2022 Michigan Division for Early Childhood Conference - Call for Proposals

Michigan DEC is inviting proposals for the 2022 Conference. Check it out!

Lunch Byte Recording: All Means ALL: One Administrator's Journey

Presenters: Will Jensen, Director, Office of Inclusive Education, Nevada Department of Education

Description: Will Jensen is currently the Director of Inclusive Education in the state of Nevada. He is a passionate proponent of inclusion as the path for children to be successful participants in learning and life. Over the years since becoming the state director in Nevada, preschool inclusion rates have increased by over 10%. The focus that he has placed on developing a statewide framework to promote inclusion has served as a model for other states and Will has been invited to share both his process and passion at the state and national level. Join Will Jensen for a conversation about his professional and personal journey to becoming a champion of inclusive opportunities and positive outcomes for all children.

Link to the recording.

Lunch Byte Recording: Becoming a Culturally Proficient Educator

Presenters: Dr. Jay Marks, Oakland Schools

Description: This interactive professional learning experience will provide participants with an opportunity to develop the knowledge, skills, and understandings necessary for working effectively with students from diverse cultural backgrounds (i.e. race, ethnicity, gender, language, sexual orientation, religion, SES, etc.)

Areas of focus will include: 1) Assessing Culture; 2) Valuing Diversity; 3) Managing the Dynamics of Difference; 4) Adapting to Diversity, and 5) Institutionalizing Cultural Knowledge.

Link to the recording.

Lunch Byte Recording: Our Journey: A Family Perspective on Inclusion

Presenters: Dr. Scott Koenigsknecht, Deputy Superintendent for Michigan Department of Education, Jenny Koenigsknecht, Public Awareness Coordinator, CCRESA Office of Innovative Projects

Description: Join us for a conversation about a family’s perspective on inclusion. In this breakout session, Scott and Jenny Koenigsknecht will share the challenging and inspiring moments they have experienced and continue to experience on their collective journey of inclusion. The goal of this time together is to help others become more familiar with their experiences as a family, as well as the research and the benefits of inclusion. For the Koenigsknecht family, it is these facets that have inspired them to firmly support that all children, including those with special needs, should be meaningfully engaged in all aspects of education and life rather than watching from the sidelines.

Link to the recording.

Lunch Byte Recording: Building Resilient Children in Extraordinary Times

Presenters: Tomoko Wakabayashi, Associate Professor of Education and Coordinator of the Early Childhood Ph.D. program, Department of Human Development and Child Studies, Oakland University Shawna Boomgaard, Manager of Academic Accountability, Office of Public School Academies, School of Education and Human Services, Oakland University.

Description: This session will include a brief overview of the ACE study, including the outcome and findings of the ACE study; definition of Toxic Stress and its Impact on the Developing Brain; the impact of early adversity on lifelong emotional and physical health; how resilience trumps ACEs; the importance of creating trauma-informed and resilience-building practices based on the findings of the ACEs research; and shifting thinking and practice to become trauma-informed in your practice.

Link to the recording.

Lunch Byte Recording: Creating Healing-Centered Communities

Presenter: Jennifer Champagne, PhD, IECMH-E, Oakland Schools

Description: During this virtual session, we will identify and discuss a trauma-informed approach to working with very young children and their families during the pandemic. We will focus on strategies and practices to manage our own stress and nurture a community culture of caring for each other during these uncertain times.

Link to the recording.

Lunch Byte Recording: Strategies for Conducting Remote Assessments

Presenter: Jennifer Grisham, PhD, University of Kentucky

Description: This presentation will provide early childhood providers with ideas for how to gather assessment information about young children when face-to-face interactions are not possible. Strategies for collecting assessment data for eligibility determination, program planning, and progress monitoring will be discussed. The presentation will emphasize authentic assessment practices and family involvement in the assessment process.

Link to the recording.

Reach for the Stars Maps (PDF)

MiDEC Message about Racism and Inequity

In solidarity with the CEC Project 20/20: Creating a Vision of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in all of CEC and the DEC Message about Racism and Inequity, Michigan DEC stands with its members and community.

As an organization, we acknowledge systemic racism exists. In the past several weeks, new violence against Black people has been recorded and shared widely, exposing long-held injustices in our society. The recent deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and the countless others before them have confirmed the divide in our collective psyche regarding race. We also recognize that many of our members are processing what recent events mean for their work and the systems and institutions rooted in racism.

We stand with our members, those supporting children with disabilities and their families, as they work through the traumas of systemic racism. We also stand with our members--and others--who are speaking out to address these systemic injustices. We acknowledge we all have a role to play in dismantling institutional racism including in our early care and education system. This work is ongoing and essential, and we are committed to engaging in it with you. As an organization, we are recommitting to our role in dismantling institutional racism and supporting our members with doing the same in their spheres.

The MiDEC recognizes overcoming bias as a key priority for our work. As part of our strategic planning this year the MiDEC board will investigate ways to integrate overcoming bias into our priority agenda. We as a board believe that we all have a role and responsibility to become consciously aware, change behavior, and ultimately eliminate the impact of these biases by supporting each other through - and holding each other accountable to - our unconscious actions.

MiDEC Board of Directors

DEC Communities of Practice

Take advantage of DECs Communities of Practice

DEC Members & Non-Members alike can take advantage of DEC Communities of Practice and join their peers in critical discussions during this time of change. Opportunities open to all - learn more here.