The Delaware Early Childhood Council (ECC) is the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood for children from birth to eight years of age.  The ECC is charged with carrying out all of the functions designated in the federal Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 and other functions as assigned by the Governor, General Assembly, and the Interagency Resource Management Committee.  Originally authorized by Executive Order in 2001, the ECC is authorized under 14 Del. C. § 3002-3005. 

The ECC is comprised primarily of private sector members, but includes public sector members from the Departments of Health and Social Services, Services for Children, Youth and Their Families, and Education.  There are nineteen members of the Council appointed by the Governor.  Current membership

Mission

Promote the development of a comprehensive and coordinated early childhood system, birth to eight, which provides the highest quality services and environment for Delaware's children and their families.

Vision

• Ready children: children who are physically and emotionally healthy, have access to high quality early learning experiences, and enter school prepared to succeed
• Ready families: families with the knowledge and resources needed to successfully support their children’s development and learning
• Ready early care and education programs: programs that effectively support the growth, development, and learning of all children and are staffed by teachers who are well prepared, well compensated, and well supported
• Ready communities: communities that embrace their responsibilities for enhancing the quality of life of young children and their families through collaborations across all sectors
• Ready schools: schools that build upon and further enrich the learning foundations of young children and accelerate their continued success

 Strategic Goals

• Strengthen governance and alignment of early childhood policies, programs, practices, standards, and financing that enhance outcomes and uniform oversight across state agencies, and expand collaborations with private and nonprofit partners and federal agencies.
• Integrate service delivery across agencies and sectors to address the developmental needs of all young children and their families, especially those placed at risk because of developmental delays, poverty, neglect or abuse, and other risk factors.
• Enhance the State's data and information system to fully incorporate early childhood, and use that system as well as periodic analysis of programs, policies, and outcomes to monitor and improve state services, inform and assist private service providers and schools, and enable policymakers to identify what is working and what is needed.
• Establish and coordinate a statewide, cross-sector early childhood professional development system that includes partnerships with K-12 education, higher education, business, and community institutions and that enables all early childhood providers to participate in affordable, high quality professional development.
• Enable early childhood providers to achieve and sustain increasing levels of quality as defined by appropriate early childhood standards, including the State's early learning guidelines, child care licensing regulations, Delaware Stars for Early Success, and national accreditation standards.
• Improve the alignment and efficient use of early childhood funding across agencies and increase public financing to meet the true cost of quality early childhood services for all families acros all geographic locations, socio-economic groups, and child ability levels; this includes adequate compensation and tiered reimbursement to all qualified providers, the full financing of Delaware Stars, increasing subsidies to low-income families, and integrated funding of Delaware's early childhood programs with elementary education.

DECC Meeting Notes
December 2010
February 2011
April 2011
May 2011

DECC Meeting Agendas
July 2011

State Advisory Council Application

Policy Matters:

Policy Matters Summary of Findings

Domain Documents:

1. Quality ECE Settings
2. Professional Development
3. Informed Families
4. Accountability
5. Adequate ECE Funding
6. Governance
7. Education in the Early Grades
8. Health, Oral Health, Mental Health
9. 2011 DECC Meeting Dates

Presentations:

Federal Early Childhood Policy: A Look to the Future

Fiscal Mapping:

2010 Fiscal Mapping Report

Annual Reports of the Early Childhood Council

• • 2009
  • 2008
  • 2007
  • 2006