Hi,

My contribution is really easy for this newsletter – because the center directors, with Christina Holloway in the lead, wrote the following letter to the community this month. We have had frequent meetings with the Pitkin directors, and I know most of you have too. I hope you all feel this is a support during incredibly challenging times. I shared with them how amazing it was to read their letter and hear the caring, the passion, the advocacy, and the collaboration! Partnerships and letters to elected officials like this is what will move our profession toward recognition and appreciation. I applaud their efforts and I would like to share it with all of you.

Dear Aspen School District board members, administrators and faculty:

On behalf of the directors of the child care centers from Aspen to Basalt, we would like to take the opportunity to share with you the recap of our summer with children, educate you on our protocols and procedures we have put in place, and offer assistance and support during this difficult time.

Since schools closed in March, we have learned a lot about caring and educating children. Our world as we know it has changed and we have made many adjustments over the last few months that have enabled us to offer a safe and robust educational opportunity to our youngest learners.

First and foremost, all childcare centers have been open since the beginning of June. We had one school lead the way in opening in mid-May. Throughout the closure, we met weekly at first and then biweekly with Kids First (our childcare resource and referral agency) and all the directors to support one another throughout this unprecedented time.
Without the guidance and conversation with other professionals in the early childhood field, we never could have gotten through all of the difficult obstacles we faced as early childhood facilities. Reopening after being closed for over two months was one of the most difficult decisions of our careers. Once we received the guidelines from Public Health, we spent much time with our staff to put together a safe plan for teachers and students to return to school. Our staff’s support was instrumental in the reopening of our schools. Early-childhood programs in the valley have now been open for almost a full three months with little to no issues regarding health concerns. This has been very encouraging for all of us!

When we decided to reopen, we expected the road to be rocky. We knew there’d be a good chance of having to close at some point for health concerns and we understood that this pandemic would have lasting effects on the education system. Regardless, we refused to be bogged down and decided to look ahead. In this new world, it is time for innovation, creative thinking, serious teamwork and outstanding communication to ensure everyone’s safety going back to school.
We realize that our schools are much smaller than the school district and understand that protocols and procedures may look different. However, our students are also quite younger and yet we have been successful! We have put many protocols in place to ensure the safety of our students and staff. Navigating the daily health checks was intimidating initially, but like many other things in life, it became routine after the first few weeks. An essential part of the daily health checks consists of direct and effective communication with our preschool families. Honesty, transparency and personal responsibility are essential, and good leadership is key for this level of commitment from the school community.

Over the course of the few months that we have been operating, we have learned there are only certain things we can control. Mainly, we feel that there are four areas where our efforts can make a big difference:

• Mask wearing: All staff and children over 3 (to their capacity) wear masks when they are inside and social distancing isn’t possible.
• Handwashing and hand sanitizer when a sink is not available.
• Disinfecting materials and highly touched surfaces.
• Social distancing: In the early childhood world, social distancing is extremely difficult, but we have managed to keep everyone healthy by thinking creatively and moving most of our activities outdoors.

One of the most important takeaways from being open this summer is that taking care of our students can be done. What seemed scary and daunting before actually going through this experience has become easily manageable with proper planning, innovative thinking and support from every person involved — from board members to administrators, teachers, bus drivers, janitors, families and children.

It will take a village to make school happen, but it is worth it for all of us, especially our youngest citizens. All it took was a smile from one child to confirm that re-opening our schools was the right decision to make. Now, more than ever before, it has become evident that teachers are essential workers. We have one of the most important jobs in the world, helping shape the future. Children are capable and adaptable, and, from our experience, they have adapted to the “new normal” pretty seamlessly. No doubt we all need to remain flexible and ready for setbacks. Things won’t be perfect and at times we might feel like we’re living in a world of “as good as it gets.” This time is an invitation to move away from the safety of our old ways and lean into the possibilities of the unknown. It won’t all be ideal or easy, but we will emerge stronger, wiser and closer to each other.
We, as the directors of the childcare centers in our area, want to invite any and all of you to learn from our experience and observe what we are doing. We are all eager to help you and support our community’s children and families get back to school. We are fortunate to live in the Roaring Fork Valley where we can enjoy the outdoors and be a part of a progressive, generous community. Let’s lean on each other to move forward and prevail. And let’s guide the next generation into the future leading by example. In the face of fear and uncertainty let’s hold on to community, cooperation, creativity and courage.
As fellow teachers, all the early-childhood educators and directors in our valley want to offer our support to those of you who might be facing the uncertainties of going back to school. Please don’t hesitate to lean on us. We are here to share words of encouragement, to lend a helping hand, and to share ideas so we can all get back to doing what we do best.

Submitted by Christina Holloway, Woody Creek Kids; Leslie Bixel, The Early Learning Center; Tina Person, Wildwood School; Becky Helmus, Wildwood School; Sue Way, Aspen Skiing Co.; Dawn Ryan, Aspen Mountain Tots; Alex Ryan, Aspen Mountain Tots; Carrie Tippet, The Early Learning Center; Adele Melnick, Growing Years Preschool; Kathy Coffey, Aspen Sprouts; and Robin Upper, Little Red School House.

