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SLDS State Support Team Webinar

SLDS Webinar

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Strategies for Engaging Early Learning Stakeholders

Strategies for Engaging Early Learning Stakeholders

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PanelistsAmy Nicholas, DaSy/Johns Hopkins University Elliot Regenstein, Ounce of Prevention FundHilary Shager, Wisconsin (Hilary is not able to join us today but is available for questions via email)Missy Cochenour, State Support Team

Welcome

• Provide an overview of how to engage stakeholders in developing an early childhood integrated data system (ECIDS)• Provide strategies learned and shared by

other states as they have engaged early childhood stakeholders• Share resources to help states developing

an ECIDS to engage the appropriate stakeholders• Discuss the difference between stakeholder

engagement and data governance

Objective

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Overview

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What is a stakeholder? What is stakeholder engagement?

Overview

• Stakeholders: Individuals who are either affected by or responsible for the outcomes of a project or initiative• Stakeholder engagement: The use of

stakeholders as participants in a collaborative decisionmaking process that guides the creation and execution of a defined scope of work

Overview

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Why should we engage stakeholders while developing an ECIDS? Why should stakeholders care?

Overview

Why should we engage stakeholders?• Generally, to inform the process of

developing an ECIDS to ensure it meets their needs as the users.• If the goal is to help stakeholders make

better decisions through better data, it is essential to engage stakeholders in identifying their key decisions as well as what data are needed to help make those decisions.

Overview

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Why should stakeholders care?• In a competitive funding environment,

data systems do not always have a natural constituency. Engaging stakeholders early in the process helps them understand how it can help them with their work, which in turn encourages them to become advocates for the system.

Overview

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Who are the appropriate

stakeholders to engage while

developing an ECIDS?

State Advocates and Leaders• Early Learning Councils• Governor’s Office • Cross-agency leadership

Program Representatives• Early learning program administrators (cross

agencies/programs)• Head Start Collaboration Office

Partners • K12/P-20 SLDS partners• Parents and families• Universities and researchers• Private local and statewide EC foundations and forums

Identifying Stakeholders

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How to categorize essential stakeholders• Identify stakeholders who are essential to

the project in terms of roles, then in terms of people:

Identifying Stakeholders

oSupporteroImplementeroLeaderoUser

oDecisionmakeroConsultant

• Categorize key agencies, leaders (decisionmakers and spokespersons), and workers• Document the process for selecting

various stakeholders 13

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Why is the state’s Early Childhood Advisory Council important?• The councils were designed to provide a centralized

coordinating body for strategic planning and early learning data analysis.

• The councils are required by federal legislation to have diverse representation, giving states a “ready made” stakeholder group.

• Many state councils have already developed or are in the process of developing a data workgroup/committee to look at coordinating data among early learning programs.

• Federal legislation for the councils includes questions that must be answered annually to the state’s governor, along with recommendations for future early learning state investments.

• Councils are required to make recommendations for the design of a unified data system.

Identifying Stakeholders

Wisconsin stakeholders engaged from the beginning:• Governor’s Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC)• Cross-agency partners and leadership• P-20W SLDS partners• Early learning program administrators (cross agencies/programs)• Head Start Collaboration Office• Parents and families• Universities and researchers• Private local and statewide EC foundations and forums

Why?• ECAC provided some funding• To inform• To gather input• To solicit participation in workgroups

Wisconsin Example

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Plan for organizational change• Bringing on new stakeholders can be

unexpected, such as during a leadership transition. To prepare, develop signature slides that quickly and concisely speak to the vision, mission, and purpose of the project, and develop training materials for new staff and/or leadership. • Keep up with changes in staff and

leadership, and acclimate new members to the project plan quickly.

Wisconsin Example

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Strategies to engage stakeholders while

developing an ECIDS

• One of the most important things in the process is that each stakeholder knows why they are involved in the conversation and what their role is in the process.

• The following strategies include ideas to consider when developing a plan for successful stakeholder engagement.

Strategies for Engagement

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Strategy 1: Conduct an ECIDS data

roundtable with stakeholders

Wisconsin conducted a data roundtable during the feasibility study (planning) year of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Data System (EC LDS) Project

Wisconsin Example

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Goal of Wisconsin’s Data Roundtable: • Provide information about the EC LDS and

solicit support• Provide examples of EC LDS models from other

states• Develop underlying policy questions• Initiate alignment of data elements to key

policy questions• Review and improve the project communication

plan• Initiate workgroups to make recommendations

for governance, unique identifiers, capacity, sustainability, potential system architecture, and stakeholder engagement

Participants: • All stakeholders

Wisconsin Example

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How it was done: • All day meeting, offsite, with snacks and

lunch provided so participants could work throughout the day• Presenters were various state leaders, SST,

and Elliot• Started with an overview and moved into

discussion groups• Sent out a survey afterward to get the next

steps started (workgroup-development volunteers from stakeholders)• Data Roundtable Report to summarize the

day

Wisconsin Example

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Other states that have done a data roundtable: • Oklahoma• Georgia• Connecticut

Data Roundtable

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Strategy 2: Use stakeholders to

establish the essential policy and

program questions to be answered using

the ECIDS

States that have created essential questions used their stakeholders strategically to help develop questions• Started with ECDC questions • Tailored the questions to meet their

needs

Essential Questions

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Essential Questions

1. Identify key end users

2. Identify key

questions

3. Identify specific

sub-questions

4. Identify the data

fields that answer the

key questions

5. Identify where, if

anywhere, those

fields are collected

6. Identify changes

needed for data

collection

7. Identify how to add

and link data to

answer key questions

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In July 2009, ECDC convened a meeting with 40-50 thought leaders around the country to prioritize key policy questions states want and need to answer.• What’s going on with kids in terms of access and

development?• What does program quality look like?• What does the workforce look like and are they well-

supported?Once the collaborative developed these key policy questions, the next step was to understand what type of information and system structure is needed for states to get these answers. • The 10 fundamentals developed by ECDC was created to

give states a framework for getting at these answers.

