February 3, 2026 Shapiro Announces Additional $10M for Child Care Workforce in Proposed 2026-27 Budget Governor Josh Shapiro announced on Tuesday during a speech before the General Assembly in Harrisburg that he is seeking an additional $10 million in his 2026-27 budget for the child care workforce. The principal partners of Early Learning Pennsylvania – a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting children from birth to age 5 – praised Shapiro’s budget proposal for its focus on children and early education workforce investments, while highlighting the need for additional support in areas such as infant and toddler Early Intervention and home visiting. Learn More Shapiro said the additional $10 million would bring the total investment to $35 million for the recurring Child Recruitment and Retention Program. The governor said the investment aims to stabilize and grow the child care workforce amid an ongoing teacher shortage. “We need more early childhood educators and pre-k teachers – kind, gentle souls who want to get our kids started on the right path, but who have been paid too little for too long,” Shapiro said. “This budget delivers for them.” Trying Together’s Executive Director Cara Ciminillo lauded this increased investment, saying, “I am pleased to see Governor Shapiro continue to prioritize the child care workforce in his proposed budget. This additional funding demonstrates to educators that their work is vital, valued, and worth investing in.” The proposed budget also includes an additional $7.5 million for Pre-K Counts and $2 million for Head Start State Supplemental to help providers raise wages and retain staff. Shapiro said he is also calling for an additional $2.5 million for teacher professional development to ensure that educators have the training and tools needed to support students. In a statement, Start Strong PA praised Shapiro’s budget proposal. “Child care is an economic development strategy, workforce participation strategy, and education success strategy,” the statement read. “These investments will encourage teachers to remain in the field, allowing more parents to work, prepare more Pennsylvania children for school, and build a stronger and more prosperous commonwealth.” However, Start Strong PA noted that the reduction in funding of $5.2 million for the infant and toddler Early Intervention program in the Department of Human Services’ budget failed to recognize needed investments in those areas. “Early Intervention is a critical and federally-required component of the early care and education continuum, as all children from birth through age 5 with developmental delays, regardless of family income level, must be identified, referred to, and provided necessary services to help them and their families reach their fullest potential,” Start Strong PA’s statement read. “The cut to infant and toddler Early Intervention in the Department of Human Services’ budget is deeply concerning. The reduction of funding will negatively impact the ability to adequately deliver services to more children in Pennsylvania.” Start Strong PA also noted that stagnant funding reduces home visiting services for pregnant women and families with young children. To read the governor’s full budget address, visit the governor’s office pressroom website. Take Action – Thank Governor Shapiro for Prioritizing the ECE Workforce! Start Strong PA has issued a new action alert encouraging people to send a message to Governor Shapiro thanking him for prioritizing the ECE workforce. See action alert.
January 12, 2026 Providers Must Submit Application for Recruitment and Retention Award by January 29 Providers interested in the Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention Award must submit an application to their local Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) by Thursday, January 29. Learn More The award is a new program available to eligible providers and qualifying staff as part of the Governor’s Office General Fund initiative. The program’s focus is to provide payments to qualified child care providers to assist them in addressing the ongoing child care staff retention and recruitment crisis. To qualify, a provider must be serving children, hold a current Certificate of Compliance, and hold a current Child Care Works Certified Subsidy Provider Agreement, among other criteria, to be considered a qualified child care provider. A staff member is considered qualified if they are employed by a qualified child care provider that is responsible for the direct supervision of children at a minimum of 15 hours per week and is included on the work schedule, not only at the time of application but also when the provider receives payments from the ELRC. Current qualified child care staff are eligible for a $450 retention bonus per staff member. Recruitment bonuses in the amount of $450 per new staff can be paid to a newly employed, qualified staff member hired after the date of the application submission. Eligible DHS certified child care providers will apply on behalf of current, eligible staff and for staff recruitment bonuses. Providers must submit a completed application to their local ELRC by January 29, and can reach out to their ELRC for more information.
