Sessions

2020 Policy Summit Agenda

Engaging as & with policy influencers to shape equitable conditions for Detroit children & families.

9:55 – 10:00

Video Spotlight featuring Detroit Champions for Hope

10:00 – 10:10

Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist | Opening Remarks

Communicating the promise of this important work focused on early childhood development and education, and the importance of policy conversations that inform and are informed by all members of the community.

10:10 – 10:55

Table Talk with Hope Starts Here Imperative Leads

This time serves as our public introduction of the Hope Starts Here Imperative Leads. Imperative lead organizations convene and support Action Teams, or community partners, who will work together and cooperatively to design and contribute to activities that advance the HSH framework. Complete framework is located here.

Moderated by Jeremiah White, HSH Implementation Data and Project Manager, session, representatives for Hope Starts Here imperatives one through five will share strategic priorities, implementation progress to date and intended next steps.

Panelists: Imperative #1 – Dr. Kimberly Dawn Wisdom, Senior VP of Community Health & Equity, Chief Wellness & Diversity Officer at Henry Ford Health System, Imperative #2 – Furqan, CEO at Criterion Connection, Imperative #3 – Dawne Bell, CEO at Early Childhood Investment Corporation, Imperative #4 – Jeffrey Henze, Program Officer, Early Childhood Education at IFF, and Imperative #5 – Jeffrey Mile, Senior Director, Center for Early Childhood Excellence at United Way for Southeastern Michigan

10:55 – 11:05

Video Spotlight featuring Southwest Detroit’s License-exempt Caregivers

11:05 – 11:10

Introduction of Break-out Sessions

Break-out sessions will focus on specific Hope Starts Here policy priorities and their alignment to other statewide activities. Attendees will also hear and contribute to recommendations for implementation that ensure equitable and necessary policy practice and legislation. Please make your selection at registration.

11:10 – 11:55

Break-out Sessions:

Break-out Session 1
Policy Focus: Develop a cross-sector early childhood workforce strategy to attract, retain and support qualified professionals to meet the growing demand for child care, early intervention and home-visiting.

Can a cross-sector strategy gain the political- and public-will necessary to invest in these efforts, wage parity among them? As influencers, how do we effectively advocate for talent pipelines that include diverse populations that better represent families and children served?

Moderator: Mina Hong, Senior Policy Manager at Start Early, formerly known as the Ounce of Prevention Fund

Panelists: Kenyatta Stephens, CEO at Black Family Development, Chioke Mose-Telesford, Director of Systems Alignment, Workforce Development at the City of Detroit, and Amy Zaagman, Executive Director at Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health

Break-out Session 2
Policy Focus: Implement a universal screening and referral and service system, provided in compliance with federal law for minimum service requirements and based on the child’s needs and family choice. Michigan needs a universal screening and referral system that ensures all pregnant mothers and children are receiving screenings for disabilities and developmental delays as needed and are directed using a warm hand-off to resources that support this identified need.

As influencers, we will leave with a clearer understanding of the importance of the first 1,000 days of a child’s life and the system for which we must advocate to ensure their health at birth and continued well-being throughout life.

Moderator:  Shondra Marshall, HSH Implementation Policy and Research Manager

Panelists: Kathleen Alessandro, Director at Great Start Collaborative Wayne, Jaye Clement, Director of Community Health Programs & Strategies at Henry Ford Health System, and Dr. Paul Elam, Chief Strategy Officer at Michigan Public Health Institute

Break-out Session 3
Policy Focus: Continue to raise child-care subsidy family eligibility and program reimbursement rates.The high cost of child care has become a major barrier for parents earning low wages, and unreliable care results in frequent work disruptions that can jeopardize their jobs and production for many industries. While the federal law limits eligibility to 85% of state median income, Michigan is one of the most restrictive states for eligibility and needs to raise eligibility thresholds.

For providers, Michigan recently moved from requiring early childhood programs to report weekly on their hourly billing to bi-monthly reporting for child care subsidy reimbursements. However, more is needed to alleviate program instability for these small business owners and for the children and families they serve.As influencers, how can we be stronger advocates for identifying new ways to fund and sustain early childhood and for making best use of our current subsidy and other revenue streams?

As influencers, how can we be stronger advocates for identifying new ways to fund and sustain early childhood and for making best use of our current subsidy and other revenue streams?

Moderator: Alicia Guevara Warren, Director of Statewide Policy Initiatives at the Early Childhood Investment Corporation

Panelists: Matt Gillard, CEO at Michigan’s Children, James Ribbron, Community Outreach Coordinator at Detroit Champions for Hope, and Pat Sorenson, Senior Policy Analyst at Michigan League for Public Policy

11:55 – 12:00

Video Spotlight, Exercising Your Right to Vote!

12:00 – 12:45

Table Talk with Dr. Wendy Ellis and Dr. Iheoma Iruka

Moderated by Denise Smith, HSH Implementation Director, this session, “Resilience in the Face of Adversity”, will provide participants with a solid understanding of the systemic barriers – political and otherwise, that need to be addressed and shifted to support the optimal development of children of families with low-income, of ethnic minority, and immigrant classification.

Dr. Ellis is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Global Health and Director of the Center for Community Resilience at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University. The Building Community Resilience (BCR) collaborative and networks are implementing the BCR process — a strategic approach for cross-sector partners to align resources, programs and initiatives with community based efforts to address adverse childhood experiences and adverse community environments– or as Ellis has coined it “The Pair of ACEs”.

Dr. Iruka is a Research Professor in Public Policy and Director of Early Childhood Health and Racial Equity at UNC-Chapel Hill where she will focus on Early Childhood Health and Racial Equity. Her former posts include chief research officer for HighScope Educational Research Foundation, director of research and evaluation at the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the Univ. of Nebraska and associate director at the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill.

12:45 – 1:00

Closing & Calls to Action, Denise Smith

October 13th
10am – 1pm

Engaging as & with policy influencers to shape equitable conditions for Detroit children & families.

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