Essential Questions

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Resulting ECDC questions:1. Are children, birth to age 5, on track to succeed

when they enter school and beyond?2. Which children have access to high-quality early

care and education programs?3. Is the quality of programs improving?4. What are the characteristics of effective programs?5. How prepared is the early care and education

workforce to provide effective education and care for all children?

6. What policies and investments lead to a skilled and stable early care and education workforce?

Essential Questions

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• National guidance was provided by the Early Childhood Data Collaborative, as well as the Data Quality Campaign

• Guidance was considered in the creation of the five questions Wisconsin wants to answer

• Questions were vetted by early childhood system stakeholders during the Early Childhood Collaborating Partners video conference on August 11, 2011

Wisconsin Example

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Wisconsin tailored the ECDC questions to meet the state’s needs:1. Are children, birth to 5, on track to succeed

when they enter school and beyond?2. Which children and families are and are not

being served by which programs/services?3. Which children have access to high-quality early

childhood programs and services?4. What characteristics of programs are associated

with positive child outcomes for which children?5. What are the education and economic returns on

early childhood investments?

Wisconsin Example

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Strategy 3: Use stakeholder

workgroups to help inform the process of ECIDS development by using interest areas to

keep users engaged

Why are workgroups important?• A way to keep stakeholders involved• Use the strengths of each stakeholder• Can move quickly in smaller groups that

make recommendations

Stakeholder Workgroups

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• Stakeholder workgroups produced recommendation papers on the topics of governance, unique identifiers, capacity, sustainability, system architecture, and stakeholder engagement

• Composition of workgroups: o Cross-departmental program memberso Non-governmental participants by invitation o Enlisted the help of SST to learn best practice

approaches to topic

Wisconsin Example

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Lessons learned from states:• Illinois identified roles that are clearly roles for

state agency stakeholders as opposed to external stakeholders (targeted group and outcome)

• When state agencies are engaged in contracting and bidding work but want outside advice, the state can provide waivers to allow outside partners to participate in strategic conversations without violating procurement laws. Outside partners who sign the waivers commit that they will not share information with potential bidders or bid themselves.

Stakeholder Workgroups

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Strategy 4: Develop communication tools

to reach various stakeholders and the

agencies they represent

Communication tools are important because they:• Help keep stakeholders informed• Solicit feedback• Allow representation from many

agencies

Communication Tools

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To develop stakeholder trust in the process:• Be responsive and timely. • Use technology to help—webinars, web pages,

conference calls, electronic communication methods, and document servers can assist with collaborative planning.

• Give stakeholders dates and times when the communication team will deliver materials and publications. Build trust among these groups by sticking to the state’s project plan and facilitating ongoing communication.

• Above all, listen and follow up promptly.

Communication Tools

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Overall Communication PlanSpecifics:• Website • Newsletters• Meetings/Presentations

(Status/Planning, Project Kick-Off, Departmental Briefings, Out Reach to Community Partners)

• Data Roundtable• Data Governance Workshop

Wisconsin Example

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What do stakeholders need

to engage in ECIDS activities?

Program stakeholders must understand:• The state data landscape• The benefits of a coordinated data system

to their program • The data their program can offer to add

depth and breadth to the system• Their program-specific audiences and data

consumers, and those individuals’ priorities• Questions they would like to answer but are

not yet able to

Stakeholder Needs

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Understanding these things gives stakeholders the opportunity to:• Realize the benefits of the work• Represent their program’s interest so

that benefits are realized• Identify and articulate what they would

like to accomplish by being involved in the work

Stakeholder Needs

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Helpful Tools• SLDS Stakeholder Engagement Plan Template

(applicable for Early Learning)• Early Learning Planning Guide and Self-Assessment• Wisconsin EC LDS project website:

http://wise.dpi.wi.gov/wise_p20ec (Available documents: Feasibility Study Communication Plan, Work Group Recommendations, Roundtable Agenda and Report, and more)

Stakeholder Needs

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What is the difference between stakeholder

engagement and data governance?

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Stakeholder Engagement vs. Data Governance

Membership• Stakeholder engagement: Users of the ECIDS data and those directly or indirectly affected by its use (including data governance members).• Data governance: Representatives (leadership, program, and IT staff) from each agency or program contributing data to the ECIDS.

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Stakeholder Engagement vs. Data Governance

Level of Engagement• Stakeholder engagement: Varies by stakeholder group. Will increase and decrease over the course of the project and resulting program depending upon need and focus.• Data governance: High and consistent throughout the life of the project and program. Will continue after the system is developed.

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Stakeholder Engagement vs. Data Governance

Responsibilities/Decisionmaking Authority• Stakeholder engagement:

Members inform and influence the overall direction, priorities, and implementation of the ECIDS.• Data governance: Members determine the

overall direction, priorities, and implementation of the ECIDS.

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SLDS State Support Team Webinar

Questions or comments?

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State Support Team & SLDS Team: Missy Cochenour, (909) 241-4264Missy.cochenour@sst-slds.org Maddie Fromell, (202) 219-7117Maddie.fromell@ed.gov

Panelists:Amy Nicholas, anicholas@jhu.eduElliot Regenstein, eregenstein@ounceofprevention.org Hilary Shager, Hilary.Shager@wisconsin.gov

Contacts