AN ACT CONCERNING EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION PLANNING.

This bill eliminates the Early Childhood Education Cabinet and establishes (1) within the State Department of Education (SDE), an Office of Early Childhood Planning, Outreach, and Coordination, with duties similar to those of the cabinet and (2) the Connecticut Early Learning Advisory Council, with a membership similar to that of the cabinet. The bill makes conforming changes consistent with the cabinet's elimination.

The council must (1) coordinate among state agencies the continued development of a birth-to-nine early childhood system through public and private funding sources and (2) ensure compliance with federal law. It is within SDE for administrative purposes only.

The bill also eliminates the requirement that SDE provide administrative services to the Governor's Early Childhood Research and Policy Council established pursuant to Executive Order No. 13, issued on February 7, 2006. This order was repealed by Executive Order No. 24, issued on February 18, 2009.

Finally, it changes school readiness staff qualifications, including reducing the qualifications required starting July 1, 2015, and giving the education commissioner more authority in determining if credits meet subject area requirements.

1. planning, developing and maintaining a birth to age three system;

2. developing an early childhood information system;

3. developing and reporting on an early childhood accountability plan;

4. administering a prekindergarten to age three study, including a reliability study of SDE's entry to kindergarten inventory;

5. implementing an early childhood strategic communications framework for outreach to families, service providers, and policymakers;

6. serving as a member on the Governor's P-20 Commission, established pursuant to Executive Order No. 2A, issued on January 13, 2009;

7. supporting interagency coordination through the Connecticut Early Learning Advisory Council; and

8. by July 1, 2009, beginning a statewide longitudinal evaluation of the school readiness program, in consultation with the Department of Social Services, that examines the educational progress of children from prekindergarten programs to grade three. (The cabinet was supposed to have started this by July 1, 2008. ).

The council must consist of the following people, or their designees: the governor; the Office of Policy and Management secretary; the education, social services, higher education, public health, children and families, and developmental services commissioners; the education and human services committee co-chairpersons; and the Commission on Children executive director. Additionally, it must include a person representing a local or regional school readiness council, appointed by the Senate president pro tempore; a person representing the Connecticut Head Start Association, appointed by the House speaker; and one member who will serve as chairperson, appointed by the Governor. (Under current law, the governor and education commissioner co-chair the cabinet, and the governor does not have an additional appointment. )

By law, until July 1, 2015, there has to be a person in each school readiness classroom with (1) at least 12 early childhood education or child development credits from an accredited higher education institution and (a) a credential issued by a commissioner-approved organization, (b) an associate's degree, or (c) a four-year degree or (2) a teaching certificate with an early childhood or special education endorsement.

The bill specifies that the commissioner-approved organization must issue a childhood development associate credential or its equivalent. Additionally, it specifies that the education commissioner, after consulting with the higher education and social services commissioners, must determine if the credits meet the subject area requirements. Finally, it eliminates the option of a teaching certificate with special education endorsement to meet the requirements.

Starting on July 1, 2015, the law requires each classroom to have a person with (1) a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in early childhood education, child development, or a related commissioner-approved field or (2) a teaching certificate with a special education or early childhood endorsement. The bill eliminates these requirements. Instead, for programs accepting school readiness funds, the bill requires half of their teachers to have (1) a bachelor's degree from an accredited higher education institution or (2) a teaching certificate with an early childhood endorsement. The remaining teachers must have an associate's degree from an accredited higher education institution. The teachers meeting the requirement based on their bachelor's or associate's degree must have completed a program of study approved by the education and higher education commissioners.