VICC Meeting Minutes

11/18/16

Present:

Leslie Freedman, AOE; Joanne Godek, S. Burlington Public Schools; Amanda Cookson, Parent; Andreas Koenig, Parent; Pam McCarthy, Vermont Family Network; Monica Ogelby, Children With Special health Needs; Jen Hurley, UVM; Natalie Whitfield, CIS PD Coordinator; Heather Case, CIS Family Engagement Coordinator; Terri Edgerton, CIS Director; Dana Robson, VDMH; Karen Bielawski-Branch, CIS Quality Improvement Coordinator; Sheri Lynn, CIS Consultant

I. Motion to adopt September meeting minutes (Jen Hurley). Motion seconded (Monica Ogelby) and minutes adopted.

II. State Updates:

1. National Center For Systemic Improvement Family Outcomes Collaborative Heather

a. Heather and Danielle went to a meeting with the National Center for Systemic Improvement to get TA about the Vermont State Systemic Improvement Plan. More coming on this.

2. CSPD (Comprehensive System of Personnel Development) Natalie and Sheri

a. CSPD website is up similar to the ICC website

b. Next Strategic Planning Team meeting: December 5, in WSOC in Beech Conference you all are welcome

c. Updated ECFMH competencies underway

d. 50 EI certificates distributed, Woo Hoo!!

e. Planning the in-service for CISs Institute at Lake Morey May 10 and 11, 2016

f. CIS COP call Dec 7 at 1 pm; data on the retention survey focus on strategies based on the results.

3. Contract monitoring Karen

a. Every region gets a contract monitoring site visit every three years.

b. Springfield and Rutland this year

i. December 20 in Springfield

c. Reviewing CIS records and meeting with the administrative teams. Karen is helping the region prepare.

d. Pam asked how families and BBF will be involved. Working with the CIS coordinator to look at that and working to have parents to meet with.

4. October 17 and 18 Family Data Institute in Louisville, KY Andreas

a. Outcome: parents come out with in-depth knowledge of Part B and Part C data. Learned of the website with the data. Karen Price also went from the VTFN. Had time to meet as a team. Pam said they are trying to get Karen and Andreas involved with the BBF data and evaluation governance. OSEP paid but would like to see more people attend (e.g., like from CDD, etc.). Most states sent 5 people.

5. SICC/SAP Webinar: Annual Priorities

a. The next national SICC/SAP webinar is Wednesday, December 7, noon Pacific, 1pm Mountain, 2pm Central, 3pm Eastern. Attached is a flyer with all the connection details.

b. A recording of the webinar and presentation materials will be posted after the webinar if you are unable to connect, at the new SICC/SAP website - https://www.stateadvisorypanel.org/

6. SEAC/VICC Training Opportunity

a. The Vermont Agency of Education (AOE) is providing an onsite training and orientation for the Special Education Advisory Council Training and has invited the VICC to participate in the technical assistance collaborative opportunity.

b. The training is February 15, 2017, 9am to 4:30pm in Waterbury

c. Some topics requested to be covered are as follows: council purpose and functions, membership requirements (federal and state), council role in relation to the State Performance Plan/State Systemic Improvement Plan/Annual Performance Report, establishing protocols and procedures for setting priorities, etc.

d. Be on the lookout for a training flyer

III. Seeking feedback for ICC website:

1. Search on VT Part C got link to home web page - On the left side add ICC link.

2. Put it on other websites (e.g., UVM medical center, VTFN, AOE)

3. Accessibility being looked at (layout, colors, etc.) and working on suggestions: Pam said she has information and she will forward this to Heather

4. Monica Use exclamation points sparingly. Reading level run through. Terminology around parents (caregiver, family, etc.); CIS serves X number of children informs that care.

5. Dana What does the council do? Who is missing from the table, add tasks, goals, what ICC is working on.

6. Pam ADD a why we do it? Label the impact you make as person involved in it.

7. Jen CONTACT US Reeva and Heather interchangeable. Contact Reeva is at every pages. Mobile seems to exclude Heather name

8. Joanne: Guest protocol page put at the top of the page include the pre-work that has to be done prior to meetings (i.e. bring photo ID, inform coordinator of attendance, pre-reading work).

9. Andreas - about Home page improved from first version; parents perspective intro is wordy and looks like IRS take language from the brochure to draw in parents what can parents and professional bring to the table. Free to attend and put something about ICC meeting every 2 months (key information); make contact us stand out; Spell out what positions on ICC seeking. On Ferris wheel put the mission vs. the question.

10. Joanne: Put links on words too. Can the ICC be different color? Not currently because there are nothing you can do on the left.

11. Amanda: Membership opportunities add it. Size of fonts and colors.

12. Karen: Change Joanne to So. Burlington

13. Jen: application is clearer, Great job!

14. Pam: accessibility needs to be looked at and may not pass

15. Sheri: Ferris wheelcan we have hyperlinks to peoples bios on the wheel?

16. Jen: ICC membership not all seats represented on the Ferris wheels. Inner and outer service of wheel to include everyone. Medicaid/insurance

17. Andreas can we look at number of visits to the site? Yes we should do that.

18. Pam: location of the other partner stuff. Move the order of the pages on the left side navigation bars looks at. What part is CIS as a program?

19. Dana; MH is missing. What about Health Dept. rep? maybe remove the seat that are vacant from the Ferris wheel

20. Monica, remove the seats and put the names around it to give you more seats.

21. Andreas: add a contact us with a question (ICC contact drop down).

22. Next steps: Feel free to contact Heather with any other ideas.

IV. How did we become CIS? Terri

1. 2004 legislature was looking at families receiving multiple services.

