July 12, 2023 DHS Requests Feedback on Corrective Action Process Resources The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) is requesting feedback from child care providers on recently developed corrective action process (CAP) resources through a new survey. About Corrective Action Process Resources & CAP Resources Survey In recognizing the importance of corrective action processes in human services licensing, DHS released its, “Developing a Plan of Correction,” webinar in 2019. That same year, they released a corresponding, “Plan of Correction Quick Reference Guide,” (available as a PowerPoint presentation and PDF). The webinar aimed to assist providers with the successful development and implementation of acceptable plans of correction. The guide, consequently, was issued as a tool to assist providers with this process. Now the department seeks to understand the efficacy of these tools. Survey results will provide needed insight and help determine additionally needed resources. Access and Take the Survey Utilize the following link to access and take the survey: Corrective Action Process Resources Survey The survey closes Wednesday, July 26. DHS must receive all responses on or before that date. Learn More To learn more, visit the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) webpage. Source Trying Together took the information in this post directly from the Department of Human Services announcement. Some text may have been added, paraphrased, or adapted for readability and comprehension. Related Content & Resources PA DHS Accepting Applications for Children’s Trust Fund Grants State Budget Fails to Significantly Invest in Early Care and Education Amid Historic Labor Shortage New Nationwide Report Ranks Pennsylvania 22nd in Child Well-Being ELRC Region 5 Requesting Feedback from Families on Evening Phone Hours OCDEL Releases 2022 Market Rate Survey Report OCDEL Extends Deadline to Order Two Free Carbon Monoxide Detectors
June 21, 2023 OCDEL Releases 2022 Market Rate Survey Report The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) recently released their 2022 Child Care Market Rate Survey (MRS) Report. Data in the report reflects a challenging operating and economic environment, which child care providers continually navigate. About the MRS Report The MRS report is a collection and analysis of prices charged by child care providers in an open market. It includes information on private pay tuition rates, staffing, payments and fee practices, facility types, and food offerings at local programs. OCDEL uses the report to set base reimbursement rates for Pennsylvania’s subsidized child care program Child Care Works (CCW) to ensure equal access to child care for low-income families. 2022 MRS Report Across the state, 6,378 child care providers stayed in operation throughout the entire survey period. A total of 4,383 providers participated in the 2022 MRS, representing a 68.7% response rate. Key Findings from the 2022 MRS Report CCW Of providers with a CCW agreement, half (50.1%) indicated that they do not usually require CCW families to pay any difference between the private tuition rate and the subsidy payment amount. Family and Group Child Care Homes are more likely to require CCW families to pay the difference between the private pay rate and subsidy reimbursement amount than centers. This raises concerns about equity and access to affordable child care in these settings. Among providers who did not have a CCW agreement, the most common reason for not participating was that their capacity was at full enrollment with only private pay families. Payments & Fees Providers with higher Keystone STAR designations charge more than similar providers with lower designations across all care levels and types. Almost two-thirds (64.4%) of providers charge families a registration fee, with the median fee being $50. Registration fees were most often charged by centers. Incidental fees for late pickups and overdue payments were charged by most providers. With so many providers requiring a registration fee, low-income families in the CCW program may face financial barriers to accessing child care. Additionally, fees for late pickups and overdue payments may cause financial strain for families who are struggling financially. Staffing Over half of all providers reported unfilled job openings (54.1%), which reduced the number of children that could be served. This was most common among Child Care Centers (67.9%). Only a portion of providers (36.6%) offered health insurance to any staff members. The low portion of providers offering health insurance benefits to staff members may impact the quality of care. Food & Nutrition The USDA Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) is a federal program that provides reimbursements to providers for healthy meals and snacks — 43.3% of providers reported using the program. Regardless of CACFP participation, most providers offered some meals or snacks with regular tuition. The fact that over half of providers do not participate in CACFP suggests that there may be gaps in the quality of meals and snacks offered by child care providers. This could be particularly bad for children from low-income families who may rely on child care providers for healthy meals. Access the Report Access the 2022 MRS Report on the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) website. Learn More To learn more, visit the Official Pennsylvania Government website.
