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HomeMy WebLinkAboutC09-510 Roaring Fork Valley Early Learning Fund, Raising a Reader Grant (2)• £AGL£ COUNTY • GRANT RECIPIENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN EAGLE COUNTY AND ROARING FORK VALLEY EARLY LEARNING FUND Grant Recipient: Roaring Fork Valley Early Learning Fund, Raising a Reader Grant Amount: $3,525 Grant Period: October 15, 2009 -December 31, 2009 Whereas, Eagle County works to promote the health, safety, and welfare of Eagle County citizens of all ages; and Whereas, among the services Eagle County provides in order to promote such health, safety, and welfare are grants-in-aid to local organizations whose work assists the County in accomplishment of the goal to create and sustain a safe, healthy, and socially diverse community; and Whereas, Roaring Fork Valley Early Learning Fund hereinafter referred to as "Grant Recipient") has agreed to provide services that create and sustain a healthy and socially diverse community in Eagle County; and Whereas, Grant Recipient acknowledges that pursuant to the terms of C.R.S. § 24-76.5-101, et seq., Eagle County is prohibited from providing certain public benefits to illegal aliens over the age of eighteen. Now, therefore, in consideration of the foregoing premises and the following promises, Eagle County and Grant Recipient enter into this Agreement for payment of the grant award in the amount of Three Thousand Five Hundred and Twenty-Five Dollars ($3,525) to Grant Recipient. A. Grant Recipient agrees that funds awarded by Eagle County may be used and expended solely to fund Raising a Reader materials or activities during the Grant Period. In return for the award of the $3,525 grant, Grant Recipient agrees to submit a report no later than July 15, 2010 including: (a) Number of Eagle County Programs served by Roaring Fork Raising a Reader. (b) Number of Eagle County children served by Roaring Fork Raising a Reader. (c) How the program accomplished the goal to foster healthy early brain development and social and emotional development through the parent-child read aloud experience. (d) How the program accomplished the goal to build literacy skills to ensure kindergarten readiness and school success. B. Grant funds under this agreement are to be used and expended within the Grant Period. Any funds not used or expended during the Grant Period must be returned to Eagle County. Grant recipient must provide receipts to Eagle County. --510 • • C. If, after payment of the Grant Award, Eagle County reasonably determines that payment was improper because the purposes for which the payment was made were misrepresented, or the terms of this Agreement were breached, then upon written notice of such determination and request for reimbursement from Eagle County, Grant Recipient shall forthwith return such payment to Eagle County. D. In the event of litigation in connection with this Agreement, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover all reasonable costs incurred, including attorney fees, costs, staff time and other claim related expenses. E. Grant Recipient shall comply at all times and in all respects with all applicable federal, state and local laws, resolutions and codes; and specifically, with the requirements of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973, concerning discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, age, religion, political beliefs, national origin or handicap. F. Grant Recipient shall not assign any of its rights or duties under this Grant Agreement to a third party without the prior written consent of County. County shall terminate this Grant Agreement in the event of any assignment without its prior written consent, in which case, any unused Grant Funds must be returned to County. G. Grant Recipient agrees that no agent, employee or volunteer of Grant Recipient shall be deemed an agent, employee or volunteer of County. H. Grant Recipient shall maintain, for a minimum of three (3) years, adequate financial and programmatic records for reporting to County on performance of its responsibilities hereunder. Grant Recipient shall be subject to financial audit by federal, state or county auditors or their designees. Grant Recipient authorizes County to perform audits or to make inspections during normal business hours, upon 48 hours notice to Grant Recipient for the purpose of evaluating performance under this Grant Agreement. Grant Recipient shall cooperate fully with authorized Health and Human Services representatives in the observation and evaluation of the program and records. Grant Recipient shall have the right to dispute any claims of misuse of funds and seek an amicable resolution with County. I. