October 10th, 2024 - Agenda and Meeting Report

Audience

Open to the general public

Time

9:30 am to 1:00 pm

Location

This meeting will be held via Zoom teleconferencing.To participate via Zoom teleconferencing, please utilize the link below provided by Illinois Early Intervention Training to register for the meeting.

IICEI Registration: Thursday, October 10th, 2024

Once you register, you will be provided with an immediate confirmation, that will indicate Zoom participation information will be forthcoming. You will receive an email with specific access instructions and your unique Zoom link closer to the meeting date.

Agenda

• Call to Order
• Introduction of Council Members
• Approval of July 11th, 2024 Minutes
• Message from Parent
• Advocacy Update
• Workforce Workgroup Update
• Project INITIATE (NICU-to-Home Update
• Substantiated Abuse/Neglect Auto Eligibility
• Council Workgroups
• Live Video Visit Needs Assessment
• Department of Early Childhood Agency Update
• Bureau Updates
  • DMS 2.0
  • Council Trainings
  • Fiscal Responsibilities of Council
  • Research and Initiatives Status Update
• Proposed 2025 Meeting Dates
• Public Comment Period
• Adjournment of Meeting 

Attendees

IICEI Members	In Attendance
Alison Liddle, Provider Representative/Chairperson	Yes
Aasma Tariq, Parent Representative	Yes
Anastasios "Taso" Michalopulos, Provider Representative	Yes
Angel Williams, Illinois Department of Child and Family Services	Yes
Benny Delgado, IDHS, Chief, Bureau of Early Intervention	Yes
Brittni Monreal, Parent Representative	Yes
Carol Muhammad, Child & Family Connections (CFC) 10 Manager, Urban Representative	Yes
Chuck Farr, Child & Family Connections (CFC) 13 Program Manager, Rural Representative	Yes
Donna Emmons, Head Start Representative	Yes
Ginger Mullin, IL Dept. of Public Health	No
Jennifer Gentile, IL Dept. of Human Services, Division of Developmental Disabilities	No
Kate Ulmer, ISBE, McKinney-Vento, Homeless Representative	No
Kesha Harris, Parent Representative	Yes
Kristy Doan, IL State Board of Education	Yes
Lisa Betz, Child and Adolescent Services Div of Mental Health	No
Lisa Karp, Parent Representative	Yes
Lynnette DeGraffenreid, Provider Representative	Yes
Margaret Harkness, IL Council on Developmental Disabilities	Yes
Matthew Pickett, IL Dept. of Insurance	Yes
Meredith Barnes, Parent Representative	Yes
Michael Garner-Jones, IL Dept. of Human Services, Bureau of Subsidy Mgmt. (Child Care)	Yes
Rosa (Amy) Milagros Santos, Personnel Preparation Representative	Yes
Shelly Roat, IL Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC)	Yes
Zareen Kamal, Advocate Representative	Yes
Zee Parton, Provider Representative	No

Council Packet Contents

• Agenda
• Draft Council Meeting Report - July 11, 2024
• Workforce Workgroup Update
• Early Intervention Caseload Summary Report

Minutes

1) Call to Order

Alison Liddle, Illinois Interagency Council on Early Intervention Chairperson, called the meeting to order at 9:32 am

2) Introductions of Council Members

Members introduced themselves and stated their agency/role on the Council. Angelia Lee - a new Council Member to replace Donna Emmons as representative of Head Start/Early Head Start was also introduced. A quorum was established.

3) Approval of the Draft Council Meeting Report - July 11, 2024

Lynette made a motion to approve the minutes. Brittni seconded. Motion passed. Draft Council Meeting Report approved as is.

4) Message from the Parent

The parent expressed her gratitude for early intervention experience as well as disappointment. As a parent working full-time in education, communications and protocols have been inconsistent. She often had to chase down second-hand information about her child's services and progress and noted that services provided in the Daycare setting were inconsistent. The challenges of advocating for her child and family had her rethinking her role as a parent and financial support to her family. This parent reported that she was pleased with the speech and feeding therapy services and developmental therapy services received; however, the physical therapist, not present at the 6-month review, discontinued services based on the input of her child's daycare staff. As an educator she understands issues with the system, but there is no excuse. This parent is concerned for parents who do not know how to advocate for their children and those parents who do not have the luxury of taking time from their jobs to ensure quality early intervention services entitled to them.

Comments from the Council included

• Angelia Lee Expressed issues with providers unwilling to provide face-to-face services. In her experience she has found that often a child's needs are overlooked when providing virtual services. Greater advocacy for quality providers receiving commensurate compensation is needed.
• Angel expressed the need for equitable access. Too often parents are faced with having to choose between financial support for their family or support from early intervention.
• Lynnette shared that in her EI experience as a working parent, she could not do it alone. There is a need for parents/families to do their research into advocating for their children.
• Meredith also shared that many parents do not have the luxury of being available during standard business hours and the need for them to be able to connect with providers/resources/etc outside of those normal working hours.
• Benny reinforced that clear and consistent communication is key! - Addressing equity issues, flexibility in meeting a family's needs, and a quality pool of providers are also key issues.

