REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
February 6, 2024
FROM
JACQUELYN GREENE, Director, Preschool Services Department
SUBJECT
Title
Travel by Policy Council Members to attend Region 9 Early Childhood STEM Institute Conference in Phoenix, Arizona
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve travel and related expenses in an amount not to exceed $8,000 for two Preschool Services Department Policy Council members to attend the Region 9 Early Childhood STEM Institute Conference in Phoenix, Arizona from March 19, 2024, through March 23, 2024.
(Presenter: Jacquelyn Greene, Director, 383-2005)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The cost for two Preschool Services Department (PSD) Policy Council (PC) members to attend the Region 9 Head Start Science, Technology. Engineering, and Math (STEM) Institute - not to exceed $8,000 - will be funded by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the PSD 2023-24 budget.
|
Expense |
Total |
|
Registration ($980 x two members) |
$1,960 |
|
Child Care ($40 x 5 days x two members) |
$400 |
|
Child Care ($20 x 4 nights x two members) |
$160 |
|
Air Travel Bag fees $60 roundtrip |
$120 |
|
Air Travel ($233 x two members) |
$466 |
|
Breakfast ($11 x 1 day x two members) |
$22 |
|
Dinner ($24 x 4 days x two members) |
$192 |
|
Lodging ($269 x 4 nights x two members plus 290.68 taxes & fees) |
$2,733 |
|
Parking ($18 x 5 days x two members) |
$180 |
|
Mileage (Roundtrip to & from airport 66 miles x 0.655 cents for one) |
$43 |
|
Mileage (Roundtrip to & from airport 8 miles x 0.655 cents for one) |
$5 |
|
Taxi (Roundtrip from airport to hotel $41.12 x two) |
$82 |
|
Subtotal |
$6,364 |
|
Contingencies (Coverage for increases in airfare, lodging costs, etc.) |
$1,636 |
|
Total |
$8,000 |
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
PSD operates the Federal and State funded Head Start and Early Head Start, and Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership programs serving more than 3,000 children in locations throughout San Bernardino county. Head Start and State Preschool programs have been operating in San Bernardino County since 1965. Since 1999, PSD has provided these programs through a combination of direct and contracted services. The Federal Head Start Program Regulations mandate the Board of Supervisors (Board), as a grantee, to establish two governing bodies that will share responsibility with the grantee for overseeing the delivery of high-quality services to enrolled children and their families. Those bodies are the PSD PC, which is composed of parents of enrolled children and community members, and the PSD Shared Governance Board, which is composed of a member from the Board; members from other County Departments with expertise in Early Childhood Education and Development, health, and mental health; and other members that reflect the community.
The Region 9 Early Childhood STEM Institute Conference in Phoenix, Arizona provides attendees with the opportunity to participate in workshops that focus on the importance of implementing STEM strategies to children in Head Start. The STEM Institute offers informative training workshops, adequate breakout sessions and networking opportunities on how to properly teach science principles appropriately and knowledgeably within the Head Start systems.
Two PSD PC members were selected to attend the Region 9 Early Childhood STEM Institute Conference at the October 5, 2023, PSD PC meeting. The PSD PC members are parents/guardians with children enrolled in Head Start Programs selected to attend Head Start conferences as required by PSD PC Bylaws. Under the PSD PC Bylaws, Article VIII - Meetings, reimbursement of childcare costs is allowed when a PSD PC member participates in a PSD PC related activity, such as conferences and meetings.
The PC members will participate in training that will focus on implementing observation and experimentation strategies which will encourage innovation, creativity, curiosity, and discovery for children ages 0 to 5 and their families. The PC members will report back to the full PC the information learned so members can share that information with fellow parents at assigned school sites. Due to the location and timing of the conference activities, and to mitigate concerns with traveling in inclement weather, the PC members will depart on Tuesday March 19, 2024 (one day before the conference), and will return on Saturday, March 23, 2024 (one day after the conference). A contingency of approximately 25 percent has been added to the total cost to account for increases in airfare, lodging, and other incidental travel expenses to prevent potential cancellations of business travel.
PROCUREMENT
N/A
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Bonnie Uphold, Deputy County Counsel,387-5455) on January 4, 2024; Finance (Paul Garcia, Administrative Analyst, 386-8392) on January 16, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on January 19, 2024.