Oklahoma Partnership For School Readiness Foundation Inc

Community mobilization and support: opsrf supports community mobilization by engaging community leaders to develop stronger local early childhood systems. Opsrf partnered with the oklahoma department of human services to provide financial support for categorical child care to those working in licensed programs. In april 2024, opsrf hosted its third annual ink day (invest n kids), bringing together 165 early childhood professionals and pediatric residents for advocacy training and legislative visits at the oklahoma state capitol. Participants shared with legislators that early childhood care and education is an economic issue as a tool to create jobs, support parents' self-sufficiency, and improve outcomes for oklahoma's children.the oklahoma clearinghouse for early childhood success: the clearinghouse promotes well-being for oklahoma's children and their families by building an evolving definition of quality, fast-tracking innovation, implementing research-informed practices and practice-informed research to support and improve early childhood systems and maximize public-private partnerships. In fy24, 191 applicants from 55 of the 77 counties submitted proposals for the clearinghouse's outdoor learning environments. The demonstrated need allowed for 29 outdoor learning environments to be installed across the state, impacting 2,352 children. Submissions are reviewed, and those highly rated by committee members are posted to the clearinghouse website and presented to the public-private partnership committee for consideration of implementation support. Opsrf seeks submissions through community mobilization and implementation within local communities. For round 6's child development, four submissions were added to the clearinghouse: lena building brains through early talk, elqa: starting right, cognitive toybox, and respectful caregiving.oklahoma's preschool development grant (pdg) birth through five renewal aims to build infrastructure, including early childhood data systems; enhance families' knowledge about the ecce mixed delivery system and support their access to programs and resources; expand access to high-quality ecce programs; support a qualified, well-compensated, and trained ecce workforce; evaluate effectiveness of grant activities; and disseminate information and best practices to enhance awareness and participation in b-5 system improvements. These outcomes will be achieved by scaling, spreading, and enhancing research-based and promising programs while also investing in innovative pilots and initiatives.pdg made investments in family engagement in communities through reach out & read, the oklahoma commission on children and youth, and home visitation. The true cost of care study was completed and shared with stakeholders in june 2024.

Systems and policy development: opsrf is supported to conduct activities that strengthen oklahoma's early childhood system, recommend policies that create efficient and effective use of state funding, and ensure families of young children have access to high-quality early childhood programs. Legislative reporting responsibilities are met by submitting an annual report and an annual home visiting outcomes and accountability report to the governor, state legislature, and the oklahoma commission on children and youth. These reports provide a perspective on the status of early childhood programs, systems and provide policy recommendations. Ink day 2024 focused on advocacy to increase the child care subsidy payment rates to providers, continue categorical eligibility, innovative tax credits for child care growth or expansion, and wage stipends, tax credits, and increased education funding.opsrf trained 50 pediatric residents on effective early childhood advocacy. Mentored two interns through generous funding from the stephens foundation for the phil dessauer fellowship. Policy briefs were created to compare and contrast a coordinated early childhood system, like oklahoma currently has, versus an office of early childhood. Legislative bios were created for each legislator.