Senator Spencer Coggs (D-Milwaukee) is introducing a bill that will require the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to improve its investigation and inspections of illegal child care centers, establish a hotline to receive reports of illegal child care centers and improve the public education and information to parents on the dangers of using illegal [...]

Due to the continued focus of the Department of Children and Families and Milwaukee law enforcement to stop fraud in the Wisconsin Shares program, another child care provider was sentenced last week for stealing from taxpayers. This is the second provider sentenced this month for scamming the Wisconsin Shares program. Shawn Nash, who handled the [...]

By Taki S. Raton The Public Service Commission (PSC) of Wisconsin has awarded a grant to the Celebrate Children Foundation (CCF) to facilitate affordable access to telecommunication and information services. The CCF will assist in the funding of broadband Internet connectivity to child care centers in Milwaukee in an effort to improve the quality of [...]

Washington – After visiting children at CentroNía, a bilingual child care center in Washington, D.C., First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled Let’s Move! Child Care, a new effort to work with child care providers to help our youngest children get off to a healthy start. The First Lady released a checklist that providers and parents can [...]

State program seeks to create foundation for physical activity in young children MADISON – Promoting physical activity to help prevent childhood obesity is the goal of a new grant awarded recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to the Department of Health Services (DHS). The funding targets two to five-year-olds in 20 regulated [...]

By Lynda L. Jones Governor Jim Doyle has a reason to smile this week, as his vision on child care reform continues to move in the direction that he has hoped. The governor has spoken on many child care changes over the past few years, one being a rating system, and a central location that [...]

Unity Caucus and Senator Taylor present summit with DCF and local officials Compiled by Courier Staff Senator Lena C. Taylor (D) Milwaukee) this week announced a child care summit to take place Saturday, February 27th in Milwaukee. The summit will offer advice ranging from how to open a daycare center to questions about receiving micro-loans. [...]

Governor Jim Doyle announced last week details on a new five-star quality rating and improvement system for child care in Wisconsin. The program, YoungStar, will help improve the quality of child care, link provider quality to payments from the Wisconsin Shares program, and help guide parents in choosing a provider. “Today, we are taking another [...]

The following is a statement released by Common Council president Willie J.. Hines, Jr. For several years, the State of Wisconsin and Milwaukee County have overseen and administered Early Childhood Education (ECE) in our city. This includes licensed group child care centers, licensed family child care centers and certified family daycares. The City of Milwaukee, [...]