Policy News and Information for South Carolina's Children
 
May 19, 2015           
Children's Trust to Host Community Conversation in Darlington County on Race Equity and Early Education
Register Now for June 1 Event
Children's Trust, in collaboration with the Racial and Ethnic Disparities Committee of the Early Childhood Common Agenda, will convene a community conversation on race equity challenges and solutions for Darlington County. Participants will discuss current KIDS COUNT data on child well-being as it relates to race and ethnicity and potential ways to improve early childhood outcomes in Darlington County and across South Carolina. 

Registration is free, and lunch will be served. Registration will close on Tuesday, May 26. 
 
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Early Childhood Common Agenda Highlighted in Institute for Child Success' Annual Report
The collaborative work of Children's Trust, Institute for Child Success and United Way of South Carolina on the Early Childhood Common Agenda was highlighted in the Institute for Child Success' 2014 Annual Report

The Common Agenda, as the report notes, "provides a unified voice for the many organizations working to advance early childhood issues. The updated Common Agenda is now being used by policy makers and advocates during the 2015-2016 legislative session to guide and determine legislative priorities for early childhood policy."

More information about the work around the Early Childhood Common Agenda is available.   

  Learn more
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Bicycle Safety Bill Advances in House
House Education and Public Works Committee passed out favorably the Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Act (H. 3909) during last week's meeting. This bill further clarifies pedestrian crosswalk signals, requires motorists to stop for pedestrians in designated crosswalks and adds additional criminal penalties for motorist for violations that cause serious physical injury or death to pedestrians or motorcyclists

 

At the State House This week
  • Senate K-12 Education Subcommittee will meet on Wednesday, May 20, at 10 a.m., in Gressette 308. The Committee has several bills on the agenda, including GED camps, medical exams for school bus drivers, comprehensive health education including adding the domestic violence provision and more.   
  • The House Judiciary Committee will meet on Tuesday, May 19, at 2:30 p.m., or one and half hours after the House adjorns. The meeting is scheduled for Blatt 516.  The agenda is available and includes consideration of legislation (S. 250), which would allow medical records to be released to the S.C. Children's Advocacy Medical Response System as part of evaluation of child and abuse neglect cases. 
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National Report Profiles State-Funded Pre-Kindergarten in US
SC Ranks High in Access and Low in Spending Per Child
National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) released their annual yearbook profiling state funded pre-kindergarten. This year's report noted the slight recovery of state funded pre-k as well as a modest increase in enrollment. The report is broken down into three main sections: a summary of data and national trends in enrollment, quality and funding; state policy profiles related to access, standards and resources; and an overview of report methodology and appendices, including tables of state, Heathy Start and U.S. Census, and special education data.

 

The South Carolina profile is located on page 121 of the report and gives the state a ranking of 11 for overall access to 3-K and 4-K and a ranking of 40 for state and other spending. It also profiles the S.C. Child Development Education Pilot Program (CDEPP) and the S.C. Half-Day Child Development Program (4K).   

 

Learn more

   

National Foundation Offers Review and Opinion to NIEER Report
The New America Foundation's Education Policy Program published on EdCentral.org an opinion article on the NIEER Report, Slow and Steady is Not Good EnoughThe article highlights the need for additional supports nationwide for early care and education. 
 
The New America Foundation is a non-profit, non-partisan public policy institute that invests in new thinkers and new ideas to address the nation's critical education problems. 
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SC Institute of Medicine and Public Health Releases Behavioral Health Report
Comprehensive Report Identifies Gaps in Current System and Vision for Creating Behavioral Health Continuum of Care
The South Carolina Institute of Medicine & Public Health (IMPH) in partnership with a statewide taskforce released a report earlier this month:  Hope for Tomorrow: The Collective Approach for Transforming South Carolina's Behavioral Health Systems.

The report contains 20 recommendations on how to make behavioral health care more accessible and how to integrate primary and behavioral health care to reduce overall health care costs and improve health outcomes.

  Learn more

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Child Welfare News from Around the Country
New Child Welfare Law Signed by Georgia Governor
The Baxley News-Banner reports on child welfare reforms for Georgia.  After the state received scrutiny for high number of child fatalities of children in their care, Gov. Nathan Deal has signed a law that allows him to directly appoint the director of the Division of Family and Children Services. The bill also establishes a 20-member advisory board to review and make recommendations to improve the child welfare system.

Learn more 

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