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Colorado. Jurisdiction and venue for any suit, right or cause of action arising under, or in connection with this Agreement shall be exclusive in Eagle County, Colorado. J. This Grant Agreement supersedes all previous communications, negotiations, and/or agreements between the respective parties hereto, either verbal, or written, and the same not expressly contained herein are hereby withdrawn and annulled. K. This Grant Agreement does not, and shall not be deemed or construed to confer upon or grant to any third party or parties any right to claim damages or to bring any suit, action or other proceeding against either Grant Recipient or County because of any breach hereof or because of any of the terms, covenants, agreements and conditions contained herein. L. Invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this Grant Agreement shall not affect the other provisions hereof, and this Grant Agreement shall be construed as if such invalid or unenforceable provision was omitted. M. Grant recipient agrees to following: 2 • • (a) BrightStart Acknowledgement. Contractor shall acknowledge in all public information materials that the Roaring Fork Valley Early Learning Fund, Raising a Reader is a BrightStart program and a community BrightStart partner (b) Network of Care. The Contractor shall cooperate with BrightStart in providing information to parents, staff, and the public on community early childhood programs and how to access these early childhood programs for services using the Network of Care website located at www.networkofcare.or~. (c) Mandatory Reporting. Contractor shall notify HHS immediately of all reports of suspected child abuse or neglect involving Contractor, including, but not limited to, employees, volunteers and clients. HHS contractors are considered to be mandatory reporters for suspected child abuse and neglect and are to make those reports directly to HHS Children and Family Services - (970) 328-8840. N. Grant Recipient certifies that it has read the Agreement, understands each and every term and the requirements set forth herein, and agrees to comply with the same. //THE REMAINDER OF THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK// • • Funds will not be disbursed without a signed Grant Recipient Agreement. Please complete this page and return to the Eagle County Department of Health and Human Services. %~/c~ a ~/ e / -~- Name Signature Title ,~~~ /~' ~~ r~ a ~_s:~:_3 Mailing Address ~~/~~ /~ y Date City, State, Zip COUNTY OF EAGLE, STATE OF COLORADO By and through the County Manager By: ith P. Montag, County Manage • • BUDGET Materials Amount 141 new children enrolled at $25.00 per $3,525 child (BrightStart request was for a portion of the cost) Total: $3,525.00 Eagle County Early Childhood Proposal - 2009 Name of sub-committee(s): • Early Care and Learning • Family Support and Socio-Emotional Name of person making the proposal: Rick Blauvelt, Executive Director Name of project: Roaring Fork Valley Early Learning Fund's Raising A Reader program Explanation of the proposed services: For 2009, Early Learning Fund is proposing to bring Raising A Reader to 141 children in Eagle County in the Basalt/El Jebel area. This will include children in the preschool program at Basalt Elementary, Basalt Campus Kids, Growing Years, Eagle County Early Head Start and Blue Lake Preschool. Early Learning Fund was founded to meet the need for a high quality, results-based, early childhood literacy intervention program that bridges the achievement gap between early childhood and primary school. Its signature program, Raising A Reader, provides preschools and childcare programs with an early childhood literacy "take-home" book bag program that fosters early brain development and parent-child bonding, and builds pre-literacy skills for kindergarten readiness and long-term academic achievement. During the first phase of the Raising A Reader program beginning each October, preschool children are given a bright red book bag each week filled with four high-quality, age-appropriate, multicultural books that encourage and stimulate family book sharing and read-aloud time. When the books are returned by the child each week, the inventory is rotated and tracked by the teacher. Over the course of seven months each child is exposed to over 80 books with a wide range of titles, providing them with a mirror reflecting their own world and a window into the world beyond. The program's second phase begins in April with a series of Blue Bag Library Days - a celebration of books and an introduction to the wonders of local libraries. Approximately 75 classrooms take a field trip to their community's library where children are individually presented with their own Raising A Reader library bag, their first library card, and the opportunity to check out their first library books. Eight of these field trips involve Eagle County providers and occur at the Basalt Regional Library. With many parents in attendance, this is a mini graduation day that becomes a very special and memorable experience for the child. Most significantly, this experience reinforces the child's growing interest in books, reading and learning, and encourages parents to fully utilize library