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DHS Vision and Mission

Vision: Arkansas citizens are healthy, safe and enjoy a high quality of life.

Mission: Together we improve the quality of life of all Arkansans by protecting the vulnerable, fostering independence and promoting better health.

 

DCC/ECE Mission Statement

As good stewards of the public trust, we will support and advise the Division by ensuring that all Arkansas children and families have access to a safe, high-quality, developmentally appropriate (nurturing learning) environment (and) by educating and assisting parents, child care providers, and communities to prepare our children for future success.

Overview

Act 1132 of 1997, established the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education within the Arkansas Department of Human Services.  The purpose of the Division is to enhance the coordination of child care and early childhood education programs within the state.  This coordination ensures a seamless delivery of service to low-income families and those who are moving from welfare to work.

The Division working with the Early Childhood Commission, adopted the following mission statement:  The mission of the Arkansas Early Childhood Commission is "As good stewards of the public trust, we will support and advise the Division by ensuring that all Arkansas children and families have access to a safe, high-quality, developmentally appropriate (nurturing learning) environment (and) by educating and assisting parents, child care providers, and communities to prepare our children for future success."

The Division is comprised of six sections:  one regulatory , one compliance, three programmatic and one administrative.  The Division currently has 108 budgeted positions in addition to 13 extra help positions.  The name of the sections and a brief description of their function follows:

Child Care Licensing - This is the largest section within the Division with 49 positions.  Many of these positions are located in DHS county offices.  Licensing specialist perform on site reviews of child care centers in addition to licensed homes and registered homes.  This section is also responsible for maintaining the Criminal Records Check System (Act 1198 or 1997) in conjunction with the Arkansas State Police.  This system checks the police record of all workers in child care centers or licensed homes.

Compliance Unit - Works with the programmatic sections of the Division and other appropriate Divisions within the Department to coordinate and track issues dealing with provider fraud, overpayments and audits.

Family Support - This section supports services to Temporary Employment Assistance (TEA), transitional and low-income working families by providing subsidized child care services on a sliding fee basis.  Child Care eligibility workers are located regionally across the state.

Special Nutrition Program - is comprised of four programs funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and administered by the state.  These programs reimburse sponsors for meals and snacks served at approved feeding sites.  The programs are the Child & Adult Care Food Program, the Summer food Service Program for Children, Special Milk and National School Lunch.

Program Development - is the major outreach section of the Division.  This section provides a multitude of diverse services designed to improve the quantity and quality of child care services within the state.  These services blend funds from state and federal sources.

A listing of these services follow:

  • Basic Orientation Course for Child Care Staff

  • Enhancement Grants

  • Training Grants

  • Child Development Associate (CDA) Scholarships

  • Business Management Training

  • Technical  Assistance to Programs

  • Arkansas Child Care Facilities Guarantee Loan Fund

  • Arkansas Better Chance (ABC) - The  State's Public Pre-K Program

  • Specialized Projects

  • Child Care Facilities funding/Community Development Block Grant

  • Arkansas Child Care Resource Center

  • Arkansas Children's Week

  • Teacher Centers/Educational Cooperatives

  • Accreditation/Approval System

  • Arkansas Development Finance Authority Loan Fund (ADFA)

  • Parent Information & Referral

  • Early Literacy Learning in Arkansas (Pre K Ella)

The creation of the Division consolidated three (3) existing boards into one.  The affected boards were the Child Care Facility Review Board, the Arkansas Early Childhood Commission and the Child Care Provider Training Committee. These review boards were consolidated into a new Arkansas Early Childhood Commission that advises the Division and  and has regulatory approval for all minimum licensing standards.

Act 1132 was amended in 1999 in order to establish the Child Care Appeal Review Committee.  This panel reviews appealed adverse action taken by the Child Care Licensing Section against a child care provider and hears any unresolved disputes between that Section and the child care providers regarding: 1) substantial compliance with the published standards; 2) founded licensing complain; 3) denial of alternative compliance request.

Act 1264 of 2001, that regulates the Transitional Employment Assistance Program had included language in Section 1,H,22,B that authorized the TEA Board to oversee  a spending cap on subsidized child care for low-income working families to ensure that those families transitioning from welfare to the workplace.

Providers, staff and above all families have benefited from these efforts to consolidate and streamline existing administrative functions within the Division.