Developing a State CSPD
A system designed to address the challenges faced in the Early Childhood (EC) workforce, including:
- Shortages of personnel
- Need for additional training at both the pre-service and in-service levels
- Inconsistent alignment of state and national competencies and standards
- Challenges faced by EC personnel due to the diverse needs of young children and their families
- Inequities of preparation and compensation among those providing services
The ECPC collaborated with the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA) to create an Early Childhood Systems Framework for Part C and Part B section 619 Coordinators to evaluate their current systems, identify potential areas for improvement, and develop more effective and efficient systems that support the implementation of evidence-based practices in each of six main areas. The ECPC’s work resides in the Personnel/Workforce (PN) component of this framework, which addresses the necessity of understanding workforce capacity in order to provide timely and consistent services by prepared personnel in early childhood. Please use the ECPC-CSPD Self-Assessment to help guide your state in the planning, development, implementation and evaluation of a CSPD.
Link to State CSPD Leadership space - Login required
We support states to:
- Identify a leadership team to explore the opportunity to develop a Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD)
- Use the Readiness Tool to determine if your state is ready for strategic planning
Intensive Technical Assistance
The Intensive Technical Assistance program of the Early Childhood Personnel Center is an 18-month program centered on the development and implementation of an integrated, comprehensive system of personnel development (CSPD) for the participating state. Each participating state will be assigned at least one Technical Assistance (TA) Consultant, who will assist in guiding the state participants through the phases of developing their CSPD
The goal of the Intensive TA State Partnership is to build state capacity to foster professional development of the early childhood workforce. Through this partnership, we hope to:
- Enhance knowledge and skills of practitioners and those who support them including administrators, TA providers, and faculty
- Support the implementation and sustainability of evidence-based practices
- Increase the size of the workforce skilled in providing inclusive intervention practices
Intensive TA states will follow a 4-phase process that allows them to recruit and develop a diverse team of professionals who will address all subcomponents of a CSPD, including: (a) leadership, coordination, and sustainability; (b) state personnel standards; (c) pre-service personnel development; (d) in-service personnel development; (e) recruitment and retention; and (f) evaluation. Please view this overview of our Intensive TA methodology, subcomponents and their quality indicators, and our currently participating states.
The four phases to develop a Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD) are:
- Exploration
- Installation
- Implementation
- Standardization
The ECPC has recruited a cohort of states to receive Intensive Technical Assistance. Each of these states has (1) been assigned an ECPC-appointed TA provider, (2) completed our strategic planning process to created a personalized vision and mission for their CSPD, and (3) are working through action plans developed for each subcomponent.
Resources
- Acronyms
- List of commonly used acronyms
- CSPD Strategic Planning Process for States
- State guide for CSPD strategic planning
Action Planning
- Developing an Action Plan
- Step by step process on how to develop an action plan
- Action Plan and Rubric
- Process and evaluation tools for developing an action plan
- ECPC Rubric for Evaluating an Action Plan
- This interactive document is used to evaluate the quality of your action plan
CSPD Orientation and Overview Materials
- Onboarding CSPD Presentation
- CSPD Orientation and Onboarding Presentation
- Involving Families in CSPD: The Basics
- Infographic on involving families in CSPD - “The Basics”
- Family Reimbursement Form CSPD
- Reimbursement form to be used by state CSPD teams for families
- Family Involvement Self-Assessment
- Self-assessment for families to gauge their readiness to participate in an advisory capacity
- Self-Assessment Tool to Measure Family Engagement
- Self-Assessment for state administrators to measure family/stakeholder engagement
CSPD Subcomponent Workgroup Briefs
- Overview
- Overview about the framework of a CSPD
- Leadership, Coordination and Sustainability
- Structures for ongoing support of all personnel development activities
- Recruitment and Retention
- Strategies to identify, hire and maintain a qualified workforce across sectors and disciplines
- Personnel Standards
- Discipline specific knowledge, skills and competencies for the ECI workforce
- Pre-Service Training
- Formal program of study at an IHE to prepare for the ECI workforce
- In-service Training
- Ongoing learning activities to maintain and build the competence of the ECI workforce
- Evaluation
- Plans for evaluating each subcomponent of the CSPD
Technical Assistance
- CSPD TA Readiness Tool
- The TA Readiness tool is a self assessment for state Part C and Part B/619 leaders to assess their state system and support prior to committing to participate in intensive TA to develop a Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD)
- Guide to Intensive TA
- The purpose of this guide is to provide an implementation framework manual that describes the processes, procedures and resources required to successfully implement a state CSPD
- Integrated TA Tracker Tool
- This form is intended to be used in Phase One (exploration phase) of the CSPD process to document all the TA being provided within a state
- Memorandum for Intensive TA
- This form is a Memorandum of Agreement for Intensive TA with ECPC
Videos
Sue Thomas from Minnesota Department of Education 619 Coordinator shares the importance of involving families within the Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD) process for early childhood.
