SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Attendees will receive 8 hours of in-service credit. Certificates of attendance will be available at the end of the conference.
- 8:00 - 9:00a - Registration, Vendors, and Continental Breakfast
- 9:00 - 9:30a - Welcome from Chad Dunkley in the Auditorium MCCA President/New Horizon Academy Chief Executive Officer
- 9:30 - 11:00a - 2023 Licensing in the Auditorium Department of Human Services
- 11:15a - 12:15p - Breakout Sessions:
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- Minnesota Legislation and How It Affects Your Center - Chad Dunkley, New Horizon Academy; Clare Sanford, New Horizon Academy
- Leading with Heart - Carrie Zelin Johnson
- Communication: The Foundation to Successful Coaching - Kat Butler
- 12:15 - 1:30p - Lunch and Vendors Exhibit Hall Viewing
- 1:30 - 2:30p - Breakout Sessions:
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- How Trauma Affects Child Behavior - Sharon Kaniess
- Childcare Business Insurance Discussion - Samantha Phillips
- Creating a Gossip-Free Zone - Cory Woosley
- 2:30 - 3:00p - Dessert and Vendors
- 3:00 - 4:15p - Relationship Matters: 3 Strategies for Navigating Generational Differences in the Workplace - Sarah Carlsen in the Auditorium
Download the MCCA Booklet 2023
Interested in being a vendor? Click here.
SPEAKERS
- 9:30-11:00A AUDITORIUM
2023 LICENSING - MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
Representatives from DHS including Licensing, Background Studies, Child Care Assistance as well as Child Development Services will be attending the session. This group will give updated information from all areas. They will be able to answer questions about changes and updates.
- 11:15A-12:15P BREAKOUT SESSIONS
1. MINNESOTA LEGISLATION AND HOW IT AFFECTS YOUR CENTER - CHAD DUNKLEY, NEW HORIZON ACADEMY; CLARE SANFORD, NEW HORIZON ACADEMY
This workshop will give updates on legislation that has affected or will affect child care center programs in Minnesota.
Chad Dunkley, Chief Executive Officer - As CEO, Chad oversees operations, marketing, strategy, and finance, and drives the culture of “continuous improvement” at all New Horizon and Kinderberry Hill locations. Chad received his J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law and his B.A. in management from Hamline University. Chad is an executive committee board member of the Early Care and Education Consortium (ECEC) and president of the Minnesota Child Care Association (MCCA). He recently completed a four-year term on the governing board of The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). In 2017, Chad was named as one of the top ten Most Admired CEOs by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. In 2015 he was named an “Exceptional Emerging Leader” by the Child Care Information Exchange. The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal also recognized Chad Dunkley as one of the region’s most outstanding business leaders as one of the 2004 “Forty Under 40” award recipients.
Clare Sanford is Director of Government and Community Relations for New Horizon Academy and Government Relations Chair for the Minnesota Child Care Association. In these roles, she works to increase early childhood access, quality, and resources for young children, families, and educators. She began her career teaching in a high-need elementary school in Houston, TX, an experience that spurred her to learn more about the macro issues affecting low-income children and families in our society. In graduate school, the confluence of both early childhood neuroscience and economic research was a (good) smack in the head: THIS is where she should spend her career. Since then she has held varied positions in the government, philanthropic, and non-profit sectors, all focused on young children and vulnerable families. Professional/policy interests include early childhood mental health, risk & resilience, teacher education & support, equity, and anti-bias efforts. Personal interests include astronauts, history, and chocolate cake. Lots of chocolate cake. Clare received her B.A. from St. Olaf College and her Master in Public Policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. In 2018, Clare was a Women in Business honoree with the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.
2. LEADING WITH HEART - CARRIE ZELIN JOHNSON
Post-pandemic and workforce crisis and gaps...Oh my! Sometimes survival mode can hinder reaching our future goals. What does it mean to lead and inspire staff in a way that advances your program’s vision in mission? This workshop will share promising strategies in leadership development and proven practices to cultivate authentic relationships and employee engagement. Attendees will have an opportunity to reflect on their leadership style, ways program values are communicated and identify steps to actualizing leading with heart. (Attendees are encouraged to bring their program or teaching philosophy, leadership goals or other supporting policies but it’s not required.)
Carrie Zelin Johnson M.Ed.(she/her) has served in various consultant roles to help individuals, organizations and schools achieve equitable outcomes for over 25 years in MN. Carrie has a Master of Ed. in Educational Leadership with a minor in Ed. Psychology from the UMN and was a Mental Health Practitioner for 14 years. She has served on a PK-8 charter school board, led home visiting programs and directed and founded accredited preschools and other community initiatives. In those roles she ensured full implementation of culturally and linguistically responsive curriculum and interventions and effective parent and staff development. Currently, she is the CEO of Zelin Johnson Companies, a Program Officer at the Greater Twin Cities United Way and Coordinator of the Start Early Funders Coalition. Being a parent and a grandparent has given her unique lived experiences and insights on both viable community solutions and persistent systemic barriers impacting the ECE field and children and families. She is a public policy advocate with a focus on social emotional learning and teaching, the arts, and equity in education and mental health.