2. Jane Kitchell was at AHS at the time and gave an example of a family that had six services and scattered across dept.

3. Healthy Babies at VDH, CUPS at MH, Specialize CC at Resource and Referral Agencies.

4. 2005 CDD was created. Move EC services to this division and inclusive to child care services.

5. Under Kim Keiser, CDD asked how can we serve families in a more integrated process. What does an integrated system of care look like?

6. Anxiety about putting the funds together into a fiscal agent.

7. In 2007 RFP went out to regions to have them write up what it would look like and three regions were the original group. Decided to look at outreach and referral through a coordinator. These positions were funded by Medicaid to support the positions.

8. State team was created: Part C, mental health focus, nurse and family support and specialized child care. Provided TA to the three regions and talk about what it looks like for one fiscal agent. Relationship building between State team and regions.

9. Integrated three regions first during the Douglas administration and then added from there up to 8 CIS regions.

10. Now looking at keeping the early childhood as integrating family services will roll out.

11. In 2007, the question was asked of the council, did we want to have ICC advise and assist CIS as a whole? The meeting with 40 people said yes. We have not implement it yet because of several factors. What does it mean to advise and assist?

12. Discussion about the definition:

i. To reach out? Where does it fit? Assisting

ii. To reach out to communicate?

iii. Form opinions based on data to take policy issues forward.

iv. Building parent voice and family leadership. How can we reconvene the parent group?

v. Clarify that the ICC is giving recommendations and these may or may not be implemented.

vi. Consultation vs making a decision as a body.

vii. Add word consultative

viii. Think of ICC as high level interested stakeholders that CIS listens to. ICC would write letters to the co-leads AOE and AHS. Signed by the co-chairs. Letters of support and things about concerns.

ix. To assist means also conversational outreach and to advise means consultative, educate, advocate but not lobby.

V. VICC members as change agents discussion: Could we focus time in the agenda to advise around topics like homelessness, challenging behaviors of children getting kicked out of child care and more children under six in DCF custody? Will need to coordinate and partner with other groups that have a stake in these items. Dont forget to look at the family outcomes survey to get insight from parents.

VI. New Mission Statement:

1. Start with the why because we want infants and toddlers to . (passion), be less technical; believes and values.

2. Collective impact how one community want to be the best place in Vermont for children.

3. Use the advise, assist, and advocate words to accomplish things. Use continuously.

4. Gaining information from stakeholders and data (guided).

5. What do we want for young children should be included? Children receiving early intervention met their developmental potential. Every VT child has observable and measurable gains.

6. How about using South Carolinas example.

i. We are the VICC.

ii. We believe in all children reaching their developmental potential.

iii. We advise and assist CIS.

iv. When children and families thrive, Vermont thrives.

OUR CORE STATEMENT (v1):

We are the Vermont Interagency Coordinating Council. We believe in all children reaching their developmental potential. We advise and assist Childrens Integrated Services. When children and families thrive, Vermont thrives.

VII. Family and Community Engagement Plan-

1. Definition of family: the definition from Mary Beth Bruder was reviewed and feedback provided as follows:

i. Can we say that families decide what a family is?

ii. CSHN -Families are a childs best caregivers, advocates and decision-makers.

iii. Families are defined by the family.

iv. Families define themselves.

v. We recognize family as a group of people that identifies as a family. This would be included into the family and community engagement plan and other places possibly down the road.

2. ADD Integrated Family Services Youth and Family Engagement and Vermont Early Childhood Framework.

3. Family/Care Provider engagement in Vermont looks like (child, parent-skills and community engagement)

i. CIS supports family engagement .promotes active participation of families

ii. Refer to DEC best practices and EC Action plan has components about decision making by family, active participation, their goals, etc.

iii. Families define if they are engaged

iv. Sustainability funding and the family side keep things going to make it work.

v. Head Start addressed relationships and family well-being.

vi. Shared responsibility outcomes for the children.

vii. Flexibility for parents involvement/engagement in the childs development families engaged at the level that works for them. How they are engage and the level meeting where they are at (what their contribution is and not judging it).

viii. Respect and respectful honesty is needed. Build the relationship and trust first. Harder conversations to follow. Constructive way vs judgmental way.

ix. Family engagement in Vermont looks like a partnership. Need mutual understanding to get there and need the time to get to know each other.

x. Clearly understanding role in the system (for family and the provider/practitioner). Have conversations about expectations.

xi. There is a challenge across all CIS that the parent or family is not there when working with the child. Child care provider may be seen by the Part C practitioner and they have other children to work with but we want them to understand what is going on with the child and how to help the child.

xii. Strengthening families builds family resiliency (e.g., well-being).

xiii. Building capacity of the adults and the adult systems that are created.

xiv. Parenting in spite of (Lynne Kemp, Maternal Early Childhood Sustained Home Visiting program).

xv. Summary: Childrens Integrated Services is or promotes/supports:

1. Is Family driven (PINK)

a. Active participation

b. Achieving goals that families hold for their children

c. Families define how they are engaged with emphasis on a flexibility of the level of engagement

2. Believes resilient families build resilient children (BLUE)

a. Programs build capacity in parents/adults/care providers

b. Work toward family-centered outcomes by supporting family well-being (from Head Start definition)

3. Supports sustainable partnerships (GREEN)

a. Respectful and mindful of family strengths

b. Sustainable change of practice within the family and practitioner

c. Shared responsibility

d. Respectful honesty( having the hard conversations)

e. Responsive

f. Reciprocity

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