eNotes
June 17, 2024Updates from the ECTA Center
Distributed Leadership at ECTA
The Early Childhood Technical Assistance (ECTA) Center recently instituted a distributed leadership model that promotes shared power and decision-making across the leadership team and within the organization. Based on Structuring Leadership: Alternative Models for Distributing Power and Decision-Making in Nonprofit Organizations, this model offers many benefits to staff and clients, among them being:
- Embracing values-based leadership.
- Promoting diverse ideas and innovation.
- Increasing responsiveness to internal and external needs.
- Reflecting a commitment to equity, innovation, and leadership development.
The leadership team will retain its organizational structure of associate directors. Dr. Megan Vinh will now serve as director. Christina Kasprzak, who had been co-director for 11 years, will now be an associate director. She will work with Vinh and the associate directors to support this transition on logistical questions and innovative ways to operate.
Equity- and Inclusion-Focused Leadership: Attitudes and Actions
What key actions do Part B and Part C leaders take to identify and address barriers to inclusion and equity? That is a question that a new resource from ECTA Center will help answer. Equity- and Inclusion-Focused Leadership: Attitudes and Actions note that these leaders share five attitudes and five actions. These attitudes and actions help leaders to prioritize equity and inclusion in concrete and impactful ways so that each and every child can meet their fullest potential.
Announcements
US HRSA allocates $15m to improve maternal health in rural areas
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), under the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has allocated $15 million to improve maternal health services in rural communities.
This funding, allocated over the next four years, is part of the goal of the Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (MOMS) program, to improve access to maternal care. It will provide start-up funding to awardees, each receiving nearly $4 million over four years. Funds will pilot new approaches for supporting and expanding maternal care in rural communities in the Delta region of the South and Midwest.
News from the Field
Occupational Therapy Telehealth Toolkit and Infographic
Two new resources created by the Great Plains Telehealth Resource and Assistance Center (gpTRAC) focus on occupational therapy (OT) and telehealth. The and Occupational Therapy Toolkit and OT infographic give these professionals the latest telehealth basics, documents foundational practices, and provides resources to implement telehealth services. Toolkit topics were developed from stakeholder interviews. It contains some content specific to early intervention (EI) and young children. A variety of topics are covered in the infographic toolkit.
- Telehealth ethics and etiquette
- Licensure
- Current policies
- Billing, reimbursement, and documentation
- Platforms and software
- Best practices among different settings and populations
Promoting Mental Health and Well-being in Early Childhood
In this Executive Summary: Promoting Mental Health and Well-being in Early Childhood Programs, the Office of Early Childhood Development in the Administration of Children and Families (ACF) announced new policy guidance for its four early childhood programs: Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF); Head Start; Preschool Development Grants Birth through Five; and the Tribal Maternal Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting program.
These program-specific informational memoranda (IMs) help programs promote the mental health and well-being of children, families, and the early care and education workforce. They are tailored to the unique priorities, needs, and activities of each program, and include actionable recommendations, resources, and strategies to promote mental health. Guidance across all four programs is based on a common framework that spans the services and supports that make up a comprehensive early childhood mental health system of care.
Research
Green Spaces May Improve Kids' Mental Health
In Green Spaces May Improve Kids' Mental Health, a new study suggests that a child’s early years are a crucial time to be exposed to green spaces. Scientists at the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program found that kids, ages 2 to 5, who lived near green areas had fewer mental health symptoms like anxiety or depression.
Mental health problems affect millions of children in the U.S. Some studies have found that people with access to parks and other green spaces tend to have better moods and a lower risk of mental disorders. But few studies have looked at whether this is true in children. The children came from nearly 200 counties across 41 states.