3. COMMUNICATION: THE FOUNDATION TO SUCCESSFUL COACHING - KAT BUTLER
As managers, developing and coaching employees is essential to the success of your team, but to do this well, effective communication is key. During this session, we will talk about the power of communication, how it is perceived, the impact of different styles, and the importance of how you deliver and receive coaching as a leader.
- 1:30-2:30P - BREAKOUT SESSIONS
1. HOW TRAUMA AFFECTS CHILD BEHAVIOR - SHARON KANIESS
How Trauma Affects Child Behavior will discuss awareness, understanding and support for children affected by adverse childhood experiences. The questions of How impact happens and Why education leaders should care will be addressed while looking at the toll the body takes during trauma & toxic stress while young humans are rapidly developing.
Sharon has been teaching in early childhood for over 35 years. Three decades have been spent in Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) in St. Paul Public Schools. She has an Elementary Education degree as well as an Early Childhood degree and holds a Masters degree in Education. On occasion, she travels internationally to train teachers and offer presentations.
2. CHILDCARE BUSINESS INSURANCE DISCUSSION - SAMANTHA PHILLIPS
Synopsis:
- Coverages local agents usually miss when it comes to protecting your child care business.
- How to read certificates of insurance and what these documents tell you about your coverage.
- 5 mistakes most owners make and how to avoid them.
- Knowing the difference between claims made and occurrence type policies.
Sam Phillips has gained a national reputation as the sparkly childcare insurance expert. She’s dedicated her career to being an advocate for early childhood owners by helping navigate the complexities of your childcare business insurance. She’s spent the last five years supporting our ECE community by sharing her knowledge and expertise across different platforms and teaching how to dodge potential landmines. It is her passion to help you understand the coverages your business needs and why, so that you can make smart choices on behalf of yourself, your business, your team, and the littles in your care.
3. CREATING A GOSSIP-FREE ZONE - CORY WOOSLEY
Come and learn tips for creating a working environment free of gossip. You will discover how the NAEYC Code of Ethics can support you, how to talk to have courageous conversations with staff and the importance of confidentiality.
Since 1996, Cory Woosley has been an Early Childhood Faculty at Minneapolis and Dakota Technical Colleges. She recently retired from Child Care Aware of MN as the Director of Workforce Development, where she oversaw statewide Early Childhood Professional Development. Cory’s undergraduate is in Early Childhood education and her graduate work is in Adult Ed and Online Learning. In 2015, Cory was selected as Child Care Exchange Master Leader and in 2020, she was selected as the Evelyn House ECED Leader of the Year.
RELATIONSHIP MATTERS: 3 STRATEGIES FOR NAVIGATING GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN THE WORKPLACE - SARAH CARLSEN
Have you finally found a great new team member only to have them quit within weeks? Do you struggle to keep team members off their phones during the work day? Do you have team members complaining about each other rather than working collaboratively to solve problems regardless of how hard you’ve worked to build a strong team? If this is familiar, you aren’t alone. Generation Z, the most racially and ethnically diverse generation, has joined 4 other generations in the workforce. Most leaders aren’t prepared to respond to the emerging needs and expectations, let alone how to leverage the strengths and build relationships across difference. As a result, leaders are scrambling to find ideas to build a strong team. Through story and exercises, Sarah provides tools and strategies designed to help you turn the generational differences into a strength. By building a culture of belonging, ALL of your team members will feel valued and able to contribute at their highest level.
An engineer brain with an empathic heart, Sarah Carlsen loves to get human systems to work. Her wheelhouse
is integrating the wide perspective and close details of dynamic organizations, and is drawn to the most complex situations. With the right tools, efforts toward shared vision, healthy culture, self-understanding and responsibility, Sarah has helped the most challenged teams use their talents to create a greater good that lasts. Sarah is a Professional Certified Coach whose clients include emerging and senior leaders in the medical device, legal, financial and non-profit sectors.
Download the MCCA Booklet 2023
CANCELLATION POLICY:
CANCELLATIONS RECEIVED IN WRITING BY JUNE 1, 2023, WILL BE REFUNDED, LESS A $25.00 FEE. NO REFUNDS WILL BE GIVEN AFTER JUNE 10, 2023. CANCELLATIONS MUST BE FAXED TO THE MCCA OFFICE. FEES PAYMENT POLICY: TO BE CONSIDERED PREREGISTERED, FULL PAYMENT MUST ACCOMPANY YOUR REGISTRATION FORM. FOR ALL OTHER REGISTRATIONS, INCLUDING ON-SITE REGISTRATIONS PAYMENT MUST BE MADE AT THE TIME OF REGISTRATION.
CREDIT CARD INFORMATION: PER STANDARDS BY THE PAYMENT CARD INDUSTRY, MCCA HAS MET THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE PAYMENT CARD INDUSTRY-DATA SECURITY STANDARDS (PCI-DSS). CREDIT CARD INFORMATION WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED VIA E-MAIL.
CONSENT TO USE OF PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGES:
REGISTRATION AND ATTENDANCE AT, OR PARTICIPATION IN, MCCA MEETINGS AND OTHER ACTIVITIES CONSTITUTES AN AGREEMENT BY THE REGISTRANT TO MCCA’S USE AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE REGISTRANT OR ATTENDEE’S IMAGE OR VOICE IN PHOTOGRAPHS, VIDEOTAPES, ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTIONS, AND AUDIOTAPES OF SUCH EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES.
