Early Childhood Education & Care Programs & Services, Defining and Building the Workforce & Profession, and Early Childhood Promotion. It also required the Department of Education to assist with the expanding the access of early childhood education by locating unused facilities in elementary schools to develop early education classrooms.  A final report including the taskforce’s recommendations will be presented to the State Legislature in the 2006 session.

 

In the last few weeks, 20 appointed representatives – including Dept. of Human Services, Dept. of Education, Dept. of Health, University of Hawaii, PATCH, center-based programs, HAEYC, and others have been working on the following goals:

• Proposing an overall plan to increase access to early childhood education opportunities for families
• Developing plans and identifying resources needed to improve the quality and services of early childhood learning programs
• Designing proposals to support the professional development of early childhood education staff
• Creating an implementation plan to motivate and promote the value of and participation in early childhood learning opportunities for parents and the general public
• Recommending to the legislature a conceptual framework, along with proposals for policies and legislation necessary to facilitate and monitor the implementation of such a framework

Click here to download a copy of the Act 259 Final Report.

 

Click here to download a copy of the Temporary Early Childhood Task Force - Report to the 2006 Hawaii State Legislature, December 2005 (PDF 739KB)

 

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Honolulu Advertiser

January 9, 2006