Hello, I would like to let all of our members know that I attended the OSEP Leadership Conference in July that was held in Washington DC. I found it to be very informative and it allowed me to interact with staff from other Parent Training Information Centers.

The Executive Directors from Wyoming, South Dakota, and PEAK in Colorado gave me great ideas on how to expand our client reach. There was an excellent breakout session providing instruction on how to reach a large portion of the state through webinars and trainings using up-to-date technology. All in all, the conference was a success and helped this Executive Director interact with other PTI staff which resulted in a few new partnerships. I hope you all had a great summer and enjoy the little bit that is left.

Tim Starks
Executive Director

This July, Pathfinder had booths at both the 2017 North Dakota State Fair in Minot and at the North Dakota Indian Education Summit in Bismarck.

The North Dakota Indian Education Summit was a great opportunity to network with families and professionals from across the state.

Licensed and self-declared early childhood service providers who care for children with special needs, ages birth through 12 years, can apply for funding for additional support and resources for their programs through the Inclusion Support Program offered by the North Dakota Department of Human Services. Providers can use the funding to support staffing needs, purchase equipment or materials that support inclusive early childhood programming, or modify a child care setting by building ramps or widening doors to accommodate children with diverse abilities and needs.

The Inclusion Support Program also provides technical assistance to licensed and self-declared child care providers including educational resources, connections to community resources, on-site observations, and helpful strategies for meeting the unique needs of children. This assistance is offered through Child Care Aware of North Dakota at no cost to providers. All licensed and self-declared early childhood service providers can apply for the funding. These include childcare centers and school-aged programs, preschool programs, and family and group child care providers.

Providers must be licensed/regulated by the Department of Human Services to be eligible to apply for the funding. Applications will be accepted from Aug. 1 to Oct. 31, 2017.

Additional details, including an application, are online at: http://www.nd.gov/dhs/services/childcare/inclusion.html