News

July 15, 2020

T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship Fall 2020 Deadline

Early childhood education professionals interested in attending college for the fall semester can submit applications to receive a T.E.A.C.H. (Teacher Education And Compensation Helps) Scholarship.

Eligibility

The Pennsylvania Child Care Association (PACCA) offers a variety of T.E.A.C.H. scholarships to meet the needs of the early care and education workforce in center and home-based settings. Eligible applicants must:

    • work a minimum of 25-30 hours per week directly with children in a DHS-certified child care program;
    • make $19 or less an hour ($25 or less per hour for directors); and
    • be interested in pursuing coursework at a participating college toward a degree or credential in early childhood.

Scholarship awards are dependent upon the availability of funds and priorities of funders. Other eligibility criteria may apply are subject to change without notice. See the brochure.

Application Details

To be considered for the Fall 2020 semester, T.E.A.C.H. applications must be completed and submitted with all required documentation by Friday, August 7, 2020. PACCA will continue to accept applications on an ongoing basis, however, incomplete applications and applications received after this date will not receive priority for consideration. New scholarship awards for the Fall 2020 semester will be dependent upon funding availability at that time.

Interested applicants should also begin the college admissions process now and contact an early childhood education (ECE) advisor at their intended college/university. This helps to ensure that scholarship applicants are admitted to their college/university and can register for courses if/when they receive a T.E.A.C.H. scholarship. T.E.A.C.H. can provide contact information for early childhood education advisors at partnering institutions if needed.

Submit an Application

To download a scholarship application, visit the PACCA website. Completed applications must be submitted to PACCA by Friday, August 7 through one of the following methods:

    • Fax: 717.657.0959
    • Mail: 20 Erford Road, Suite 302
      Lemoyne, PA 17043

More Information

For questions about scholarship eligibility and requirements, contact a T.E.A.C.H. Counselor at 717.657.9000.

News

November 6, 2019

T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship Spring 2020 Deadline

Early childhood education professionals interested in attending college for the spring semester (beginning January 2020) can submit applications to receive a T.E.A.C.H. (Teacher Education And Compensation Helps) scholarship.

Eligibility

The Pennsylvania Child Care Association (PACCA) offers a variety of T.E.A.C.H. scholarships to meet the needs of the early care and education workforce in center and home-based settings. Eligible applicants must:

    • work a minimum of 25-30 hours per week directly with children in a DHS-certified child care program;
    • make $19 or less an hour ($25 or less per hour for directors);
    • be interested in pursuing coursework at a participating college toward a degree or credential in early childhood; and
    • Bachelor’s degree applicants must meet additional eligibility criteria, which includes having at least 55 transferable credits towards a degree in Early Childhood Education or equivalent.

Scholarship awards are dependent upon the availability of funds and priorities of funders. See the brochure.

Application Details

To be considered for the Spring 2020 semester, T.E.A.C.H. applications must be completed and submitted with all required documentation by Friday, November 15, 2019. PACCA will continue to accept applications on an ongoing basis, however, incomplete applications and applications received after this date will not receive priority for consideration. New scholarship awards for the Spring 2020 semester will be dependent upon funding availability at that time.

Interested applicants should also begin the college admissions process now and contact an early childhood education advisor at their intended college/university.  This helps to ensure that scholarship applicants are admitted to their college/university and can register for courses if/when they receive a T.E.A.C.H. scholarship. T.E.A.C.H. can provide contact information for early childhood education advisors at partnering institutions if needed.

Click here to download a scholarship application.

More Information

To learn more, visit the PACCA website.

For questions, contact a T.E.A.C.H. Counselor at 717-657-9000 or teachinfo@pacca.org.

*Information provided by PACCA

News

January 16, 2019

DHS Will Issue February SNAP Benefits Early

On January 8, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) notified states that February benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will be fully funded.

In order to receive funding however, February benefits must be issued by January 20, 2019. The Department of Human Services (DHS) has determined that they will be able to issue February SNAP benefits by January 20 in order to meet the federally imposed deadline. Below is what you need to know about SNAP benefits in January and February.

 

Receiving February Benefits

All SNAP recipients who did not have a renewal due in January, or whose renewal for January was completed by January 14, will receive their February benefits on their electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards on January 18, 2019.

For those (with January renewals due) who completed their renewal after January 14, February benefits will be available on their EBT card one day after their renewal is processed.

What This Means for SNAP Recipients

These benefits will be the only benefit payment SNAP recipients will receive for the month of February. Recipients will not receive a payment on their regularly scheduled February payment date. This payment is not a bonus or increase in a recipient’s monthly payment. Rather, this payment is their benefit for the month of February.

Recipients will need to make this early payment last through an undefined period of time if the government shutdown persists. DHS is awaiting further guidance from the USDA regarding the availability of benefits for March. Because of this, recipients experiencing food insecurity may have greater challenges during this period. This will likely result in a higher number of individuals seeking aid from charitable food organizations around the commonwealth.

Applications and Renewals

DHS will continue to accept SNAP applications and process renewal applications. Recipients should continue reporting any changes and should submit the semi-annual reviews or renewals that they receive. DHS will continue to issue benefits to applicants found eligible in February until they are told to stop issuing by USDA.

Questions and Concerns

All County Assistance Offices remain open and staff are available to assist applicants and recipients during this time.

For any questions about benefits, please contact the statewide customer service center at 1.877.395.8930. For residents of Philidelphia, contact 1.215.560.7226.

Resources

For any individual seeking additional food assistance, the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has compiled a list of community resources and organizations.

News

November 1, 2018

Deadline Extended for RFP: Child Care Funding and Finance in PA

The deadline has been extended to November 9, 2018 for the Request for Proposal, Child Care Funding and Finance in Pennsylvania: The True Cost of Quality Part II.

The Berks County Intermediate Unit (BCIU), in coordination with the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) and the Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission (PAELIC), released the RFP for submission of proposals to investigate the cost of providing high-quality early care and education across Pennsylvania.

Part I Conclusions

Part I of this project, CHILD CARE FUNDING & FINANCE IN PENNSYLVANIA: Budgeting for Survival or Paying for the True Cost of Quality? conducted by Research for Action found that:

  • Infant and toddler care is more expensive than pre-K or school-age care.
  • Current revenue streams and reimbursement rates are inadequate to cover the cost of infant and toddler care and, as a result, child care providers opt to serve more preschoolers and fewer infants and toddlers.
  • Low compensation in child care programs leads to significant staff turnover and hiring of less-qualified staff.

Part II Overview

Knowing that the cost of infant and toddler child care is high, and the current public financing system is inadequate to cover the costs of quality in Pennsylvania, particularly teachers’ wages, leading to turnover and a less qualified workforce, Part II of this study aims to answer the question ‘What does it cost to support high-quality child care across Pennsylvania?’

Part II will build upon the previous work conducted in Part I, using a more robust data set to estimate the true cost of high-quality child care, as compared to child care that meets only regulatory standards, and how those costs vary across regions in the commonwealth.

The findings from Part II will inform the evolution of Pennsylvania’s child care financing and quality systems to enable the greatest access to high-quality child care for the most at-risk children.

Deadline

The Request for Proposal represents the requirements for an open and competitive process. Proposals will be accepted until 5 pm EST, Friday, November 9, 2018.

See the RFP for more information, including proposal guidelines, project description, project timeline and more.

Information provided by PA Early Ed News.