April 21, 2022 Technology Access Award for Child Care Providers Department of Human Services (DHS) certified child care centers can now apply for funding to purchase technology items such as laptops, wireless routers, tablets, and more to expand centers’ technological capacity and enrich the educational experience providers offer to young children and families. About the Child Care Technology Access Awards The Child Care Technology Access Awards are one-time grants available through federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Act (CRRSA) funding. The award amount ranges from $2,500 to $5,500 and is based on the eligible DHS certified child care program’s provider type and licensed capacity. This funding opportunity will be awarded in the form of a voucher eligible recipients will use to order approved materials from the Kaplan Learning Company. The following is a list of technology tools that eligible DHS certified child care programs can order through the award: Accounting software Headsets and Headphones Laptop Computers Office software Portable Scanners Printer/Scanners Smaller items including printer ink and batteries Tablets Walkie-talkies Web Cams Wi-fi Access Point Wi-fi Extenders Wireless Routers Eligibility All eligible DHS certified child care providers, regardless of Keystone STAR Level, can apply. To be eligible, programs must meet the following requirements at the time of application submission and final approval: be open and available to provide child care or temporarily closed no more than 14 consecutive business days due to COVID-19 exposure; be in good standing with the Bureau of Certification Services and have a regular or provisional Certificate of Compliance (CoC); have a Certificate of Compliance that is not in a Revocation or Refuse to Renew status with the Bureau of Certification Services; and, not be under investigation by the Office of State Inspector General (OSIG) for fraud or previously convicted of fraud. Apply DHS certified child care programs who want to apply will be required to designate an authorized representative to complete and electronically sign an online Attestation Form. Kaplan Learning Center began sending emails to eligible DHS certified child care programs on April 20, 2022. DHS certified child care programs who believe they are eligible but have not received an email from info@kaplanco.com, should first check their spam/junk email inboxes to make sure the email did not get sent there. Programs that didn’t receive an email should contact Kaplan at 1-800-334-2014. To inquire about eligibility status, email OCDEL at RA-ocdelsubchildcare@pa.gov. More Information For additional information about the Award, please see the Announcement ELRC 22-02 Child Care Technology Access Award.
March 28, 2022 ARPA Stabilization Grant Spending Report Available Child care providers who applied for and received an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Stabilization Grant are required to report on the use of funds and child care capacity as a condition of receiving funds. Any grant recipient that wishes to begin reporting can access the Spending Report and begin to enter their spending amounts. About Grant reporting will be completed in the Professional Development (PD) Registry. Directors, owners, administrators and/or designated fiscal staff members can now access the reporting tool for their program under the Keystone STARS/Grants tab in their organization’s profile. Recipients will be able to log in and out of the Spending Report to update their spending amounts, but they will not be able to finalize and submit their Spending Report until eight months after the Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) submitted their grant for payment. Providers are encouraged to preview the Spending Report to prepare for the simplified reporting requirements. Use this step-by-step tip sheet on how to access and complete the Spending Report. Grant recipients should contact registry@pakeys.org to problem solve issues with accessing their Spending Report.
January 5, 2022 Bilingual Assistance Offered for ARPA Stabilization Grant Applications The Pennsylvania Key will host recurring office hours for Spanish speaking early childhood education providers interested in applying for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Stabilization grant. About All types of child care settings–center, group, and home-based–are invited to participate in this effort, geared to support Spanish speaking owners, directors and administrators. During the office hours, a bilingual (Spanish/English) representative will be available to translate on the call, as well as a Registry Specialist who can answer questions and provide demonstrations relating to the PA PD Registry and the ARPA Stabilization Grant. How to Participate The first series is Assistance with APRA Grant applications in the PD Registry. Registration is not needed to participate. Thursday, January 6, 2022, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 966 3255 8093 Thursday, January 20, 2022, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 981 6408 0605 The ARPA Stabilization Grant application will be available in the PD Registry until January 31, 2022. In February 2022, monthly office hours will continue to occur in Spanish to help with Career Pathway level processing, financial aid for the CDA, and additional topics that meet the need of the Spanish speaking early childhood professionals in Pennsylvania. Questions? For more information, please email Alejoh@pakeys.org (English) or Reblam@pakeys.org (Spanish).
