The Michigan Division for Early Childhood (MiDEC) endorses the NAEYC statement on Advancing Equity in Early Childhood Education. Additionally, the MiDEC platform advances six policy priorities:
- Increase investment in Early On Michigan, which supports our infants and toddlers, birth to age 3, with delays and disabilities and their families.
- Develop a cohesive and coherent approach to support inclusion as Michigan expands the Great Start Readiness Program toward universal access, including funded professional learning support for use of Pyramid Model practices and a $3 million expansion of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation.
- Strengthen state-funded support for the evidence-based developmentally appropriate preschool for 3-year-old children, Strong Beginnings pilot.
- Fund recruitment and retention of early childhood, early intervention, and early childhood special education personnel.
- Support personnel preparation and standards of practice for all early childhood professionals that provide support to young children with exceptional needs and their families in Michigan, including a funded strategy to support the active engagement of personnel in professional learning to support culturally responsive practices through understanding bias and institutional racism.
- Help early care and education programs include children with disabilities by increasing the state’s child care scholarship rates for children with disabilities.
The platform is linked here.
Learn more about Michigan DEC's policy and advocacy priorities here.