December 16, 2025 OCDEL Releases Information About Child Care Recruitment and Retention Program Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has announced details covering everything from eligibility and staff retention bonuses to application information regarding its 2025-26 Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention Program. Learn More The recruitment program is a funding opportunity for certified child care programs that maintains a Child Care Works (CCW) Certified Provider Agreement. The intent of the program is to support existing child care staff and recruitment within the field. The 2025-26 enacted state budget includes $25 million for retention and recruitment funding to qualified DHS-certified providers. Qualified staff are eligible for a retention bonus. To the extent that funding is available, qualified child care providers may receive funds to provide new qualified hires with a recruitment bonus. To prepare qualified providers for the release of the recruitment and retention program application period, OCDEL’s announcement includes details on the following: Provider eligibility Staff retention bonuses Staff recruitment bonuses Application Funding and spending requirements Final expenditure report Monitoring information Timeline Next steps Qualified providers must submit a completed application to their regional Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) by Thursday, January 29. For more information, read OCDEL’s announcement.
December 2, 2025 Shapiro Touts Child Care Recruitment and Retainment Program During Riverview Visit Governor Josh Shapiro and Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis joined child care workers, legislators, and community leaders at Verona’s Riverview Children’s Center on Monday to discuss child care investments in the 2025-26 budget that the governor signed in November. Learn More Shapiro dropped by the center, with which Trying Together has a long relationship, to talk about how investments in the budget would help Pennsylvania to recruit and retain child care workers, expand access to quality care, and ensure that more parents can stay in the workforce. The state’s child care industry currently has 3,000 unfilled jobs that, if filled, could serve an additional 25,000 children. Providers also continue to struggle with low wages that make it difficult to hire and retain staff. The result is closed classrooms and families being turned away. To address the shortages and expand child care availability, the 2025-26 budget established a $25 million Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention Program that will provide about $450 annually per employed to licensed Child Care Works providers. The bonuses would support approximately 55,000 child care workers. “When parents can’t find affordable, reliable care, they can’t work – and our entire economy feels it,” Shapiro said during the event at Riverview. “We’ve taken real action to lower costs by tripling the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit for nearly 219,000 families, but affordability isn’t enough. We also have to expand access. That’s why we’re making investments to help child care centers hire and retain talented educators. These bonuses will help to strengthen the workforce, open more slots for children, and make sure families across Pennsylvania can find the care they need.” The budget also invests an additional $7.5 million for Pre-K Counts to help providers raise wages and stabilize the early educator workforce. It also includes a $10 million increase for early intervention services to support families with children experiencing developmental delays. Riverview Children’s Center is a state licensed, four-star Keystone STARS early learning center that serves about 154 children from infancy through school age and employs 32 educators. About 15% of the center’s annual revenue comes from Child Care Works. “As a working mother, I know firsthand how essential high-quality early education and dedicated educators are – not only for our children’s development, but for the stability and success of families across the commonwealth,” said Stephanie Heakins, the center’s director. “At RCC, we are deeply committed to providing high-equity care so every child, no matter their background, begins with the strong foundation they deserve.”
April 21, 2025 OCDEL Offers Guidance in Wake of Measles Cases Uptick The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) and the state Department of Health have issued new guidance due to an uptick in positive measles cases in the state. Learn More Those operating a child care facility in the state who knows of a student having an illness that may be of public concern, regardless of whether it is known to be communicable, should report it promptly to the Department of Health or a local department that handles health issues. As indicated in the Child Care Works (CCW) Provider Agreement, an early learning resource center (ELRC) will pay providers for a maximum of five consecutive days of absence due to an illness. On the sixth consecutive day, the absence must be reported to the ELRC, which will notify the parent or caretaker that the enrollment for the subsidized child care will be suspended until the child returns to care. The provider must report to the ELRC when the child returns after a CCW suspension period. If a child is enrolled in CCW and needs to be excluded as outlined, a provider must contact the ELRC immediately so they can promptly suspend CCW to prevent enrolled families from accruing absences related to the medical exclusion. Once a CCW case is in suspended status, payment is not remitted to the provider. The ELRC will pay for a maximum of 40 days of absence during the state’s fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) for each child. This is a cumulative number per child, regardless of provider transfers during the fiscal year. If absences exceed 40 days, the parent or caretaker is responsible to pay the provider for all additional absences. Suspended days and provider closed days are not considered days of absence. Children funded through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are not subject to the 40 days absence limit. For more information, visit The Pennsylvania Key’s measles information and guidance page.