Carlene Robles from Hawaii describes how ECPC helped the state plan to develop a CSPD. This video appeared in the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) Symposia on strategies for Preparing Personnel to Serve Children with Disabilities.
CSPD State Vision & Mission Statements
Cohort 1
Delaware
Vision statement: In three to five years, there will be a cross-sector sustainable personnel and professional development system for all programs serving young children birth to five to sustain a high quality workforce.
Mission statement: To advocate, create, and implement a statewide, comprehensive early childhood professional development system to improve quality and services for all children and families.
Iowa
Vision statement: Every child, beginning at birth, will be healthy and successful.
Mission statement: Our Early Childhood Comprehensive System of Personnel Development will be a well-communicated system of integrated professional development supports for early childhood professionals across disciplines that directly impact infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with and without diverse abilities and their families.
Kansas
Vision statement: The Kansas early childhood CSPD will result in positive outcomes for young children and families.
Mission statement: In order to accomplish our vision, the Kansas ECPC Strategic Planning Team will design a cohesive personnel development system that ensures high quality early childhood programs and services leading to positive outcomes for all children and families.
Oregon
Vision statement: We believe that as early childhood practitioners we are collectively responsible for assuring that the young children we work with are ready for school and are building the emotional and developmental tools necessary to live a life of positive experiences. Oregon’s early intervention/early childhood special education (EI/ECSE) Comprehensive System of Professional Development (CSPD) will ensure that all EI/ECSE practitioners receive the appropriate training and support needed to provide effective services to infants, toddlers, and preschool children with special needs and their families, which will result in positive developmental and behavioral child outcomes.
Mission statement: We will create an integrated professional development system for all practitioners who provide services to young children with special needs age birth to five that is linked to national and state standards and integrated within existing professional development systems in our state.
Cohort 2
Pennsylvania
Vision statement: PA’s comprehensive system of personnel development creates an infrastructure that supports an interdisciplinary workforce who meets the needs and acknowledges the strengths of children and families with accessible, evidence-based education and supports that capitalize on their strengths, skills and dispositions.
Mission statement: All children and families have access to knowledgeable, competent, responsive professionals who work effectively and creatively across disciplines, using sustainable practices that lead to better outcomes for all children and families.
Vermont
Vision statement: Vermont’s CCV-hosted system prepares and supports professionals to effectively engage with children, families and systems to realize the promise of every child.
Mission statement: Vermont’s CCV-hosted system aligns, integrates and coordinates personnel development to equitably prepare, support and retain qualified personnel across settings and disciplines.
Cohort 3
Arizona
Vision statement: An equitable and accessible early childhood professional development system informed by evidence-based practices that strengthens all Arizona children and their families.
Mission statement: Our early childhood comprehensive system of professional development will support a unified cross-disciplinary early childhood workforce in Arizona that serves children and families in the contexts of inclusion, access and equity through creative and collaborative system building.
Minnesota
Vision statement: Each and every child gets the great start needed to succeed from their families, communities and early learning experiences.
Mission statement: Because each and every child, prenatal to 5, and their families deserve high quality early care and education, Minnesota will integrate and align existing systems of personnel development in order to empower practitioners to implement and sustain the use of the evidence-based practices.
Puerto Rico
Vision statement: Highly competent and committed team supported by an integrated and inclusive professional development system that results in positive outcomes for young children and their families.
Un equipo altamente competente y comprometido, apoyado por un sistema integrado e inclusivo para su desarrollo profesional, que alcance resultados positivos para la niñez en edad temprana y su familia.
Mission statement: Design, develop and implement a formal based cross disciplinary, articulated and sustainable system with accessible professional development experiences and opportunities.
Diseñar, desarrollar e implantar un sistema formal, interdisciplinario, articulado y sostenible con experiencias y oportunidades de desarrollo profesional disponibles y accesibles.
Cohort 4
Hawaii
Vision statement: Hawaii will have a highly qualified sustainable professional workforce that is culturally and linguistically responsive to Hawaii’s birth to five keiki and their ohana.
Mission statement: Hawaii will create an integrated Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD) that will result in a collaborative, knowledgeable and highly qualified workforce. This workforce will provide culturally and linguistically responsive early learning services to keiki birth to five with special needs and their ohana that are linked to national standards and integrated within personnel systems in our State.
Mississippi
Vision statement: Mississippi will have a highly qualified and skilled workforce that sustains and improves the functional outcomes and quality of life for all children who qualify for IDEA services from birth to age 5 years and their families.
Mission statement: The Mississippi CSPD promotes policy to ensure early intervention and early childhood special education professionals are qualified and will advocate for and use of evidence-based practices (such as the DEC Recommended Practices, 2014) to provide high quality, coordinated child- and family-centered services for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers who qualify for IDEA services and their families through opportunities and activities in their natural learning environments and daily routines.