May 3, 2023 Inclusion Series: Partnering with Families to Support Inclusion Sharing developmental concerns with families can be challenging, but there are strategies that program staff can use to support families to learn about and act on these concerns. Join the Office of Head Start and its National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning (NCECDTL) for this webinar exploring how program staff can engage families in ongoing conversations about their child’s development that are responsive to family concerns and priorities. Attendees will hear from families about their questions, concerns, and priorities when a concern was first raised about their child’s development. Session Details Tuesday, May 23 | 3 – 4 p.m. Virtual Register Learn More This webinar is offered with English and Spanish captioning. To learn more, visit the NCECDTL website.
March 14, 2023 Gee Whiz Education Providing Free Onboarding Training for Product Users Gee Whiz Education, a family child care curriculum company, is providing free onboarding training to product users. Offered through a series of recorded webinars, training is available on YouTube and continually accessible to child care providers who use Gee Whiz Education. Each webinar is 30 minutes, and providers have the opportunity to follow up with session presenters via email. Onboarding Training Details Gee Whiz Education Onboarding Training consists of four recorded webinars designed to help providers use Gee Whiz: Webinar 1 – Accessing Gee Whiz & Understanding the Components Webinar 2 – Understanding How Gee Whiz Addresses the Ten Developmental Areas Webinar 3 – Adapting & Individualizing Gee Whiz Webinar 4 – Gee Whiz & Assessment Language Offerings and Webinar Captions Non-English speaking providers can take the training in their native languages by turning on captions. To turn on captions: Click the “Watch Now” button to start the video. Once the video begins, pause it and click the CC symbol on the bottom of the display. Then, click the gear/cog symbol to the right of the CC symbol. Click “subtitles/English” from the resulting pop-up box. Then, click “auto translate” and choose the language you want. Learn More A link to printable Certificate of Attendance will be made available to providers who complete a short assessment after each webinar. To learn more, visit the Gee Whiz Education website or view the training flyer.
August 17, 2022 Updates to Civil Rights Compliance Process The Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has announced that effective August 22, 2022, there will be changes to the Civil Rights Compliance process for licensed child care providers. Learn More The following changes will be in effect: Providers will have to submit a new Civil Rights Compliance form when submitting a new licensing application and a new Civil Rights Compliance attestation form when submitting a licensing renewal application. The process of submitting the form has changed. New License Submissions Entities seeking a new license will utilize a Civil Rights Compliance (CRC) form (HS 2126). This form must be included in the packet submitted as part of any new license request. The new application, supporting documents and CRC form must be emailed to the DHS office that issues your license (OCDEL Western Region for Allegheny County providers – RA-ocdelcertwpittsbu@pa.gov). Entities licensed by OCDEL or the Office of Development Programs (ODP) who use CLS or PELICAN to submit new applications must submit the form by email. The CRC forms are not part of the electronic CLS/PELICAN new application process. The CRC form for new applications can be found on the Department of Human Services website. License Renewals For licensing renewals, a licensee will now submit a CRC Attestation form (HS 2125). The Attestation form must be submitted as part of a renewal licensing application. The renewal notice will still be sent out 130 days prior to expiration. The renewal application and Attestation must be emailed to the DHS office that issues your license (OCDEL Western Region for Allegheny County providers – RA-ocdelcertwpittsbu@pa.gov). Entities licensed by OCDEL or ODP who use CLS or PELICAN to submit renewal applications must submit the attestations by email. The attestations are not part of the electronic CLS/PELICAN renewal application process. The CRC form for can be found on the Department of Human Services website. The DHS Bureau of Equal Opportunity (BEO) currently issues a letter verifying that you are in compliance with applicable civil rights laws. With the new process, a letter from BEO will no longer be sent out to licensed entities. Instead, the issuance of the new license or renewal license will indicate that your CRC form or Attestation form submission was approved. If there are issues/questions on the submitted CRC or Attestation form, a staff member from DHS will contact you. Questions For more details, read OCDEL’s full announcement. Allegheny County child care providers should direct questions to the OCDEL Western Region Office at 800-222-2149.