December 9, 2024 OCDEL Announces CCW Base Payment Rate Increase for DHS Certified Providers The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning’s (OCDEL) Bureau of Policy and Professional Development has released an announcement on an increase to Child Care Works (CCW) base payment rates for Department of Human Services (DHS) certified providers. Learn More Effective January 1, the subsidy base rates – also known as the Maximum Child Care Allowance (MCCA) – will be increased to the 75th percentile. The base payment rate increase applies to: All DHS certified child care providers Early Learning Resource Centers (ELRCs) OCDEL Early Learning Resource Center program representatives The announcement replaces ELRC Announcement 23 #01 – Increase to Child Care Works Base Payment Rates. Background The CCDBG Act requires lead agencies to certify that rates are sufficient to ensure eligible children have equal access to child care services. The benchmark for equal access established by the Administration for Children and Families Office of Child Care (ACF OCC) is the 75th percentile of the current child care market. OCC considers payment rates set at the 75th percentile or higher as providing equal access. Increasing the CCW base rate incentivizes additional provider participation in CCW. It also helps child care providers who participate in the program enhance services, invest in staff development, compensation, and promote overall quality in child care programs. Next Steps The next steps for DHS certified child care providers on updating pay rates include: Updating and communicating private rate pay changes on family agreements or contracts, website, and handbooks as applicable Completing Appendix C-1 ELRC Subsidized Child Care Provider Reported Rates Sending the completed Appendix C-1 along with verification of the DHS certified child care provider’s published rates to your ELRC by January 31 to receive the update rate Directing any questions to your ELRC The next step for ELRCs include: Reviewing and sharing this information with appropriate staff For any DHS certified child care providers returning completed Appendix C-1 and their published rates, entering updated rates into PELICAN CCW and converting rates for all DHS certified child care providers with an effective date of January 1 if verification is received by January 31. Generating and sending all DHS certified child care providers Appendix C-2 ELRC Subsidized Child Care Provider Payment Rates Directing any questions to your program representative More information on the increased rates can be found on The Pennsylvania Key website. Information on Pennsylvania’s Maximum Child Care Allowance daily rates are also available on that website.
October 7, 2024 Report Finds That PA Early Learning Shortage Poses Risk to Economy A report from Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children notes that the state faces an historic early learning workforce shortage. Learn More A coordinated early care and education system ensures that infants, toddlers, and preschoolers succeed in school and allows parents to work while knowing their children are safe and learning in high-quality care. But Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children’s 2024 State of Early Care and Education report found that this coordinated system that is vital to the economy could be threatened by the early learning workforce shortage. The report uses data and research to show that without new investments in the child care workforce, Pre-K Counts, or the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program, early learning providers will continue to lose teachers and close classrooms. Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children worked with Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates that includes Pre-K for PA and Start Strong PA, on the report. Inadequate Funding The report shows that inadequate funding for the early care and education system has led to supply-side issues affecting families’ abilities to find affordable, high-quality care. It has also impacted providers’ abilities to be compensated fairly to pay teachers and maintain business expenses. Without direct investment in the child care sector’s workforce, the crisis will continue, likely resulting in more classroom closures and more working parents struggling to find care for their children, the report noted. The report recommends implementing and funding a recruitment and retention model to increase the child care workforce and ensure that providers have the staff needed to operate at full capacity. It also suggests increasing state investments in the Pre-K Counts and Head Start Supplemental Assistance programs as well as developing and funding a pay parity policy for pre-K teachers that reflects wages provided to teachers in the K-12 system. Other Findings Other findings in the report include: Only 46% of eligible 3- and 4-year-olds participate in high-quality, publicly funded pre-K, leaving more than 78,000 without access to a high-quality program. Unlivable wages of less than $15.15 per hour are causing an historic workforce shortage, closing classrooms and driving up waitlists for working parents. Child care providers can’t raise teacher wages because families are already struggling to afford care costs. On average, costs for infant child care comprise about 17% of the Pennsylvania median family income. Only 25% of eligible children under age three are served by Child Care Works, leaving more than 73,000 eligible infants and toddlers unserved. The full report is available on Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children’s website.
June 12, 2024 New Look and Website Coming for COMPASS COMPASS, an online tool for Pennsylvanians to apply for health and human service programs, will debut a new look and website URL in mid-June. Learn More Beginning June 16, changes to the website will allow users to navigate it on a desktop computer or mobile device much easier than before. The new URL will be: www.compass.dhs.pa.gov/Compass.Web/Public/CMPHome. Pennsylvania residents use COMPASS to apply for a variety of health and human service programs. It also helps residents to manage benefits information. Through COMPASS, state residents can apply for Child Care Works (CCW), healthcare coverage, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), free or reduced-price school meals, and other services. Clients who have applications that they need to finish must complete them by June 14 or they will need to start the application process from the beginning once the new site debuts. While some existing navigational objects will be missing from the new provider search design, users will now be able to complete applications on their mobile devices.
