Indiana Partnership for Inclusive Child Care, (IPICC)

The Indiana Partnership for Inclusive Child Care (IPICC) educates providers that quality, developmentally appropriate care for one child is quality, developmentally appropriate care for ALL children. The key to successful inclusion of young children in early childhood settings is the provision of training, technical assistance and support to staff. This training, technical assistance and support are available through the Inclusion Specialists in all Child Care Resource and Referral agencies throughout Indiana. CASY employs a part-time Inclusion Specialist. Our Inclusion Specialist is available to offer consultation services and resources to both child care providers and families on a variety of issues. Through IPICC our Inclusion Specialist delivers numerous training opportunities specifically created for child care providers, administrator, families and community members to include children with special needs, using resources from nationally recognized experts in the field. See the CASY Newsletter for a schedule of training's. Another key component of CASY's Inclusive activities is the availability of free enhanced child care referrals for anyone seeking child care for a child with a special need. An interview is conducted by phone, fax or email in order for a CASY Referral Specialist to understand the individual needs of the family seeking care. The Referral Specialist will then call providers who match the family’s criteria to verify openings. Once potential child care providers have been identified, the Referral Specialist will mail a list of referrals to the family, along with an interview check list and child age-specific literature on developmental milestones. All IPICC referrals are also eligible to receive child and family specific information.