resources to expand their child's exposure to books. To ensure effective engagement strategies and early literacy expertise among teachers, and interactive reading skills and knowledge of early brain development among parents, Early Learning Fund provides 4 parent orientation programs in Eagle County each fall and an ongoing program of teacher education reaching over 100 early childhood educators in the Roaring Fork (typically including up to 15 Eagle County teachers/providers). A monthly site visit by Early C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchill.ECG\Local Settings\'Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1/4/2010 • • Learning Fund staff to each classroom reinforces and supports ongoing teacher development strategies. The Raising A Reader program is effective because it builds aself-perpetuating cycle driven by the child. The child learns from the preschool/childcare provider about the fun of reading, is equipped with four books each week to thrust in front of parents for read-aloud time, and then discovers along with his/her parents, the mutually rewarding joy of book cuddling and reading together. Tracking data indicates that Raising A Reader motivates children and parents to establish new reading and learning behaviors, solidify these patterns through repetition, and sustain the new behavior by discovering the life-long enrichment provided by books, learning and education. Proposed Budget for the program/project (for 2009): The full Early Learning Fund organizational budget is attached. The portion of that budget attributed to this proposal follows below. Books, book bags and provider materials $ 14,550 Training and orientation programs $ 4,800 Staff $ 102,180 P--ogram Implementation $ 36,500 Program Evaluation $ 1,500 Literacy collaborations $ 1,000 Teacher professional development $ 7,000 $ 167,530 Total requested budget from Bright Start: (include a detailed line item budget) The budget for bringing the Raising A Reader program to Eagle County providers follows. Total program budget is $15,747, or $111.69 per child. Of this, Early Learning Fund is requesting a Bright Start contribution of $25.00 per child for a total Eagle County contribution of $3,525.00. Early Learning Fund will raise the rest of the money through other sources. Please note, this does not include any of the organization's administrative costs. Books, book bags and provider materials $ 1,367.70 Training and orientation programs $ 451.20 Staff $ 9,604.92 Program Implementation $ 3,431.00 Program Evaluation $ 141.00 Literacy collaborations $ 94.00 Teacher professional development $ 658.00 $ 15,747.82 Budget Request Narrative: The Eagle County portion of expenses was determined by calculating the per child costs of Early Learning Fund's overall Raising A Reader programming. The program currently serves C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchill.ECG\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1 /4/2010 • • 1,500 children. Eagle County program costs were prorated to cover costs for 141 children in Basalt and EI Jebel. Books, book bags and provider materials: • This includes Eagle County refresher (replacement) materials only. Eagle County programs were already provided with large Raising A Reader book inventories (80 books per provider) in previous years. The line item here includes replacement books, book bags, classroom wall pocket inventory system, inventory tracking card, and library book bags. Training and orientation programs • Cost of parent and teacher orientation programs for printed materials, interpreters, and audio-visual rentals -prorated based on per child cost to determine Eagle County portion. Staff Eagle County portion of salaries for two full-time staff members. Includes ro ram op rtion (no admin) costs of these salaries. Program Implementation • Eagle County portion of rp ogram costs for office expenses, printing, postage and mileage for monthly site visits to preschool/childcare providers. Program Evaluation • Cost of program evaluation, prorated to determine Eagle County portion based on per child costs. Literacy collaborations • This includes cost of facilitating collaborative Read to Me days (bringing community leaders and citizens into classrooms to read aloud to children). Teacher professional development • Eagle County portion of annual full-day teacher professional development program typically drawing over 100 area preschool teachers and childcare providers. Includes professional speakers/training specialists, meeting room and audio/visual rentals, refreshments and printed materials. Needs Assessment: The ability to read is fundamental to all opportunities. Yet, 1 in 3 children enters kindergarten lacking pre-literacy knowledge -basic understanding of print concepts and the fundamentals of book handling and story comprehension. Conversations with early childhood educators in the Roaring Fork Valley confirm similar local statistics, especially among low- income families