The Administration recommends the Mayor and Commission approve the recommendation of the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee at the July 17, 2020 meeting.

At the January 15, 2020 Commission meeting, Item C4C was referred to the upcoming Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee (FERC) to discuss funding for an early childcare stipend program. Direction was received at the June 12, 2020 FERC to develop a pilot program to support pre-kindergarten youth.  A motion was made to move the item to the July 17, 2020, Finance and Economic Resiliency meeting to discuss potential funding for a pilot childcare program in an amount not to exceed $250,000.   At the July 17, 2020 Finance and Economic Resiliency meeting a recommendation was made (2-1) to fund a pilot childcare stipend program for the 2021-22 school year with funds from the FY22 budget.

Since the Education Compact implementation on January 16, 2008, the City of Miami Beach has collaborated with The School Board of Miami-Dade County, FL to improve educational opportunities for youth in the City.  The Miami Beach City Commission executed an Interlocal Agreement on February 18, 2016 to provide funding to Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) for two prekindergarten classes (VPK) for eligible City of Miami Beach residents at Miami Beach Fienberg Fisher K-8 and Biscayne Beach Elementary.    On April 11, 2018, the Mayor and City Commission adopted Resolution 2018-30259 removing the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK) classroom at Miami Beach Fienberg Fisher K-8 and reducing the funding to Biscayne Beach Elementary for VPK to an amount not to exceed $35,000 for the personnel costs contingent on MDCPS funding the remaining costs.    VPK services offered at Biscayne Beach Elementary school may be accessed by City of Miami Beach resident children from the four targeted schools (South Pointe Elementary, Miami Beach Fienberg Fisher K-8, North Beach Elementary, and Biscayne Beach Elementary) following the registration and lottery procedures established by MDCPS.  For the 2019-20 school year, there were nine (9) VPK classes available through MDCPS at four (4) elementary schools, three of which are fee supported.   The enrollment capacity for these nine VPK classes is 180 youth.   Per MDCPS, there were 180 VPK students enrolled in these classes yielding a 100 percent utilization. 

All eligible  VPK programs may receive state funding at $2,473.20 per student per MDCPS in the 2019-20 school year. Per the Miami-Dade Early Learning Coalition (ELC), there are twenty-three (23) VPK programs currently available in the 33139, 33140, and 33141 zip codes under contract with the ELC to provide VPK programming to approximately 389 children (Attachment I).    There are additional pre-kindergarten providers available in Miami Beach not currently under contract with the ELC.

The Florida Constitution authorized the VPK program.  Article IX, Section 1(b) stipulates that every four-year old child in Florida shall be provided by the State a high quality pre-kindergarten learning opportunity in the form of an early childhood development and education program which shall be voluntary, high quality, free, and delivered according to professionally accepted standards (Attachment E). An early childhood development and education program means an organized program designed to address and enhance each child’s ability to make age appropriate progress in an appropriate range of settings in the development of language and cognitive capabilities and emotional, social, regulatory and moral capacities through education in basic skills and such other skills as the Legislature may determine to be appropriate.

Florida State Statute s. 1002.55, specifically allows for private faith-based VPK programs.  Faith-based VPK programs are allowable as private providers, but not in public schools.

To be eligible to deliver the prekindergarten program, a private prekindergarten provider must meet each of the following requirements (Attachment D):  The private prekindergarten provider must be a child care facility licensed under s. 402.305, family day care home licensed under s. 402.313, large family child care home licensed under s. 402.3131, nonpublic school exempt from licensure under s. 402.3025(2), or faith-based child care provider exempt from licensure under s. 402.316 (Attachment A).   Each VPK provider's curriculum must be developmentally appropriate, designed to prepare a student for early literacy, enhance age-appropriate student progress in attaining state-adopted performance standards, and prepare students to be ready for kindergarten based on the statewide kindergarten screening as described in Section 1002.67(2)(b), Florida Statutes. VPK providers may select or design the curriculum for their classrooms, unless they are on probation as a result of their kindergarten readiness rates falling below the minimum rate.

