HS1 for HB371 enhances information-sharing, improves tracking

 DOVER –Governor Markell was joined by legislators, child advocates and community partners at the Children’s Advocacy Center in Dover as he signed legislation today that further protects children who are victims of abuse and neglect. House Substitute 1 for House Bill 371 aims to ensure the investigation and disposition of cases of child abuse and neglect are conducted in a comprehensive, integrated and multi-disciplinary manner, thereby significantly reducing communication and coordination gaps that currently exist. The legislation stems from the work done by the Governor’s Steering Committee on the Protection of Children, in conjunction with recommendations issued by Widener School of Law Vice-Provost and Dean Linda Ammons in the wake of the Dr. Earl Bradley case.    

 “It is imperative that those involved in investigations or prosecutions of child abuse and neglect, including law enforcement, state agencies and the courts, communicate openly and share the information needed to protect children,” said Governor Markell. “This bill further strengthens Delaware’s child protection network.”

 The legislation amends Title 16 of the Delaware Code relating to investigation the abuse of children. Specifically, it requires the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (DSCYF) to use their case management system to track every case of child abuse reported to the 24-hour child abuse and neglect report line; creates a position within DSCYF, the Investigation Coordinator, whose job will be to track every reported case of child abuse, as well as monitor cases involving death of, or serious injury to, a child or allegations of sexual abuse of a child, from inception to final criminal and civil disposition; and allows the Investigation Coordinator to provide information to the Child Protection Accountability Commission (CPAC), as requested, regarding the status, trends and outcomes of cases of child abuse or neglect that are reported to DSCYF.

 “This bill reflects hard work and commitment on the part of all agencies who are partners in protecting children from abuse,” said DSCYF secretary Vivian Rapposelli. “By creating a mechanism for tracking reported cases of abuse, the bill provides us with a critical resource to manage coordination across agencies.”

 “The report issued by Dean Ammons highlighted several areas where we as a state could improve how we handle child abuse or neglect cases,” said Rep. Melanie George Smith, D-Bear, the lead sponsor of the bill. “This new law incorporates many of the report’s recommendations to improve reporting and inter-agency communication and to ensure that we as a state are doing everything we can to address child abuse and neglect better and prevent it whenever possible.”

 Senate Majority Leader Patricia Blevins, a longtime advocate for protecting children, sponsored the measure in the Senate and said the new law will enhance the state’s ability to protect children from harm. “The changes we’re making with this law are going to make it harder for cases of child abuse and neglect fall through cracks in the system,” said Blevins, D-Elsmere. “By doing that we’re going to make it easier to intervene to protect children whose health and lives might otherwise be at risk.”

Three Bills Increase Government Transparency

HB 300, HB310, SB 185 Become Law

(New Castle, DE)  With lawmakers, Common Cause of Delaware, the Commissioner of Elections and other advocates for more open government gathered at Buena Vista State Conference Center, Governor Markell signed into law today three pieces of legislation that collectively increase transparency and provide greater and more timely information to the voters and residents of our state.  

“These three pieces of legislation, taken together, will make our state government more open, more transparent, and ultimately, more accountable to the people we serve,” said Governor Jack Markell. 

 The three bills are:

 House Bill 300, the Delaware Elections Disclosure Act , which represents the first major overhaul of Delaware’s campaign finance laws in more than 20 years. It closes a loophole with campaign advertisements, requires prompt reporting of third-party spending on campaign ads and requires greater disclosure from those who spend money to influence elections.  Effective January 1, 2013.

 House Bill 310, increases the penalties for late filing of elections disclosure reports from $50 a month to $50 a day; and $50 a day for incomplete campaign finance reports.  Effective immediately.

 Senate Bill 185, requires enhanced disclosure for lobbyists regarding the issues they are lobbying, inclusive of bills, resolutions and regulations.

Effective January 1, 2013.

 Senate President Pro Tem Anthony DeLuca, D-Newark, was the chief sponsor of the lobbying reform measure and was the lead Senate sponsor of the campaign finance legislation. Both measures, he said, play a key role in giving people important information.

 “It will be easier for citizens to track what lobbyists are doing in Dover, letting the public know who’s invested in the outcome of a bill,” DeLuca said. “Letting citizens know who’s paying for the kinds of negative attack ads that PACS and other outside groups have been able to hide behind in the past, helps them understand which organizations are trying to sway their vote.”