December 29, 2021 CCW Enhancements to Lower Family Copays and Increase Provider Base Rates On October 18, 2021, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced changes to Child Care Works (CCW), Pennsylvania’s subsidized child care program, that will decrease costs to families who qualify for subsidized care and add incentives for child care providers to participate in the program. This article was updated on December 29, 2021, to reflect a new effective date for copays. CCW Enhancements Pennsylvania received more than $1 billion from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to support the commonwealth’s child care industry, child care providers, and the children and families that rely on this system. $352 million in Child Care Development Fund federal ARPA funding will also support: Lower maximum copayments for families eligible for CCW, effective January 17, 2022: $121.9 million will be used to reduce the maximum family copayment for families participating in subsidized child care through CCW. Current copayments range from 3-11% of a family’s overall income. This change will lower the copayment to 3-7%, in line with federal recommendations for family obligations for subsidized child care. No family will see an increased copay through the adjustment, and providers will still receive the difference as a part of the CCW base rate. Increased base rates for providers participating in CCW, effective January 1, 2022: $213.7 million will support increasing base rates paid to subsidized child care to the 60th percentile compared to the private pay market rate. This change brings Pennsylvania closer to the federally-recommended 75th percentile. Nearly two-thirds of children whose families are eligible for CCW are enrolled in a STAR 1 or 2 rated facility. By investing in base rates to providers participating in CCW, Pennsylvania is investing in quality across the child care industry for the children and families served by this program. In March 2021, the Wolf Administration raised base rates from the 25th percentile to the 40th percentile. Rate incentives for providers that offer child care during non-traditional hours, effective January 1, 2022: $16.8 million will support add-on incentives to CCW base rates for child care providers that offer at least two hours of care during non-traditional hours. Prior to the pandemic, the Keystone Command Center for Economic Development and Workforce recommended expanding availability of licensed child care before 6 a.m. and after 6 p.m. – what is normally considered “traditional” child care hours – in order to give flexibility and security for working parents. These rate incentives will support providers that offer care outside of traditional hours, giving parents a safe place for their children and the security necessary to help parents return to work. More Information For more information on child care providers operating in Pennsylvania, visit www.findchildcare.pa.gov. Providers seeking to apply for Child Care Stabilization Grants can learn more and apply online. For details, read Gov. Wolf’s full press release.
April 20, 2021 Start Strong PA Provider and Family Field Forums: Building a Stronger Child Care System through the American Rescue Plan Child care providers and families are invited to virtual forums to share their pandemic experiences and make recommendations for how they feel the American Rescue Plan federal dollars should be spent in Pennsylvania. About Start Strong PA is hosting virtual forums to gather feedback from child care providers and the families they serve in order to make recommendations to the Wolf Administration for how the American Rescue Plan funds should be spent. The American Rescue Plan includes $24 billion for child care stabilization, $15 billion for the Child Care Development Block Grant, and $3.55 billion in the Child Care Entitlement to States. Pennsylvania is estimated to be awarded $1.18 billion. The child care sector was in crisis before the COVID-19 pandemic, with eligible families unable to access child care subsidy, poverty-level wages for early childhood educators, and razor thin margins for providers. The child care sector has been pushed to the brink of collapse by the pandemic. Federal relief over the last year has helped many providers, however between March 2020 and February 2021, 592 Pennsylvania providers have closed permanently and 363 have temporarily closed. Child care providers are still incurring additional pandemic related costs while operating significantly under capacity. Register Allegheny County Forum | May 4, 2021 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Register Southwestern PA Forum | May 11, 2021 (Lawrence, Butler, Armstrong, Indiana, Somerset, Fayette, Greene, Washington, Beaver, and Westmoreland counties) 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Register Both forums will be held virtually via Zoom. Registration is required to receive an attendance link.