5) Advocacy Update: Zareen Kamal

Zareen reflected on the significance of the family/professional relationships and their impact on the success of early intervention.

Upcoming advocacy efforts include:

• Start Early, Babies Can't Wait Campaign: We Need EI Campaign launches October16 with Raising Our voices: We Need Early Intervention.
• Zareem also shared a QR link to a petition to help advocate for a 60M Budget increase for FY26 to address workforce challenges.
• Rallies scheduled across the state include:

 Champaign, NW Suburbs, S Suburbs, Aurora, Melrose Park, Peoria, Decatur, Chicago

Zareem will share flyers and further details through MS Teams and invited anyone interested in participating to reach out to her.

6) Workforce Workgroup Update: Carol Muhammad and Chelsea Guillen

Carol reported that the workgroup continues to move forward in addressing the issues of our current workforce shortage.

• In August the group discussion focused on credentialing challenges, opportunities,
• September's agenda focused on the Cross State Research survey results - exploring the pros and cons of the recommendations made
• The October meeting further discussed the recommendations of the Cross State Research with a focus on Mentoring/Mentorship. A model from a California EC program offers information worth exploring that includes different types of mentorships and the quality of mentorship. There was also discussion of past efforts in Illinois to launch a mentorship program. The short-lived pilot did show a positive impact, however, it was not further financially supported. Mentoring was a big piece of the Cross State Research recommendations. Making mentorship an Ad Hoc work group is under consideration by this workgroup.

Questions/Comments:

 Benny expressed his gratitude to the WorkGroup members for their commitment to the long-term work needed.

 Chuck is appreciative of interns from WIU made available to his CFC. Carol has also been using the services of an intern.

7) Project INITIATE (NICU-to-Home Pilot) Update: Margie Harkness

Project INITIATE was developed because babies from Lurie Children's Hospital NICU were not getting picked up for EI Services in a timely manner. It was found that Medicaid families, black, Latino, DCFS children least likely to be picked up by early intervention.

With seed monies from the Patrick M. Magoon Institute for Healthy Communities, a pilot program was initiated to implement prompt, equitable access to early therapy services upon discharge from NICU, improve coordination of services, and inform policy recommendations for system improvements. Comer's Hospital, UIC, and University of Chicago were added to the project.

Recommendations from this Project include:

• Streamline Early Intervention Enrollment
• EI coordinators and therapists to be educated on the paths for enrollment based on medical conditions with a high probability of delays and established delays. Lurie hosted a day-long seminar for CFC staff and providers with 100 in attendance.
• Education of coordinators and therapists to include understanding of the effectiveness and practice of therapy for NICU babies.
• Improve telephone access for families by using identified phone numbers when calling families.
• Evaluate therapist availability across the city and state - LVV not an option for many families
• Enhance communication and coordination across systems - establish EI Liaisons within hospitals
• Increased funding for Medicaid and EI Services - many providers will not accept Medicaid families

Comments/Questions:

• It was asked if it was found that any one service was more readily available to families than another. Current data does not reflect this. Data continues to be collected.
• Many families reside in Illinois, but travel to deliver in out of state specialty hospitals.
• Establish a partnership with DSCC
• Angel shared that Erikson has a 'Smooth Way Home' Program started in conjunction with the Fussy Baby Network that seems to align with Project INITIATE - Options for collaboration between the two programs
• Zareen echoed the significance of this work and the need to bring those similar projects already in place working together.
• Meredith mentioned that when she reached out to EI regarding her NICU baby, she was told her baby needed a SS# before EI could do anything. Benny was not aware of any such policy and would need to investigate further. Carol and Chuck shared that they do not collect SS# and do not understand why that would have been a barrier to receiving early intervention services. It was suggested that Zareen might be able to further investigate.

8) Public Act 102-0926 - Substantiated Abuse/Neglect Auto Eligibility Workgroup: Pfeffer Eisin

Pfeffer, Director of the Erikson DCFS Early Childhood Project reported on the progress in the implementation of auto eligibility.

Pfeffer began her presentation by reminding all that ongoing collaboration is key in dealing with the challenges of implementing this legislation. Early Intervention has been a major factor in moving this process forward. Progress on workgroup recommendations included:

• DHS work w/DCFS to ensure that information about early intervention is provided to all eligible children/families. - Erikson DCFS project team informs all parents and foster parents about auto-eligibility during consultation or assessment. Language for families has been added to DCFS website and letters sent to families. Family Friendly brochure developed and has been shared with EI Clearinghouse.
• Standardized Referral Form and Format - Standard Referral Form revised to reflect additional information needed. Form is ready for vetting. When approved, this form and referral format will be used for all referrals.
• Review current practice for assessment/referral and make recommendations for updates to the process - Current agreements for sharing information in place; however not all sides are aware of them. Inter-Governmental Agreement has been drafted and will be reviewed with DCFS and DHS Early Intervention legal teams.
• EI working with Bureau of Administrative Rules and Procedures to file proposed changes to Rule 500 to reflect changes to State Statute and auto eligibility.