 House Majority Whip Rep. Valerie Longhurst, D-Bear, said that the new campaign finance laws promote openness and increased transparency in political campaigns.

 “People deserve to know who is taking out political ads and donating to political campaigns,” said Rep. Longhurst, who sponsored the bill increasing penalties for filing late reports. “With technology, it is easier than ever for candidates to file campaign finance reports and for the public to view them. These laws are all about increased transparency and getting more information out to the public.”

 The Governor thanked Delaware lawmakers, saying, “change isn’t always easy and the changes we’re making today would not be possible without the hard work of many people.  These are important pieces of legislation and our lawmakers helped to make them reality.”

Partnership will bring teachers, scientists together on topic of climate change

 The National Science Foundation has announced that it is funding a major initiative to help prepare educators in Maryland and Delaware to teach climate change science in the classroom.

 CEOE-ALL, UD-ENVIR

 Delaware and Maryland teachers will have new resources to integrate climate change science into the classroom, thanks to a major multimillion dollar initiative announced by the National Science Foundation today.

 The $5.8 million cooperative agreement supports implementation of the Maryland-Delaware Climate Change Education, Assessment, and Research (MADE CLEAR) partnership, an effort to forge new ways to deliver effective and relevant climate change education that could serve as a national model.

 The MADE CLEAR partnership brings together of a group of experts in the fields of climate science and education, led by the University System of Maryland and University of Delaware, to provide a system of support for teachers in Maryland and Delaware. Focusing on grades 8-12, the network will also engage universities, state departments of education, and educators from natural resources agencies, museums, and aquariums.

 “MADE CLEAR will connect Maryland and Delaware students and citizens with the world in which they live by fostering a greater understanding of why the climate is changing and the consequences within our two states,” said Donald Boesch, president of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science and MADE CLEAR director. “Our goal is to provide a basis for our citizens, today and tomorrow, to make individual and collective choices for limiting the magnitude of climate change and adapting to its consequences.”

 Climate change is a complex and sensitive topic to teach, touching on economic, social, political and scientific issues to a greater degree than most other science topics. The MADE CLEAR partnership encourages scientists and educators to work together to ensure scientific objectivity and accuracy in the classroom and promote critical thinking.

 Rather than introducing climate change science as a new subject in an already crowded curriculum, the goal is to integrate understanding of climate change within new science standards and environmental literacy requirements in Maryland and Delaware schools.

 “As the world around us changes in many ways, it’s important educators stay current with cutting-edge science,” said Delaware Gov. Jack Markell. “This partnership provides a way to engage and inform the teachers who will be instructing the emerging workforce for jobs of the future.”

 “The goal is for students to emerge with better knowledge of the science behind climate-related issues,” said Nancy Targett, dean of UD’s College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment. “They can then better understand implications for our health, coasts, water supplies, farms and forests.”

 The partnership brings together scientists from the University System of Maryland and the University of Delaware who are engaged in various aspects of climate change research, ranging from atmospheric physics and chemistry to the effects of climate change on ecosystems and human health. This expertise is already being utilized by local, state and federal governments and businesses in understanding what impacts climate change will have on their assets, people, and ecosystems.

 “The goal is to develop a learning community involving scientists, teacher educators, and teachers to support each other during professional development activities and follow-up classroom assistance,” said Nancy Shapiro, University System of Maryland associate vice chancellor.

 “MADE CLEAR will support the development and distribution of teaching approaches and materials, and evaluate their effectiveness,” said Nancy Brickhouse, interim provost and professor of science education at UD. “In that way, we can strive not only for continuous improvement in our two states, but be a model for the nation.”

 MADE CLEAR is led by the University System of Maryland and the University of Delaware and includes participation of faculty members from the University of Delaware, Delaware State University, the University of Maryland, College Park, the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, and Towson University.

 Key to the partnership is the participation of the Maryland State Department of Education, the Delaware Department of Education, Maryland Public Television and state and federal science agencies, including the state departments of environmental and natural resources, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

 This project is one of six Phase II projects being funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the Climate Change Education Partnership (CCEP) program. The CCEP program is a one-time, dedicated NSF effort to establish a coordinated national network of regionally- or thematically-based partnerships devoted to increasing the adoption of effective, high quality educational programs and resources related to the science of climate change and its impacts. The vision of this program is a scientifically literate society that can effectively weigh the evidence regarding global climate change as it confronts the challenges ahead, while developing the innovative scientific and technical workforce to advance our knowledge of human-climate interactions and develop approaches for a sustainable, prosperous future.