struggling, due to cultural, language and educational barriers, to meet minimum subsistence standards. Children who enter kindergarten lacking basic pre-literacy skills enter school at a significant disadvantage. Learning to read will be difficult, and statistics tell us those not reading at grade level by 3~d grade are unlikely to ever catch up. This is tragic because curiosity is innate in children. More often than not, it is simply our failure to feed this thirst for knowledge at a young age that limits early success and lifelong achievement. Most critical brain growth happens very early in life when the child's brain contains far more neuron pathways than an adult brain. The development of dendrites in the brain -branches that C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchilLECG\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1/4/2010 • • enable brain neurons to connect via electrochemical synapses -are 80% developed by age 3 and 90% developed by age 5. As the child matures, synapses that are used frequently become a permanent part of the brain, and synapses that are not used are shed by the brain. In other words, the more the child's brain is stimulated, the more extensive the development of the brain's hardwiring for life. The first five years present a critical window for development of oral language, especially for grammar, pronunciation and bilingual capacity. Additionally, this period is critical to the development of vision, tactile senses, and social and emotional health. At age five, the window begins to close. When books are part of a loving parent-child interaction from an early age, children associate the presence of books and learning with the positive feelings of being held and loved. These associations are encoded in a profound way in a child's developing brain. Secure attachments effect later cognitive and emotional development -and ultimately, school success and success throughout life Goals and expected outcomes: GOALS: Below are key goals and strategies for the organization's Raising A Reader program for Eagle County: Goal 1: Foster healthy early brain development, and social and emotional development through the parent-child read aloud experience. Objectives: 1) Increase each child's exposure to age-appropriate books, stories and language by establishing a routine of reading in the home with the goal that 90 percent of Early Learning Fund families will read aloud to their children weekly; 2) Document an increase in family library visits among families with preschool-age children; 3) Increase family-child bonding through a shared reading program with the objective of an average in-the-home read aloud frequency of 5 times per week. 4) Train parents in interactive reading skills, e.g. to build expressive language and promote dialogue. Activities supported by this grant: 1) Provide books for new providers and replacement book materials for existing childcare providers, and ongoing support and guidance to 9 early childhood classrooms in Eagle County; 2) Coordinate collaborative partnership with Basalt Regional Library to provide 8 Blue Bag Library Day celebrations for childcare providers in Basalt and E1 Jebel; and 3) Facilitate four parent orientation programs to enhance understanding of the impact of parent-child bonding and the read-aloud experience on early brain development, and to promote natural home-school connections. Goa12: Build literacy skills to ensure kindergarten readiness and school success. Objectives: 1) Document increases in kindergarten readiness as measured by Roaring Fork Valley School District RE-1 (measurement is new this year); 2) Document heightened commitment among childcare providers to build literacy-rich classrooms; and 3) Provide teacher training in early literacy strategies and parent engagement techniques. Activities supported by this grant: Collaborate with RE-1 to measure kindergarten reading readiness of Raising A Reader children compared to other children not in the program; 2) Facilitate at least three teacher orientation and/or teacher professional development sessions for a minimum of 100 preschool providers (including 15 Eagle County teachers). One of those sessions will be held in September at the fire station training room in El Jebel; and 3) Measure teacher feedback, enthusiasm and effectiveness among all childcare providers through an annual teacher survey. Objectives and timeline for accomplishment: Objectives are outlined above. Raising A Reader program operates on an school year time line beginning August 2009 and ending May, 2010. All objectives are projected for the fulfillment by May 2010. C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchilLECG\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1/4/2010 • • Target population and/or target area for the program/project: Early Learning Fund is reaching at-risk children within the area's toughest, most critical populations: low-income families, families in isolated rural areas, children with parents