On December 12, 2007, President Bush signed the Head Start Reauthorization Act sending the nation’s first comprehensive early childhood program into the future. Among the new elements of the Act is the requirement that states designate an Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) to strengthen linkages between Head Start and other early childhood programs serving children birth to school entry.

In February 2010, Governor Sanford named the South Carolina First Steps Board of Trustees as South Carolina’s Early Childhood Advisory Council. 

To perform its duties, the Council will rely on the expertise of a broad range of early childhood experts, convening four teams organized around the goals stated in the Governor’s Executive Order. Each team will be charged with reviewing and synthesizing information, as well as producing recommendations that will be incorporated into an application for federal funds set aside for the states’ early childhood priorities.

2013 ECAC Members

2013 ECAC Meeting Schedule
* All ECAC meetings wbegin immediately upon adjournment of the SC First
Steps Board of Trustees meetings.

Thursday, March 21

Thursday, June 27

Thursday, August 15 (To be held by conference call)

Thursday, December 5 (To be held by conference call)

Past ECAC Meeting Minutes

Research Reports

Assessing the Landscape of Early Childhood Professional Development in South Carolina:
Final Grant Report

TEAM 1
Needs Assessment and Unified Data on Quality, Availability, Access in Early Childhood Programs

Goals:

• Periodic Needs Assesment
• Unified Data System

Focus Area:

(I) conduct a periodic statewide needs assessment concerning the quality and availability of early childhood education and development programs and services for children from birth to school entry, including an assessment of the availability of high-quality pre-kindergarten services for low-income children in the State;

Incorporate, within periodic needs assessment, data related to the capacity and efforts of private sector providers, Head Start providers, and local school districts to serve children aged birth to four, including fiscal, enrollment, and capacity data.

(IV) develop recommendations regarding the establishment of a unified data collection system for public early childhood education and development programs and services throughout the State;

Final Recommendations

Meeting Minutes and Proceedings

Omsbudsmen
Terry Richardson

Team Leaders
David Patterson, Office of Research and Statistics
Rep. Shannon Erickson, House of Representatives
Melanie Barton, Education Oversight Committee

Board of Trustees Liasons:
Julia-Ellen Davis
Lisa Van Riper

Support Staff:
Betty Gardiner

TEAM 2
Local, State and Federal Coordination and Increased Participation in Early Childhood Programs

Goals:

• Opportunities for, barriers to, Collaboration
• Recommendations for increasing participation in federal, state, local programs

Focus Area:

(II) identify opportunities for, and barriers to, collaboration and coordination among Federally-funded and State-funded child development, child care, and early childhood education programs and services, including collaboration and coordination among State agencies responsible for administering such programs; 

(III) develop recommendations for increasing the overall participation of children in existing Federal, State, and local child care and early childhood education programs, including outreach to underrepresented and special populations; 

Final Recommendations

Meeting Minutes and Proceedings

Omsbudsmen
Governor Richard Riley

Team Leaders
Leigh Bolick, Department of Social Services
Peggy Ford, Children's Place, Inc.

Board of Trustees Liasons:
Judith Aughtry
Tim Ervolina

Support Staff:
Debbie Robertson

TEAM 3
Professional Development System and Higher Education Supports for Early Childhood Teachers

Goals

• Recommendations for professional and career development
• Extent to which higher education institutions assist early childhood professionals

Focus Area:

(V) develop recommendations regarding statewide professional development and career advancement plans for early childhood educators in the State;

(VI) assess the capacity and effectiveness of 2- and 4-year public and private institutions of higher education in the State toward supporting the development of early childhood educators, including the extent to which such institutions have in place articulation agreements, professional development and career advancement plans, and practice or internships for students to spend time in a Head Start or pre kindergarten program;

Final Recommendations

Meeting Minutes and Proceedings

Additional Resources

Omsbudsmen
Larry Allen, Clemson University

Team Leaders
John Hester, Francis Marion University Center for the Child
Pam Dinkins, Technical College Peer Group
Marie Darstein, National Child Care Association

Board of Trustees Liasons:
Nancy Freeman
Reece Yandle

Support Staff:
Krista Kustra

TEAM 4
Early Learning Standards and Readiness Measurement for South Carolina

Goals:

• Recommendations for improving state early learning standards
• Recommendations for state and community school readiness indicators

Focus Area:

(VII) make recommendations for improvements in State early learning standards and undertake efforts to develop high-quality comprehensive early learning standards, as appropriate. 

Develop and publish, using available demographic data, an indicators-based measure of school readiness at the state and community level.

Final Recommendations

Omsbudsmen
Susan Shi, Furman University

Team Leaders
Bill Brown, University of South Carolina
Valerie Harrison, State Department of Education
Debbie Hyler, Florence School Foundation

Board of Trustees Liasons:
Marileen Chapman
Floyd Creech

Support Staff:
Dan Wuori

SC ECAC At Work
Pilot Communities Learning Session

SC ECAC Applications
Application For Funding
Application For Supplemental Funding

SC ECAC Strategic Plan and Process
Strategic Report - Public input is critical to the implementation of the ECAC Strategic Report. Please submit any feedback to singram@scfirststeps.org.

Proceedings from the ECAC Leadership Team meeting, held June 17 at ETV in Columbia, SC.

ECAC Web Portal - A site for all meeting details, resource documents and opportunities for public comment.