Gov. Markell conducts a live demo of the system showing enhanced capabilities

A newly installed 700 MHz communications system within the Department of Correction (DOC) greatly enhances communication capabilities within all prison facilities and for the first time, provides a direct connection to emergency responders statewide.

“The new system has vastly improved communications,” said Governor Jack Markell.  “It allows better connections within the correction system and with first responders.  The public safety community and the public are safer because of it.”

This new $7 million trunked system, funded through a Public Safety Interoperability Communications (PSIC) grant from the federal Office of Emergency Communications, utilizes tower sites to transmit and receive information and process messages through a system server giving DOC a state of the art system with many new capabilities.

These include: 

• Multiple channel, P25 digital, trunked system allowing multiple users to communicate simultaneously  
• Prison to prison communications with all facilities linked statewide
• External Communications with 95% in-street reliability
• Internal communications coverage at 95% or better regardless of user location
• Public Safety interoperability with 18 channels to reach all partner agencies
• Emergency Button Function on all personnel radios monitored 24/7 by dispatchers

 “Having direct communication among all DOC facilities, as well as to outside first responders, enhances our ability to provide a safe environment for staff and those individuals we supervise. The ability to implement this communications system is a great example of cooperation between state agencies, and we are grateful for the assistance provided by the Department of Safety and Homeland Security,” said DOC Commissioner Carl Danberg.

 “As chair of Delaware’s Statewide Interoperability Executive Council (SIEC), I am extremely proud of this project because we provided a comprehensive system that supports internal and external communications at no cost to the State,” said Safety and Homeland Security Secretary Lewis D. Schiliro. “Making certain DOC as well as other public safety agencies are able to talk to each other every day is important. But, ensuring communications during an emergency is critical and can save lives. The most important tool we can provide our public safety community is reliable and efficient communications.” 

 DOC was previously operating on a conventional system which relied on a single channel radio to radio configuration allowing only one conversation to take place at a time.  Additionally, the radio to radio communications was limited and required the use of repeaters to extend the range of the signal.  Delaware’s Statewide Interoperability Executive Council (SIEC) was formed to help public safety agencies like the DOC identify and fund communications solutions that support interoperability.

 With more than 740 users of the new system, which include correctional officers and probation and parole officers, building a system that met the needs of Corrections was priority for the SIEC.  Since turning the system on in February of this year, there have been over 1.5 million transmissions with only 20 transmissions not getting through on the first try.

 “As the DOC Director of Emergency Preparedness, I am acutely aware of how critical passing minutes – and even seconds – can be as an unexpected situation unfolds. Being able to directly request assistance, from both inside and outside an impacted area, will reduce response times and allow us the best opportunity to minimize the incident,” said Dave Hall.

 In 2008, Delaware applied for and received funding through the PSIC Grant.  This funding allowed Delaware to build a statewide 700MHz P25 compliant Land Mobile Radio system.  This system was designed and built with the idea of migrating DelDOT from the current 800MHz system to the 700 MHz system.  During the final project stages, and upon reviewing the intended use of this system, it became evident that DelDOT was using the 800MHz system effectively and that the more pressing need for Delaware was to shift the Department of Correction (DOC) to the new 700 MHz system.

 “This project was the result of our Division of Communications and DelDOT staff thinking outside of the box and working together truly for the benefit of the people of this State,” Schiliro said .

Wilmington –  In his weekly message, the Governor talks about Delaware’s first group of young students, kindergartners and first-graders, who begin learning in Spanish and in Chinese this year, as part of the state’s inaugural World Language Immersion program.  The program will help students prepare to eventually compete for jobs in the global marketplace.

“We know when these students grow up, they will be competing for jobs in the global marketplace and when employers choose where to locate jobs, they will look at where employees have the skills to communicate across markets,” said Governor Markell.  “That will mean fluency in not one, but two or three languages.  And so, we begin four World Language Immersion programs this year, involving over 340 Delaware students.  As we add programs, we estimate we will reach more than 10-thousand students over the next ten years.”

At noon every Friday, the Governor’s office releases a new Weekly Message in video, audio, and transcript form.  The message is available on:

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Transcript of Governor Markell’s Weekly message: World Languages for Worldwide Jobs