477 Child Care

Xut Xoo

Alice Bagoyo Manager

“Increasing availability of child care services to eligible tribal citizens in Southeast Alaska."

The 477 Child Care department strives to increase the availability, affordability and quality of child care services to families who are working or in training and/or other related activities. The department supports before-school, after-school and cultural activities in addition to offering a quality improvement program for child care providers to help with health and safety equipment, business licenses, training and subcontracts for school (before and after) and summer cultural programs. Child Care is funded by the Administration for Children and Families, under a Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) block grant which is incorporated into the Tribe’s 477 Plan.

2020 Highlights

ƒ Provided services to 419 children and 215 parents. This is a drastic drop in the number of children served from years prior and is attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent shut down of work and child care centers. ƒ Provided subcontracts to two summer culture camps as well as the Tlingit Culture

Language & Literacy (TCLL) program. ƒ Provided services to 136 families and 255 children under the Child Care subsidy program which provides assistance to families who are within 85% median income. A waiver was approved to temporarily wave co-payments for parents who continued to work during the pandemic. ƒ Served 27 foster families under the

CCDF program who have guardianship status of a tribal child or children. In most instances, the program provided support to grandparents, aunts or uncles who have filed for guardianship due to parents who are experiencing drug addiction or are unable to financially support their children. ƒ Provided a subcontract to Esther Shay

Culture Camp in Ketchikan, Alaska which served 17 children. Many of the children come from foster or broken homes. ƒ Provided support to the Eagle/Raven Culture Camp and Santa’s Workshop which served 80 children. ƒ Provided a CCDF grant to the TCLL program which provided healthy snacks to 60 students. Children often leave home without eating breakfast, having adequate snacks helps alleviate hunger pains and allows children to concentrate. ƒ Assisted the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) department with its annual Back to School event. ƒ Provided staff support to the CARES Act Need-Based programs. ƒ Provided personal protective equipment to 97 families who were affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic. ƒ Provided stipends to 47 child care providers who were in need of health and safety equipment upgrades due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020 Highlights (Cont.)

ƒ Provided a one-time stipend to parents, providers and foster parents. A total of $382,000 was distributed. ƒ Negotiated necessary upgrades to the TribeVue™ system. ƒ Provided financial support to the Little Eagles and Ravens Nest (LEARN) child care center.

2021 Goals

ƒ Collaborate with the Cultural Heritage & Education department on the production of a series of culture-based educational videos. ƒ Work closely with language nests and provide needed supplies. ƒ Collaborate with the Vocational Training & Resource Center to expand Child

Development Associate classes to distance learning.