Thank you! Shirley

Click here for a great Pitkin County Covid resource!!!

How to achieve a Level 2 in Colorado Shines- Cheat Sheet

Please call or email Kristin to help walk you through the process!
rmeccspecialist@mtnvalley.org 719-293-2378

• In PDIS: Note- takes 10 hours per person on average

1. Create a PDIS login https://ecpd.costartstrong.org/ets/home  
2. Family Child Care providers must complete 10 clock hours of Level 2 modules
3. Child Care Centers must complete a minimum of 75% L2 modules hours as indicated on the Workforce tab

• When to call the PDIS help desk: trouble logging in, problems with L2 modules, and *linking PDIS accounts  
• When to e-mail the PDIS help desk: to remove staff from your Workforce PDISHelp@cde.state.co.us)

• In QRIS: Note-Takes approximately 1 hour

1. Create a login for Colorado Shines (QRIS): http://coloradoshines.force.com/  
   1. Click “Log on to QRIS”
2. Enter your Program’s Information by clicking on the Application tab. Then click on each tab including: Program Profile, Children, Classrooms, High Needs, and Workforce (click “Get Staff from PDIS” to update). Keep in mind, this information is simply a snapshot.
3. Under Quality Improvement, you must have at least 1 updated and current goal in your Quality Improvement Plan (QIP)- Call Kristin for help setting up your initial goal
4. For Child Care Centers only: Under the Level 1-2 tab, complete the Level 2 Quality Program Indicator Assessment. All answers need to be marked “yes” in order to achieve a Level 2- we know…it’s silly J

• When to call the QRIS help desk: If you’re having trouble logging in

• Make sure to have each staff member link their PDIS account with the program
• Once you’ve completed the requirements for PDIS and QRIS please CALL ME to verify that everything is completed properly and is ready to submit.
• Once we have verified everything is complete, you will click “Submit for a Level 2 Rating” on the Home page in QRIS
• Lastly, your level 2 is awarded by Licensing within 2-6 weeks. Congratulations!

Reading with Children

Reading aloud to children is the easiest, most fun way to promote their healthy brain development! Raising A Reader offers weekly, virtual reading clubs in Spanish for parents and caregivers and their 0 to 5-year-old children who are not attending school yet.

Our Bolsitas Rojas/Little Red Bags clubs are the perfect setting to introduce young children to books, while modeling fun, engaging ways in which their adults can enhance the impact of the time they’re spending sharing books with them. Through stories, activities, and songs, families will bond over their newfound love of books! Online enrollment now open. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/18IQ_eueFsLFMN3IkI7TKEa69p2gbtfwn3BXDdkMa12Y/edit?usp=sharing  

Spanish: www.facebook.com/RARAspentoParachuteEspanol
English: www.facebook.com/RAR.AspentoParachute 

Iliana Renteria Bernal
Program Coordinator and
Marketing Manager
iliana@rar4kids.org
Tel. 970-309-7888
Glenwood Springs, CO 81602

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. 
The more you learn, the more places you’ll go.”— Dr. Seuss

Colorado Shines Dollars Are Availalble

Have you applied for your Colorado Shines dollars yet? If you haven’t, it’s not too late! If you are a Level 2-5 program with an active fiscal agreement and want to benefit from CSQI funds, please go to our website (www.rmecc.org/colorado-shines) to download the current Quality Improvement Journey packet.  Pages 16 & 17 in the QIJ walk you through the steps to update your profile in your QRIS portal and how to apply for funds. If you run into any problems, reach out to Kristin at 719-293-2378 or rmeccspecialist@mtnvalley.org for technical assistance. 

FREE resources available at rmecc.org

Job/childcare openings
Need to fill a teaching position? Have open childcare slots? Post these openings on our website for FREE to share across our 4-county region! https://rmecc.org/login/

Colorado shines resources/supports
Are you a provider who needs help navigating Colorado Shines? We have developed many resources/recordings that are specific to our region!
https://rmecc.org/colorado-shines/

Trainings and other events
Check out our Event Calendar for information about regional Early Childhood Trainings, CMC Courses, Parenting Classes, etc. rmecc.org> Providers & Leaders>Events

Roadmap
The RMECC Roadmap is a new, searchable Early Childhood Resource Hub for Eagle, Garfield, Lake and Pitkin counties and is designed to connect families, providers and leaders to regional ECE resources. To add your organization to this free resource, go to www.rmecc.org/roadmap.

Apply for the Gap Fund Now

The Gap Fund

The Energize Colorado Gap Fund will provide more than $25M in small business loans and grants to boost small business enterprises that are the economic engines throughout the state. Sole proprietors, businesses and nonprofits with less than 25 full-time employees can apply for up to a $15,000 grant and a $20,000 loan for a possible combined total of $35,000 in financial assistance.

Applications and awards will be done in rounds to allow us to provide assistance through December 2020.  The process will not be first-come-first-serve, it will be a competitive process that will help those in need receive priority access to assistance.

https://energizecolorado.com/gap-fund/