May 15, 2024 Interactive Maps Demonstrate Unmet Child Care Needs at County Level Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, a Start Strong PA campaign partner, has created interactive maps and fact sheets demonstrating the unmet need and availability of high-quality child care to meet those needs at the state, county, and legislative district levels. Access By County Each county-level assessment examines workforce issues – such as average wages – as well as the amount of access to and quality of child care. Access to high-quality programs was a challenge for families in numerous Pennsylvania counties. Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children provided fact sheets and maps for: Allegheny County (65% of children under age five and 70% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Armstrong County (90% of children under age five and infants and toddlers were unserved) Beaver County (78% of children under age five and 82% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Butler County (87% of children under age five and 90% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Fayette County (80% of children under age five and 82% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Greene County (83% of children under age five and 85% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Indiana County (86% of children under age five and 85% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Lawrence County (76% of children under age five and 79% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Washington County (83% of children under age five and 87% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Westmoreland County (83% of children under age five and 86% of infants and toddlers were unserved) Start Strong PA Campaign The Start Strong PA campaign is asking the General Assembly to include in its 2024-25 state budget: Support for the Shapiro administration’s proposal to increase subsidy rates to the 75th percentile of the current price families pay for child care services. This increase will help alleviate rising facility, food, utility, and supply costs for providers participating in Child Care Works. A $284 million investment in new and recurring state funding to implement a child care teacher recruitment and retention initiative. This will help alleviate the ongoing staffing crisis that is causing classrooms and programs to close, leaving working families without access to child care.
April 16, 2024 Early Learning PA Coalition Advocates for 2024-25 State Budget Priorities The principal partners of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA) are calling on state policymakers to support investments in evidence-based, high-quality early care, education, and health services. ELPA is focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five. Trying Together is a partner of the statewide coalition of advocates. The coalition is urging state policymakers to make investments in child care, pre-k, and early intervention. Learn More From birth to age five, children’s brains make millions of neural connections every second, forming brain architecture for life. At no other time in a human’s life will the brain develop at this speed or with such intricacy. This period is the foundation upon which all later learning, behavior, and health depend. Pittsburgh-based early childhood nonprofit Trying Together and their ELPA partners are calling for state policymakers to maximize the potential of these first five years through investments in early care and education programs in the 2024-2025 budget. Budget Requests The budget priorities from ELPA for the 2024-25 final state budget include: Supporting the Shapiro administration’s proposal to increase subsidy rates to the 75th percentile of the current price families pay for child care services. This will help alleviate rising facility, food, utility, and supply costs for providers participating in Child Care Works. Investing $284 million in new and recurring state funding to implement a child care teacher recruitment and retention initiative. This will help alleviate an ongoing staffing crisis that is causing classrooms and entire programs to close and leave working families without access to child care. The funding would provide monthly payments to providers maintaining a subsidy agreement with the state. It would be restricted for initiatives that would help retain and recruit staff such as monthly wage increases, hiring bonuses, benefit packages, or retention bonuses for staff staying for a certain length of time or achieving credentials or degrees. Supporting a proposed investment of $30 million in Pre-K Counts to increase the per-child rate to help address workforce challenges and inflationary pressures. For the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program, a proposed $2.7 million investment to the per-child rate should be examined so that it has parity to the Pre-K Counts rate increase. To achieve this, the needed investment should be $8.8 million in the Head Start Supplemental Assistance line. Supporting, at minimum, the administration’s proposed $16.6 million increase that will serve an additional 3,000 children and their families. This is a first step in a broader solution that includes a long-needed rate adjustment for early intervention providers and that would serve additional children. Additional support would help to address such issues as workforce shortages and achieving equitable enrollment as well as moving to the coaching model and addressing the growing needs of families across the state. Trying Together and other partners of ELPA will continue to advocate for these investments as the budget process continues through June 20. Stay up-to-date on how to advocate for these issues by signing-up to get public policy updates from Trying Together.