The purpose of the proposed funds for the Early Childcare Pilot Program is to expand hourly access to prekindergarten  for four-year old students by increasing the availability of high-quality prekindergarten placements for Miami Beach children and providers within the City of Miami Beach (Attachment A).  This initiative builds on the foundation established by the State of Florida monetary investment in prekindergarten across the state.  The State funded program currently provides for three (3) hours of VPK services for 180 school year days or 540 summer hours. Currently, two Miami Beach public elementary schools participate in Miami-Dade County Public Schools' fee-supported pre-kindergarten programs.   These VPK classes provide the State funded program from 8:20 am to 11:20 am, followed by the parental fee supported program from 11:20 am to 1:50 pm for 60 children (3 classes).  The parental fee for the extended hours beyond those funded by the State is $15 per day, or $6 per hour for 2.5 hours.   Those families who are eligible for free and reduced lunch pay a fee of $12 per day, or $4.80 per hour for 2.5 hours (see chart below).

City of Miami Beach proposed funds may fund the expansion of current half-day State funded licensed voluntary pre-kindergarten programs to full-day options for eligible families and/or licensed exempt pre-kindergarten programs holding gold seal quality care designation or programs accredited by an accrediting association that is a member of the National Council for Private School Accreditation or Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic Schools.   Funding may be used to reduce family contribution for hours not currently funded under the State funded VPK and non-State funded childcare pre-kindergarten programs if programs meet the above criteria.

Studies show that children who participate in high-quality early education programs are far more likely to read at grade level and graduate from high school and that quality full-day prekindergarten programs in particular are credited with producing significant increases in student performance in math and reading for participating students by the second grade as well as decreasing the rates of grade retention. Research indicates that as much as one-half of the achievement gap is already established before students enter the first grade. Investing in high-quality prekindergarten programs has been demonstrated to have a positive long-term impact on children’s life outcomes and narrows the achievement gap between poor and affluent youth.

Continuity of Care Model

Children receiving full-day prekindergarten should remain in the same location throughout the day, whenever practicable, and the program should keep the same caregiver/teacher throughout the day to help foster a secure attachment with their caregiver/teacher. This is referred to as a continuity of care model. This continuity of care model is derived from the fact that children who have a secure attachment with their caregiver/teacher use that relationship as a base for the development of willingness and confidence to explore. Because children take a significant amount of time to form attachments to caregivers/teachers, they are less likely to form attachments if frequent staffing changes occur.  If a child must readjust to multiple caregivers/teachers in a day, it can cause stress for the child and undermine this important attachment process as well as interfere with the child’s most effective learning processes.

When there are consistent all-day caregivers/teachers, the staff becomes attuned to each child’s unique needs and personality and can support, nurture, and guide the child’s growth and development. The relationship grows and the attachment security fosters children’s development of self-confidence and social competence. Children who are in emotionally secure relationships early in life have been found to have greater self-confidence and to be more socially competent at older ages than children who are insecure in their attachment relationships. Self-confidence and social competence help children adapt to kindergarten and contribute to their success in school.

New York Times (NYT) Parenting worked with YouGov, an international polling and market research company, to create an online survey, for an informational snapshot of the costs faced by parents of children around the country enrolled in preschool or day care (Attachment B).   Of the 1,027 parents who responded, 28 percent reported that day care and preschool expenses were a “very significant financial strain,” and 20 percent reported going into debt to manage expenses.  According to YouGov, the median amount spent on preschool and day care was $400 a month, and 22 percent of parents said they spend $1,000 or more.    YouGov collected the data between August 1 and 6, drawing respondents from a database of 1.2 million people with respondent parents from a cross-section of the country, about half of whom reported living in a city. 

According to Pre-K American Cities, over the past decade a number of high-profile city initiatives have emerged to focus on improving quality and access to early childcare such as:

• Boston's mayoral initiative funds a proven-effective program for all income levels and ethnic groups
• New York City's universal provision for 4-year-olds and proposed for 3-year-olds is provided through a combination of federal, state, and local funds
• Philadelphia's program is funded by a tax on sugary drinks
• San Antonio's Pre-K 4 used a sales tax initiative
• Seattle preschool program is levy-funded

Each of the above municipal initiatives is focused on early learning for school readiness, positive development, and lifelong health, combined with concerns about the inequality of access to Pre-K, the high cost of good Pre-K programs and potential urban flight.

