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Cindy Blackstock is the Executive Director of First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, an Atkinson Charitable Foundation Fellow and has recently joined the Faculty of Extension at the University of Alberta.

Dr. Blackstock will share her advice and knowledge on how every person can make a difference in the lives of thousands of First Nations children in under two minutes.

Excerpt: "There are three points I would like to share with the committee today which I hope will influence the committee’s proposal to amend the Education Act to allow third party operators to deliver extended day programs. First, the findings from the Toronto First Duty Program demonstrate the critical value in a seamless approach to early learning and family support..."

Excerpt: "The province will fund an extra 25 child-care sites, raising its five-year commitment under Family Choices to 54 new centres, Premier Greg Selinger announced today."

Family Child Care Initiative that builds on the Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) Capacity Initiative is a two-year pilot project to develop 400 new spaces in regulated family child care homes over two years. The initiative is targeting a shortage of regulated spaces in rural communities and for children under the age of two.

SchoolsPlus pilot is expanded to all eight school boards. Family resource centres, child care and youth health centres will be located within select schools at all school boards.

Budget announced $1.4 million to fund an increased number of early learning and child care spaces and an additional $800,000 for the Daycare Assistance Program (child care fee subsidy).

Budget announced additional $1.3 million for 250 child care subsidies.

Excerpt: "An Early Childhood Education Unit within Manitoba Education will invest $300,000 in early-childhood development to support families and communities as they prepare young children for success and investing $300,000 to increase the connection between early-childhood education and the formal kindergarten to Grade 12 education system. The province will also invest $300,000 in early-childhood development to support families and communities as they prepare young children for success when they start school. The new unit will monitor and disseminate research respecting early childhood development, connect research to practice in terms of using Early Development Instrument (EDI) data."

Excerpt: "Education announces capital funding to include child care space in school buildings and/or on school property adjacent to schools. Capital funding for 15 school-based sites."

Excerpt: "The issue of whether early childhood educators are deemed to be full-time early education professionals like teachers, or whether they are treated as ten-month contract positions is still to be resolved. According to Service Canada (2011), if early childhood educators are considered full-time salaried teaching staff, they will not qualify for employment insurance. However..."

Access to child care and early learning emphasized in Throne Speech.

Ministerial Advisory Committee on Early Learning and Childcare announced. The committee will provide advice on implementing the government’s Early Learning and Childcare Plan under four key principles of accessibility; affordability; inclusiveness; and quality early learning and child care. The committee will also facilitate communication between the department and early learning and child care centres, parents, schools and community partners.