who have little formal education and/or do not speak English, single parent families, families where both parents work multiple jobs to meet minimum subsistence standards, and children of teen parents. Participating Eagle County programs include Early Head start, preschools and childcare centers. Of Raising A Reader families, 32% have incomes below $30,000, 40%, report that English is a second language, 48% have an education level of high school or less and I I % have less than a 9`~' grade education. Number of participants or beneficiaries: The organization now serves approximately 1,500 children, ages birth to 5 years old, in 92 classrooms along an 80-mile corridor that includes 10 rural communities between Aspen to Parachute. In Eagle County, this includes 141 children in 9 classrooms in Basalt and E1 Jebel. Program strategies/project activities and the use of evidence based practices: During its five year history, Early Learning Fund has documented significant improvements in kindergarten readiness, family commitment to reading aloud, child interest in books, family bonding and library usage. Each year, Early Learning Fund conducts a pre and post survey of parent behaviors. Teachers are also surveyed and evaluated annually. Specific evaluation results follow. • Read-aloud Exposure: For the 2008-2009 school year, average weekly read-aloud frequency among Raising A Reader families was 6.43 times per week. Initial program goal is 5 times per week. Time spent for each read-aloud session increased from 19 minutes to 28 minutes. • Kindergarten Readiness: Raising A Reader children scored 8 percentage points higher than non-program children in kindergarten reading readiness tests conducted by a local school district. • Family Library Usage: In May 2009, 70% of Raising A Reader families reported regular child visits to the library, up from 49% in October. • Learning in Preschool Classrooms: Teachers reported heightened interest in books, improved vocabulary and enhanced attention span among Raising A Reader children. • Teacher Commitment to Cultural Diversity: Teachers also reported that the presence of the Raising A Reader program led to increases in classroom focus on multicultural stories, bilingual books and introduction of new words in Spanish and English. Through conversations with parents, teachers and other early childhood educators, Early Learning Fund has identified the following qualitative measures of success: 1) Language and literacy skills are enhanced through Raising A Reader books that cover a full spectrum of concept genres including rhythm and rhyme, colors, numbers, alphabet/letters, shapes and folklore/fables; 2) Early competencies in the creative arts, mathematics and science are fostered through exposure to books on the natural world, materials, measurement, comparison, spatial relations, patterns and classifications; 3) Creative expression is nurtured and reinforced through exposure to stories and literature; 4) Social-emotional health and affirmative learning behaviors are strengthened through the shared reading experience. Specifically, teachers report improvements in self-regulation, sharing, completion and a sense of responsibility through the read-aloud experience -and enhanced understanding of diversity through books that support and respect gender, culture, language, ethnicity and family composition. C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchill.ECG\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1/4/2010 • • Community Partnerships: Early Learning Fund collaborates with 52 preschool and childcare providers serving 92 classrooms in 10 rural communities of the Roaring Fork Valley. These teachers and hundreds of parents become partners in the education of young children by signing a commitment to success contract with Early Learning Fund. Kids First refers childcare providers to the Raising A Reader program. Kids First also joins the Early Learning Fund to co-host "Read to Me" Days, bringing community leaders and citizens into preschool classrooms to model the love of reading. Every spring, Basalt Regional Library, Garfield County Library District, Pitkin County Library and host 75 field trips during Blue Bag Library Days, and then track library usage among Raising A Reader families. Garfield School District Re 2 tests and compares Raising A Reader children to their peers as they enter kindergarten. Beginning this fall, Roaring Fork School District RE-1, Aspen School District and Garfield School District 16 will also track kindergarten readiness among Raising A Reader children. Together these collaborators help raise and reinforce public awareness of the importance of early childhood literacy development in targeted communities. Approved by (Enter Name) Subcommittee on ,BrightStart Steering Committee on ( ), BrightStart Council on (~ C:\Documents and Settings\dchurchill.ECG\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\M3XFIY37\raising a reader proposal 2009.docx Last Updated: 1/4/2010