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Early Childhood Development & Education

Professional Organizations

Association for Child Development-- Advocates and educates in the areas of child nutrition and child development, administers the Child and Adult Care Food Program. 800.234.3287

Council for Professional Recognition-Enhances the quality of early care and education for young children by establishing standards which define, evaluate and recognize the competence of early childhood teachers and home visitors through the Child Development Associate (CDA) National Credentialing Program. 1-800-424-4310

Child Care Health Programs - The Child Care Health Programs offers numerous resources providing health and safety information to child care providers, the families they serve and related professionals.

Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children -Advocates for individuals who work with or on behalf of children with special needs, birth through age eight, and their families. 1-888-CEC-SPED

Michigan Family Independence Agency-- Through community leadership, the FIA helps to improve the quality of life in Michigan by protecting children and vulnerable adults, delivering juvenile justice services, and providing support to strengthen families and individuals striving for independence.

Michigan 4C Association-- Provides referral service for people seeking child care, trains child care providers, advocates for high quality child care services. 800.950.4171

Michigan Association for the Education of Young Children-- Promotes quality education and care through conferences, training, seminars, and advocacy. 800.336.6424

Michigan Child Care Task Force-Advocates for high quality, affordable and nurturing early education and care. 517-336-9700

Michigan Child Day Care Licensing-Michigan's children, in regulated child care programs, will have safe, healthy and developmentally appropriate environments as a result of Michigan's Child Day Care Licensing programs being successful and innovative. 517-373-8300

Michigan Coalition for Children and Families-- Produces the Children's Agenda and provides training in child advocacy and collaboration. 517.485.3500

Michigan Council on Crime and Delinquency-- Advocates for crime prevention through programs that promote the well-being of children. 517.482.4161 (no web site)

Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health-- Specializes in policies that prevent health problems among children and their parents. 517.482.5807

Michigan Department of Education Office of Early Childhood and Parenting Programs-Early Childhood Programs' activities are directed toward leadership in helping public schools and community organizations achieve and extend the first of the national goals for education; i.e. preparing children who are "ready to learn", meaning ready to participate in a school program at kindergarten entrance. 517-373-8483

Michigan Head Start Association-- Promotes equal opportunities for all children and families to succeed. 517.482.1504

Michigan League for Human Services-- Co-produces Kids Count in Michigan, advocates for human services with a high priority given to the social service and education needs of children. 517.487.5436

Michigan's Children-- Legislative, administrative, and community-based advocacy on a broad range of children's issues, co-produces Kids Count in Michigan, strong public education focus. 517.485.3500

National Association for the Education of Young Children-Offers early childhood educators professional development opportunities designed to improve the quality of services for children from birth through age eight - the critical years of development. 1-800-424-2460

National Association for Family Child Care-Dedicated to promoting high quality child care by strengthening the profession of family child care. 515-282-8192

National Association of Sick Child Daycare-- There is a huge unmet need for sick child care. Obstacles exist that hamper the development of needed sick child care programs. Providers, parents, child care professionals and employers need information about sick child care.

National Network for Child Care - NNCC unites the expertise of many of the nation's leading universities through the outreach system of Cooperative Extension. Their goal is to share knowledge about children and child care from the vast resources of the land grant universities with parents, professionals, practitioners and the general public.

National Resource Center for Health ands Safety in Child Care - This site contains a summary of licensing regulations for child caresettings for all 50 states, plus useful information on general child care.