NEXT Steps include:

• Approval of Standardized Referral Form
• Final submission to file proposed changes to Rule 500
• Continued TA to CFCs and DCFS
• Further engagement with IDHS-DEC and DCFS leadership

Benny shared DCFS website updates to include Early Intervention auto-eligibility as well as DCFS auto eligibility Fact Sheet posted to EI Clearinghouse website.

The updated version of Standardized referral form reflecting DCFS auto-eligibility information was shared. Though this form is currently designed to be faxed in, Benny continues to explore options for a secure online submission process.

It was asked if there was an opportunity for Council Members to provide feedback on the form. Benny is open to additional feedback and asked that comments be submitted through MS Teams.

9) Council Workgroups: Alison Liddle

Alison provided a general update on the status of the development of the Fiscal Workgroup and LVV Workgroup. Details are being investigated as to how the Council can best provide input into the fiscal management of Part C funds.

10) Live Video Visit Needs Assessment: Benny Delgado

A brief history of the implementation of LVV as a service delivery option in Early Intervention was presented. Benny identified key elements for a new LVV Workgroup to address and advise the Bureau regarding the following:

• Determining options for LVV in service delivery as a TEAM decision and documenting all LVV processes in the IFSP documents
• Informing providers and families on what and how LVV services can be utilized with fidelity and best practice. Review current resources or develop new ones so that families can be supported in making informed decisions regarding LVV service options.
• Review initial training requirements and develop ongoing professional development/continuing education for EI providers on the use of LVV to better ensure best practices in telehealth.

Benny will put a charge together, make recommendations for workgroup members, etc.

The chat reflected several comments regarding the changes in the IPTA Practice Act. Benny is working with IPTA to align Early Intervention best practices in LVV service delivery.

Additional questions/comments included how can public express interest in serving on this workgroup. Benny requests that any council members interested reach out to Benny as soon as possible. Once the details of the charge are fully developed, workgroup members can be identified.

Other comments expressed some barriers of LVV to consider.

11) Department of Early Childhood Agency Update: Ann Whalen

Updates to the Transition process to the new Department of Early Childhood included:

* Interim leadership in place with Interim CFO, Jose Ponte. A National Search for a Permanent Secretary is underway with expectations of having one in place by the end of the month

* Engagement Opportunities during this transition process include:

Regional listening sessions - as of 10/1/2024 60 regional listening sessions providing forums for stakeholders to learn more about the new Department and opportunities have been presentation in English and in Spanish.

* Child Care Advisory Council - Various workgroups address the needs and workflow of IDEC are being created and launched.

 Workgroups include:

• Family Service Workgroups: Supporting Families w/ special needs children; Supporting Multi-lingual learners and their families; Workforce
• Supports Workgroups: Data, Analytics, and Insights; Funding Alignment; Intermediary Alignment; Standards Alignment; Social Emotional Supports; Advisory Bodies/Governance; and any others as needed

A sample workflow of these workgroups was presented. Workgroup meetings will have public comment portion and open padlets for additional comments.

Stipends are offered to parents serving on the workgroups. Dr. Whalen encourages public engagement in Workgroup/workgroup meetings and focus conversations.

12) Bureau Updates: Benny Delgado

* DMS 2.0 - Benny recapped presentations given by Chelsea Guillen in previous meetings.

Federal law in compliance with IDEA Part C requires State to report and meet compliance in 5 Key areas:

OSEP will be engaged in an intensive monitoring process of Illinois over the next 2 years

• Council Trainings Members are required to complete training.
• Fiscal Responsibilities of Council - Attention was brought to the information provided in the Council Packet. The Center for IDEA Fiscal Reporting will be presenting in January's meeting. To help prep for the meeting, Benny will be engaging Council members in regular conversations about Federal/State Funding processes.
• Research and Initiatives Status Updates - Reports will be released to the Governor's Office for review. Though a slow process, reports will be released to the general public with governor's approval.
• IMPACT revalidation process - Benny shared a brief update on the status.

13) Proposed 2025 Meeting Dates

Proposed 2025 Meeting Dates 9:30 am - 1:00 pm - Via Zoom

• Thursday, January 9th, 2025
• Thursday, April 10th, 2025
• Thursday, July 10th, 2025
• Thursday, October 9th, 2025

It was asked if any of the meetings would be in person/hybrid. They will all be virtual meetings. No further discussion

Angel made a motion to approve the 2025 meeting dates. Carol seconded that motion. Motion passed.

14) Public Comment Period

Rachel Mika, PT, thanked Benny for providing insight into IMPACT revalidation process, but is concerned that many providers will lose ability to process payment due to IMPACT challenges. Rachel also mentioned greater transparency in payment delays would be helpful.

Benny responded to Rachel's comments.

15) Adjournment

 Angel motioned to adjourn. Lynette seconded. Motion passed. Meeting adjourned at 1:00 pm.

Contact Information

Katie Jacobs

IDHS - Bureau of Early Intervention

823 East Monroe Street

Springfield, IL 62701

Ph: 217/299-7158

Email: Katie.Jacobs@Illinois.gov

If you are in need of special accommodations, please email or call Katie Jacobs.