July 25, 2022 OCDEL Announces Obsolete Certification Announcements The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), Bureau of Early Learning Policy and Professional Development and Bureau of Certification Services have issued that several Announcements for certified child care providers have been rendered obsolete. Learn More OCDEL regularly uses policy announcements to reflect requirements for methods of child care and the facilities it is provided in. This message provides details as to which announcements that will no longer be in effect and what they will be replaced with. Bureau of Certification Services staff have been instructed to delete copies of the obsolete Announcements. The following announcements are included: C-11-01: Emergency Temporary Relocation of a Child Care Facility, issued May 12, 2011. Replaced by Announcement C-17-05: Emergency Temporary Relocation of a Child Care Facility, issued September 29, 2017. C-12-01: Proof of Identification Required for Child Care Center Directors and Group Child Care Home Primary Staff Person, issued September 18, 2012. C-14-03: Clarification Regarding Degrees Earned from Business, Technical, and Trade Schools, issued April 22, 2014. Replaced by Announcement PDO 22-01: Career Pathway Level A-Plus Verification Change and Clarifying Procedures for Verifying Credits and Degrees from Nationally Accredited (Non-Regionally Accredited) Institutions, issued February 7, 2022 and went into effect July 1, 2022. C-16-01: Meeting New Health and Safety Training Requirements as Required by the Federal Government, issued July 1, 2016. C-17-01: Child Protective Service Law (CPSL) for Child Care Facilities, issued February 23, 2017. Replaced by Announcement C-19-02, Meeting the Requirements of the Child Protective Services Law (CPSL) for Child Care Facilities, issued August 30, 2019. Updated Important News from the Bureau of Certification Regarding the Provisional Hire Waiver, issued January 2, 2020. Released Important Information from the Bureau of Certification Services Regarding the Effect of Act 12 of 2022 on Provisional Hiring Practices, issued May 27, 2022. To learn more, see: Announcement C-22-05, Obsolete Bureau of Certification Services Policy Announcements.
August 20, 2020 School-Age Child Care Update from OCDEL As local education agencies and private schools in Pennsylvania are finalizing and announcing their plans for the 2020-21 academic school year, OCDEL is becoming increasingly aware that many school districts are implementing hybrid or full remote instruction models for the school year. These announcements have raised questions about how families with children enrolled in Kindergarten and beyond will be supported if they need expanded child care. Continue reading below for answers to common questions. Frequently Asked Questions Can school-age children enroll in child care if their schools have announced moving to part-time or full-time remote instruction? Yes. During the 2020-21 school year, children whose schools have announced various schedule changes to prevent the spread of COVID-19 can enroll in child care. If the district has announced that children will not attend school for face-to-face instruction, then working families can enroll children in child care during those days. Will OCDEL revise the school-age blended rate for children attending child care during the portion of the day that has typically been considered “school hours”? For the 2020-21 school year, the calculation of the blended rate will not change. It will still be based on 25 full-time days and 180 part-time days. If a child attends a school district where students will not return to school for in-person, five-day-a-week instruction, a child care provider who accepts the blended rate will receive a part-time blended rate for the days the child attends school in-person and attends child care part-time. The provider may receive a full-time payment rate on the days the child is not scheduled to attend school in-person and attends child care full-time. Paying the part-time blended rate, instead of a part-time rate, will compensate for any days the child was supposed to attend part-time buy may need to attend full-time because of a school’s closure, such as staff in-service days, holidays, professional development, and snow days. If school districts change how school instruction will be administered throughout the school year, related to COVID-19, the child’s schedule will be updated to reflect the school’s current schedule. View the full guidance. Will non-licensed programs be able to serve school-age children? Yes. Enrollment in a licensed child care facility is preferred, however, part-day school-age programs will be available to enroll school-age children during the 2020-21 school year. Enrolled children must be kindergarten age or older. School District Reopening Plans To view school districts’ reopening plans, visit the PA Schools Work website. To learn about the phased reopening of pre-k to 12 schools in Pennsylvania, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Education website. More Information For more information, view this email from the Pennsylvania Key.
July 21, 2020 Child Care Works Payment Practice Changes Effective 9/1 On July 17, the Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) issued an announcement stating that starting September 1, 2020, Child Care Works (CCW) payments will return to payment practices and policies based on attendance and invoicing for all children. This will remain true regardless of when a child was enrolled with the provider. Additional Policy Changes In addition, the following policies will again be effective starting September 1: absences will be tracked and counted towards the 40 days of absences for all children; children’s enrollment after five days of absence will be suspended until the child returns to care; all Adverse Action notices will be sent to families per policy; dual enrollments, the practice implemented under COVID-19 to support both a closed provider and families who need care, will end; and collection of family co-pays will resume. The announcement is intended to provide advance notice to child care providers, allowing them to plan for the use of final CARES Act funding which will be issued in August. Providers should communicate the resumption of absence policies (effective September 1) to the families they serve. More Information For more information, view OCDEL’s full announcement or contact your local ELRC.
July 15, 2019 Cliff Effect Public Service Announcement Seeks Focus Group Circles Greater Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Child Development are seeking individuals who are willing to be interviewed and recorded for a Public Service Announcement that will raise awareness on the Cliff Effect. Participants selected will be compensated. About The Cliff Effect impacts individuals who are: working, but still eligible for certain subsidies such as Section 8 or public housing, Child Care Assistance, Medicaid, Food Stamps, and more at risk of losing benefits because of an increase in income faced with choosing between a raise/increased income or receiving benefits Available Sessions There are two available session dates: Thursday, July 18, 6 – 8 p.m. Carnegie Library East Liberty | 130 S. Whitfield Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 Saturday, July 20, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Gallery on Penn | 5937 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 Registration To register for the Cliff Effect groups, complete this form. Share this flyer with your network.
