The Minnesota Association for the Education of Young Children (MnAEYC) The Minnesota School-Age Care Alliance (MnSACA) 2015 Public Policy Agenda Our Goal MnAEYC-MnSACA’s goal is that every Minnesota child will be nurtured, healthy, eager to learn and prepared to succeed in school and life. To achieve this goal MnAEYC-MnSACA seeks to improve the quality of early childhood and school-age care in Minnesota by supporting members to be effective advocates and by collaborating with other stakeholders to promote policies that address the needs of young children, youth, their families, and the professionals who work with them. Support Working Families by Increasing Access to High Quality Early Childhood and Afterschool Programs ✓✓ Increase access to high quality early childhood programs for high need children through parent choice scholarships. (MinneMinds Campaign) ✓✓ Increase access to quality afterschool programs for high need children and youth through competitive grants to programs. ✓✓ Change reauthorization period for families in the Child Care Assistance Program to 12 months. Support Early Childhood and Afterschool Professionals ✓✓ Increase funding for T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood Minnesota to enhance the knowledge and expertise of early childhood professionals. ✓✓ Increase funding for R.E.E.T.A.I.N to reduce turnover and reward high education levels among early childhood professionals. ✓✓ Provide funding to increase access to professional development opportunities for afterschool professionals Support the Statewide Expansion of Parent Aware ✓✓ Continue to ensure that the quality standards are well defined and fairly applied to child care, Head Start and school-based early education programs. ✓✓ Continue to ensure that accredited programs are recognized for their high level of quality. ✓✓ Ensure adequate funding is available to continue to support programs in their ongoing pursuit of quality. For more information, please contact Sara Benzkofer at sarab@mnaeyc-mnsaca.org. www.mnaeyc-mnsaca.org