Internet Links

http://naeyc.org – The site of the National Association
for the Education of Young Children. NAEYC advocates for
public policies and funding to support a comprehensive,
high-quality early childhood education system, engages in
early childhood education research, and works to improve
professional practice and working conditions in the early
childhood field. The NAEYC website provides a variety of
early childhood policy, research, and accreditation
resources.

www.msfcca.org - "Maryland Provider", the site of the Maryland State Family Child Care Association (MSFCCA). Contains information on issues pertinent to Maryland providers such as public policy initiatives and legislation updates, provider advocacy, professional development opportunities, Association events and membership.

www.mscca.org - Site of the Maryland State Child Care Association, which promotes the growth and development of professional licensed child care and learning centers in Maryland. Information on regulatory and legislative issues concerning centers, professional development opportunities, Association events and membership.

www.mdchildcare.org - Site of the Maryland Committee for Children (MCC). Resources and information on program management, provider training and professionalism, public policy and advocacy, school readiness initiatives, children with disabilities, and numerous related topics. Comprehensive child care resource and referral information for families and employers.

http://www.dhmh.state.md.us/ - Site of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH). Information on a wide range of family- and child-related health issues and initiatives. Updates on child immunizations, communicable diseases, and emergency preparedness. Links to numerous State and local health-related programs. The DHMH Community Services Administration, Division of Community Services is responsible for regulating youth camps. For information about youth camp requirements or the youth camp certification process, click here.

www.mde.state.md.us/CitizensInfoCenter/Health/lead - Site of the Maryland Department of Environment’s (MDE’s) Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, established to eliminate childhood lead poisoning. Extensive information on lead risk reduction for parents, homeowners, and tenants.

www.dsd.state.md.us - Site of the Maryland State Division of Documents (DSD), which records and publishes the official version of the entire Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR). Under "What We Do" on the left side of the DSD home page, click on "COMAR Online" to access all 33 COMAR titles (each title usually corresponds to a State government department or agency). Title 13A is reserved for the State Board of Education, under which are located all regulations pertaining to Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) programs, including early care and education and child care licensing.

www.socem.info - This is the Maryland Sex Offenders Registry (SOCEM), which is maintained by the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.

In addition to providing detailed offender information, the site carries "amber alerts" for abducted children and an information/resource section for parents and educators on preventing and combating youth gangs.

casesearch.courts.state.md.us - This is the site of the Maryland Judiciary Case Search service, which provides free public access to the Maryland District Court and Circuit Court Case Management System. District Court criminal, civil, and traffic case records and Circuit Court criminal and civil case records are available. The amount of historical data may vary by jurisdiction.

michie.lexisnexis.com - Provides access to the complete Annotated Code of Maryland (also known as the "Maryland Code"), which is Maryland's body of laws and the statutory basis for the Code of Maryland Regulations. Click on the Maryland Code folder icon, and a list of the Code's statutory components (called "articles") will display. Laws pertaining to the regulation of child care are found under Title 5, Subtitle 5, of the Family Law Article.

nrc.uchsc.edu - Site of the National Resource Center (NRC) for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education, located at the University of Colorado Health Science Center in Denver. Contains:

· The full text of Caring for Our Children - National Health and Safety Performance Standards: Guidelines for Out-of-Home Child Care Programs (2nd Ed., revised 2002)

· Child care licensing regulations for all 50 states and the District of Columbia

· Links to a variety of sites dedicated to early care and education and to child health and safety issues

www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/care - Site of the US Department of Agriculture’s Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). Information about the CACFP and resources on child nutrition and related topics. Downloadable child care program meal patterns.

www.cpsc.gov - Site of the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. Extensive information on product testing, safety recalls, and related topics.

www.nccic.org - Site of the National Child Care Information Center, which is operated by the federal DHHS Administration for Children and Families. Online library, resource lists, information about early childhood issues, initiatives, and research. Links to over 200 related sites.

www.childcare.gov - Clearinghouse for all federal agency child care resources. Includes funding sources, information on safety alerts, information and suggestions for program planning and activities, information for parents.

www.nichd.nih.gov/sids - Site of the NIH Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Information and downloadable brochures in English and Spanish on the "Back to Sleep" campaign and preventing SIDS.

www.nichcy.org - National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities. Clearinghouse for information and resources related to disabilities. Database of disability-related agencies, fact-sheets, and other publications.

www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/usermanuals/childcare - Click this link to download The Role of Professional Child Care Providers in Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse and Neglect, a manual prepared by the U.S. Administration for Children and Families to help providers understand their roles and responsibilities in preventing and identifying child maltreatment.

www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm - Site of the US Department of Justice’s ADA Home Page. Information on Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements, with a section toward the bottom of the page that addresses child care programs (Note: the section title says "child care centers", but the section also applies to family child care homes).

http://www.aap.org/ - Site of the American Academy of Pediatrics. General information related to family and child health. Specific guidelines on pediatric issues, child safety topics, and disaster planning information, and updates on child health policy issues.

http://www.kidshealth.org/ - Site of KidsHealth, a project of the Nemours Foundation Center for Children’s Health Media. Contains extensive family-oriented health information about children from pre-birth through adolescence, including signs and symptoms of illnesses, child behavior, growth and development, nutrition and fitness, and parenting tips.

http://www.redcross.org/ - Site of the American National Red Cross. Information on the wide range of Red Cross services, including disaster preparedness and Homeland Security coordination. Disaster preparedness materials can be downloaded in over a dozen foreign languages as well as English.

http://www.redleafinstitute.org/ - Site of the Redleaf National Institute, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping providers with the business aspects of their programs. Contains numerous articles on program management, record-keeping and taxes, developing service contracts, and a wide range of related topics.

http://www.readyatfive.org - Ready At Five is a Maryland-based, public/private partnership that monitors, advocates, and serves as a catalyst for systemic change to improve the care and education of Maryland's young children by exploring and promoting innovative models and practices aimed at improving school readiness.

http://www.mdpirc.org - The Maryland State Parental Information and Resource Center (MD PIRC), funded by the U. S. Department of Education, assists Maryland parents and families to help their children succeed in school. The MD PIRC's mission is to work with parents, educators and community members to increase family involvement and improve academic achievement by encouraging home-school-community partnerships in support of students.

http://childcareresearch.org - Child Care & Early Education Research Connections (CCEERC) promotes high quality research in child care and early education and the use of that research in policy making. CCEERC offers research and data resources for researchers, policy makers, early childhood practitioners, and others.

http://www.clasp.org – The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) focuses on issues affecting low-income and disadvantaged persons, working to advance the economic security, educational and workforce prospects, and family stability of low-income persons. To achieve this goal, CLASP promotes progressive policies on welfare reform, child support, child care, early education, workforce development, child welfare, low-income fathers, disconnected youth, and ex-offenders reentering society.

http://nieer.org - The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) supports early childhood education initiatives by providing objective, nonpartisan information based on research. NIEER's goal is to produce and communicate the knowledge base required to ensure that every American child can receive a good education at ages three and four. The Institute offers independent research-based advice and technical assistance to four primary groups: policy makers, journalists, researchers, and educators.