August 2023 Volume 34; Issue 1

You can view the complete newsletter here.

From the Executive Director's Desk

October is the first month of the agency fiscal year. It is also the beginning of the federal fiscal year. Congress has funded services through November 17, 2023. This was to give adequate time for negotiation of appropriations bills. So far, nothing has been done on the House side as they have not found a way to elect a Speaker of the House. The Speaker is the leader and sets the agenda and tone for the House of Representatives. My best guess is a speaker will be elected by the end of October. The House will then work with the Senate on a budget to get us through the rest of this fiscal year, passing just before the deadline. I admire the work of our elected officials. It is time, however, that a process is developed that can get the work done without these annual delays.  

The holiday season is right around the corner. Outreach staff are preparing for Thanksgiving baskets and Christmas gift distributions. Energy Assistance/LIHEAP is being implemented at the same time. Needless to say, staff are very busy.

The coming months will be busy preparing for the close-out of the fiscal year and calendar year events. This includes the annual audit, preparing of the tax return, benefit renewal and many other things.

This time of year, usually provides us with a number of donations/gifts for the various services that we offer. We are most fortunate to have strong support in our communities. Thanks to all who donate and help us expand our services. You are appreciated.

Respectfully,
Dick Sievers
Executive Director

Child Care Resource and Referral

Mid-Sioux's CCCR&R Services are Making a Difference!

Mid-Sioux Opportunity, Inc. is the sponsoring agency for Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) services in NW Iowa. Our Child Care Consultants work hard to build a connection with providers in order to support individual and program goals that contribute to the success, growth and quality of their business. These connections are made by working side-by-side with providers, including listening to and supporting the direction they want to take in their early childhood careers. 

Child Development Home Providers can complete the ChildNet series, a 25-hour professional development class that provides the foundational skills needed to operate a successful child care business. Upon completion of the class, providers may choose to become ChildNet Certified. To achieve certification, a child care consultant will meet on-site with the child care provider, where they work together to meet specific criteria that show the provider has implemented the improvement practices they learned during the classes.

Iowa Quality for Kids (IQ4K®) is a quality rating and improvement system available to licensed child care centers, registered child development homes and Department of Education preschools. IQ4K provides five levels of quality (building blocks) that programs can achieve and continue to improve on. By implementing Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), IQ4K allows programs to assess their current grade across all areas of programming and devise a structured plan to increase the overall level of program quality. Child Care Consultants and IQ4K Specialists work side by side with programs to help them achieve a quality grade.

While each program may have different talents, we are proud to share the journey of one Northwest Iowa program:

Recently, Shanna Barton, a Child Development Home provider in NW Iowa, achieved ChildNet Certification and reached IQ4K level 2. Shanna and her Child Care Consultant, Amber Kollbaum, met weekly to work together on completing individual components for each quality measure. The time spent together helped them to build a great working relationship. Each time they met, they set goals and created action plans, which helped to guide Shanna on her path toward an IQ4K rating. During this process, Shanna was also able to build her skills and comfort level in working with technology as she completed the online application, for which she expressed excitement about the confidence she gained. Shanna’s goal moving forward is to continue her quality improvement work and reach IQ4K level 3 next year. Congratulations Shanna!

"Collaborating with my CCR&R Child Care Consultant has been a beneficial experience to celebrate the great things I am already doing in my program while learning new tactics to add to daily routines and activities to implement. We had a great dialogue back and forth to workshop ideas which, inspired me to dive deeper into implementing practices and partnerships. Supportive collaboration throughout the visits allowed me to accomplish tasks and keep momentum and motivation strong. Along the way, we celebrated many milestones and achievements. As a home provider who is very busy, the flexibility with both in-person and virtual meetings assisted my schedule and progress," states Shanna.

Some of the highlights of our collaborations so far include:

• Getting ChildNet Certified and ChildNet Certified Renewed
• Completing the IQ4K Application and receiving a rating
• Building resources to share with families
• Sharing ideas and learning together through personal experience
• Handbook Refinement
• Developed milestone tracking process and meeting individual needs of participants
• Aligning curriculum and care practices with those needs
• Technology support, which included navigating barriers

If your child care program is looking for assistance with professional development planning, action plans, goal setting, continuous quality improvement, environment observations, room arrangement, behavior concerns, creating policies or any number of other free services offered by CCR&R, be sure to visit with your CCR&R Child Care Consultant!

Mid-Sioux Opportunity, Inc. is proud to provide Child Care Resource & Referral services. It is one way that we meet our mission of “Helping People. Changing Lives."

Voter Ready

The City-School Election is getting closer by the minute and it's time to make a plan to vote if you haven't done so already. Your local representation matters. They make the decisions in your schools and your cities. Take three minutes today to visit VoterReady.Iowa.gov and ensure you have a plan to make your voice heard.

Here are some important things to remember:

• You can vote in person at your county auditor's office through November 6. Hours vary around the state, so double-check your auditor's office hours prior to voting. You will need your Voter ID to cast a ballot!
• Polls will be open on Election Day, November 7 from 7:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. Remember your Voter ID!
• Double check to make sure you're registered to vote by clicking here. If you aren't registered or your address isn't up to date, you will need to register when you cast your ballot. For information on Election Day Registration, click here.

If you need any additional information, please visit VoterReady.Iowa.Gov or contact your county auditor.

Welcome to Mid-Sioux!