A new report by the Guinn Center urges Nevada to create a centralized governance structure, improve data systems and enhance workforce development. The center proposes establishing a new office within the governor’s office to support the state’s early childhood systems (ECS) with the goal to address fragmentation and inefficiency.
ECS encompasses childcare, nutrition, healthcare and mental health support. The report identified a complex web of programs, funding streams and governing structures that hinder ECS effectiveness. Researchers found 18 separate programs serving early childhood and an additional 45 serving both early childhood and other populations.
Various entities are governed by 15 different federal laws or codes and 26 different Nevada laws. Funding is spread across 40 different state budgets. “One can imagine that systems coordination under these circumstances is a challenge… and an opportunity,” the report notes.
Report findings highlight low participation in existing programs. Only 5.5% of eligible 4-year-olds are enrolled in Head Start, and just 10.4% of eligible children receive childcare subsidies.
“There needs to be some alignment in the profession between early childhood workers and K-12 teachers’ educational standards,” said researcher Todd Butterworth. “There needs to be some alignment so that the things we are teaching in early childhood are really relevant to where kids need to be when they enter kindergarten.”
The ECS workforce faces low wages, high turnover and limited access to professional development.
“Nevada should consider creating an Office of Early Childhood Systems within the governor’s office as a temporary vehicle for convening stakeholders and planning a long-term organizational and funding structure for ECS,” the report recommends.
The organization also recommends implementing better governance practices, including developing a simple single point of entry for families to access services.
“Even with an effective single point of entry, many families will still have their first interaction with ECS when they contact a program for help,” the report notes. “Thus, it is important that a ‘No Wrong Door’ approach be widely implemented throughout the early childhood ecosystem.”
Source: Guinn Center
