SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Cristina H. Pacione-Zayas, the chair of the Senate Early Childhood Education Committee, is excited to announce that the Illinois Board of Higher Education has awarded $3.37 million in Early Childhood Faculty Preparation Grants. These grants will support working adults from diverse backgrounds and those who work with diverse populations working to join or continue their career in the early childhood workforce.

“If we want to make child care more accessible, we need to make the child care industry sustainable for members of its workforce — ensuring they do not take on large amounts of debt to pursue this career with low wages,” said Pacione-Zayas (D-Chicago). “These grants will support folks looking to further their career in this field by taking away financial barriers to success.”

By granting scholarships and other academic and holistic supports for 78 students to earn a master’s degree, the Early Childhood Faculty Preparation Grants are intended to expand the pool of providers and help diversify the faculty in early childhood education. Those who enroll in the programs are expected to graduate by the summer of 2024.

“We need more folks in our child care workforce, and we need the workforce to be made up of employees with diverse backgrounds and perspectives so children can receive the most full-rounded and inclusive education,” said Pacione-Zayas. “This plan will address both of these concerns, allowing our children to receive the high-quality child care they deserve.”

Grant amount by institution:

Illinois State University - $800,753

Lewis University - $358,390

National Louis University - $1,191,511

University of Illinois Chicago - $1,027,989

Please consider donating to our #LovePurse drive and supporting women in need in our community! We are collecting purses or bags filled with essential items for women in need, including a message of inspiration to show the woman receiving it she is special and loved. For a full list of suggested items to include, go to http://www.lovepurse.org!

Donation times are:

Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas

• Monday - Thursday, 10:00am - 5:00pm

Rep. Will Guzzardi's Office

• Monday - Friday, 10:00am - 4:00pm

Rep.  Jaime Andrade's Office

• Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 4:00pm

Cong. Delia Ramirez

• Monday - Friday, 9:00am - 5:00pm

Estimado vecino, 

¡Las semanas anteriores han sido muy ocupadas en Springfield! Tuve la oportunidad de aprobar varias iniciativas en el Senado, hablé sobre los temas en los que estoy trabajando en conferencias de prensa y en audiencias. Puede ver más información sobre las iniciativas en las que estoy trabajando en mi sitio de internet, o siguiendo mis redes sociales en Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, y LinkedIn.

Siga leyendo para ver las actualizaciones legislativas, así como los recursos disponibles a la comunidad. Como siempre, siéntase en libertad de comunicarse con mi oficina llamando al 773-278-2020, enviando un mensaje de texto al 773-207-7838, o mandando una nota a través de www.senatorpacionezayas.com/contact-us.

Sinceramente,

Cristina H. Pacione-Zayas

Senadora Estatal | Distrito 20

Actualización Legislativa

Me alegra reportar que muchas de mis iniciativas fueron aprobadas en el Senado en las dos últimas semanas y que ahora fueron enviadas a la Cámara de Representantes para ser consideradas. Algunas de estas iniciativas incluyen:

• SB 1794: Codifica las visitas domiciliarias de DHS
• SB 2039: Hace las listas PUNS más accesibles para niños con discapacidades.
• SB 2390: Ofrece soluciones para las vacantes de maestros

También estaré hablando de varias iniciativas de la Cámara de Representantes que atienden asuntos importantes como la transparencia salarial, repatriación, re inhumación de ancestros Nativos Americanos, y más. Siga mis legislaciones en www.ilga.gov, www.senatorpacionezayas.com, o llene una hoja de testigo en www.my.ilga.gov. Para más instrucciones sobre cómo llenar una hoja de testigo, dé clic aquí.  

Énfasis en la Educación Temprana

Como la presidenta del Comité Sobre Educación Temprana Infantil del Senado, me he enfocado en traer expertos en la materia que hablen sobre varios aspectos que impactan el desarrollo de la educación temprana, y que presenten un plan integral para mejorar el sistema de cuidados infantiles. Lea más para saber en qué hemos estado trabajando sobre educación temprana -y asegúrese de sintonizar nuestra siguiente Audiencia sobre Educación Temprana Infantil el 19 de abril donde hablaremos sobre la Asequibilidad de los Cuidados Infantiles, Acceso y Sustentabilidad en www.ilga.gov/senateaudvid.asp.

Read more ...

SPRINGFIELD – In collaboration with a 20th district constituent, a new initiative led by State Senator Cristina H. Pacione-Zayas to connect more children with intellectual or developmental disabilities to essential supports has just passed the Senate, making it one step closer to becoming law.   

“When caregivers find out about the resources available from the PUNS database, they are often frustrated before feeling relieved, as they could have sought access for the necessary supports to improve their child’s quality of life if this program had been better publicized,” said Pacione-Zayas (D-Chicago). “Our goal with this legislation is to prevent further miscommunications or frustration and simply connect caregivers to helpful resources as soon as possible.” 

The Prioritization of Urgency of Need for Services (PUNS) database is a statewide database maintained by the Illinois Department of Human Services that records information about individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities potentially in need of services. The PUNS database is available to all children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have unmet services needs anticipated within the next five years. 

Those not in the PUNS database are not in the queue for state developmental disability services, meaning if a parent or caregiver does not know about this program and does not enroll their child, they will have a significantly longer wait time to access critical resources. 

To make sure children and caregivers are aware of the PUNS database and its importance with accessing resources, Senate Bill 2039 would require every public school in the State of Illinois to have at least one designated employee who is educated about the PUNS database, steps required to register students, including the documentation and information parents and guardians will need for the registration process, and the appropriate contact for referring families to Independent Service Coordination (ISC)  agency to enroll children and adolescents in PUNS. During a student's annual Individual Education Program (IEP) meeting, if a student has an intellectual and or developmental disability and it is unclear or determined that the student is not enrolled in the PUNS database, the family will be referred to the designated school employee who can assist with explaining the process to enroll and locating the ISC for assistance. 

“Children with disabilities should have access to the care they need to thrive — especially when there are existing resources in place to provide them this support,” said Pacione-Zayas. “This legislation will help connect children and caregivers to essential resources to improve their quality of life.” 

Senate Bill 2039 passed the Senate on Thursday, March 30. It now goes to the House of Representatives for further consideration. 

###