The administration provided the below information for consideration of funding a pilot early childcare pre-kindergarten stipend program in the 2021-22 school year to the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee members at the July 17, 202o meeting for discussion and direction:

1. Eligibility requirements for all Miami Beach child applicants and Miami Beach partner childcare providers:

   1. Child must be 4 years old on or before September 1 of enrollment school year to enroll

   2. Child’s parent/legal guardian must be a resident of the City of Miami Beach upon submission of application and throughout the year of program participation

   3. Early childcare center must be physically located in Miami Beach zip codes 33139, 33140, and 33141

   4. Early childcare center must meet Florida Statutes applicable sections to be eligible to offer prekindergarten as a public school provider, nonpublic school provider or faith-based provider

      1. Be licensed as a childcare facility under s.402.305, F.S., family day care home under s. 402.313, F.S., or large family childcare facility under s.402.313, F.S.; or

      2. Be licensed exempt under s. 402.3025(2), F.S. (nonpublic schools) or s. 402.316, F.S. (for faith-based providers), and

         1. Hold a Gold Seal Quality Care designation under s. 402.281, F.S,;

         2. Each agency must apply for Gold Seal with Department of Children and Families;

         3. Or be accredited by an accrediting association that is a member of

            1. National Council for Private School Accreditation

            2. The Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic Schools

2. Requested funding for pilot of $250,000 ($25,000 administrative costs) for prekindergarten stipend with following distribution options for eligible families per child based on $225,000 available (lottery to be held in all options where applicants exceed approved funding):

   1. Eligible applicants may access equal portion of funds for maximum hourly rate of $6.00 per hour up 2.5 hours for 180 days not to exceed $2,700* (no family income consideration) – maximum families served 83 (*Funding received may not exceed parental fee based on other program discounts provided by the early childcare provider in all funding options)

   2. Eligible applicants may access a portion of funds for hourly rate range of $4.80 to $6.00 per hour up to 2.5 hours for 180 days not to exceed $2,700 and no less than $2,160 based on free and reduced public school meal eligibility – potential families served ranges from 83 to 104

   3. Eligible applicants may access a tiered portion of funds for maximum hourly rate of $6.00 per hour up to 2.5 hours for 180 days not to exceed $2,700 and no less than $1,350 based on financial aid eligibility based on verification of income per City of Miami Beach Parks Department established financial assistance procedure – potential families served ranges from 83 to 166:

      1. Tier 1    (100% stipend)

      2. Tier 2    (75% stipend)

      3. Tier 3    (50% stipend)

3. T.E.A.C.H Early Childhood Scholarship Program** (Attachment C) consideration to provide support to childcare center staff who participate in the scholarship program covering the 10% of staff/scholar cost for college classes to earn an Associate/Bachelor Degree in early childhood/education for up to 9 credits per year at a rate of $8.73 per credit at $78.57 (10% of 9 credits per year Florida state tuition) per eligible staff member not to exceed four (4 staff members) per approved partner Miami Beach childcare center per year up to 30 childcare centers at a cost not to exceed $10,000. per year.   **Turnover rates in early care and education between 30-40% nationally compared to 6% turnover for TEACH scholars with commitment to stay with center sponsor for up to a year following completion of agreement.

Funding for this pilot program would come from the FY 22 budget and be utilized to reimburse approved childcare providers monthly for services provided for Miami Beach youth.

The recommendation of the Finance and Economic Resiliency Committee at the July 17, 2020 meeting for the early childcare pre-kindergarten pilot program in the 2021-22 school year was as follows:

1. Eligibility requirements for all Miami Beach child applicants: 

1. Child must be 4 years old on or before September 1 of enrollment school year to enroll 
2. Child’s parent/legal guardian must be a resident of the City of Miami Beach upon submission of application and throughout the year of program participation 2021-22 
1. Eligibility requirements for all partner childcare providers: 

Early childcare center must meet Florida Statutes applicable sections to be eligible to offer prekindergarten as a public school provider, nonpublic school provider or faith-based provider

1. Be licensed as a childcare facility under s.402.305, F.S., family day care home under s. 402.313, F.S., or large family childcare facility under s.402.313, F.S.; or 
2. Be licensed exempt under s. 402.3025(2), F.S. (nonpublic schools) or s. 402.316, F.S. (for faith-based providers), and 

1. Hold a Gold Seal Quality Care designation under s. 402.281, F.S,; 
2. Each agency must apply for Gold Seal with Department of Children and Families; 
3. Or be accredited by an accrediting association that is a member of 

1. National Council for Private School Accreditation 
2. The Florida Association of Academic Nonpublic Schools 

3.  Requested funding for pilot of $250,000 for prekindergarten stipend with following distribution of funds for eligible families per child based on $250,000.    Eligible applicant may access equal portion of funds for maximum hourly rate of $6.00 per hour up 2.5 hours for 180 days not to exceed $2,700* (no family income consideration) – maximum families served 92 (*Funding received may not exceed parental fee based on other program discounts provided by the early childcare provider)