December 22, 2021 PNC Financial Management Course Trying Together is partnering with PNC Bank for a one hour professional development session on financial management. There will be a separate session offered for center-based programs and home-based programs (family, group, relative providers). The session content will include tools and tips on budgeting, bookkeeping, cash flow, and profit/loss. Space is limited; if you are interested, please use the link below to register. If you have any questions you can reach out to Allison Hritz, allison@tryingtogether.org. Registration PNC Financial Management for Home-Based Providers January 11, 2021 | 6:30- 7:30 p.m. PNC Financial Management for Center-Based Providers January 18, 2022 | 6:30 – 7: 30 p.m.
December 8, 2021 Pennie and PennAEYC Individual Health Care Options Webinar PennAEYC will host the team at Pennie to present information about affordable, individual health care options in the open insurance market place for the commonwealth. This is an opportunity for Pennsylvania’s early learning providers and others looking for affordable health care options. On Tuesday, December 14, 2021 from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. we will offer an informational webinar about insurance coverage options on the open marketplace. Access the webinar online at the designated time. This webinar will be recorded for those who are unable to attend. It will be available following the webinar on the PennAEYC website. About Pennie Pennie is the official health insurance marketplace in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania established under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The exchange enables eligible individuals to purchase private health insurance coverage at federally subsidized rates. Visit the Pennie website today to learn more about your individual health care coverage. Open enrollment runs from November 1, 2021 until January 15, 2022.
October 6, 2021 Advocacy Basics for Home Based Providers Support for early care and education has increased, yet everyone must do their part to help legislators and community members understand why it is so important to children, their families and their communities. This upcoming webinar from PennAEYC will provide the tools needed to talk to legislators, business leaders, and civic leaders about how vital home-based care is to your community. This session will show you the basics of advocacy and where to find more resources to build momentum and engage the families you serve in the process. Registration Individuals may register via Zoom for one of two sessions. November 10, 2021 | 6 – 7 p.m. November 17, 2021 | 6 – 7 p.m.
November 24, 2020 Stay and Play! Early learning programs: Are you interested in participating in music, movement, wellness, science, and creative expression activities with your children? Join Trying Together and the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative for the eight-week virtual “Stay and Play!” series. Stay and Play! Many providers face the challenge of juggling virtual learning for school-age children while keeping younger children engaged. To help support this work, Trying Together and the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative reimagined the Come Play! experience. As part of the eight-week “Stay and Play!” series, we invite early learning programs to participate in a weekly virtual playdate. Join in music, movement, wellness, science, and creative expression activities that make play a joyful part of the day. Available Sessions December 10, 2020 | 10:30 a.m. Register December 17, 2020 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 7, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 14, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 21, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 28, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register February 4, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register More Information Registration preferred 24 hours in advance. Contact Sarah Byrne-Houser at sarah@tryingtogether.org to register at any time. Please share this flyer with your networks.
August 20, 2020 Facts about COVID-19 and Quality Child Care Are you looking to access child care services during the COVID-19 health crisis? Join the Pennsylvania Child Care Association on September 2 for their webinar, “Facts about COVID-19 and High-Quality Child Care.” About Child care is highly regulated in Pennsylvania and the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has responded to COVID-19 with updated regulations and guidelines to keep children and providers safe. However, some of these are suggestions, not requirements; some clash with best practices for child development; and some are difficult to implement with very young children. In this webinar, participants will learn about the pros and cons of different child care settings, what to expect from child care providers, and which questions to ask if you’re still searching for one that’s right for you and your child. The session will feature Susan Coffin, MD, MPH, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s leading expert of COVID-19 and a great resource in creating CHOP’s FAQ for centers and families; a parent; and child care providers from both center-based and home-based settings. Register This webinar is best suited for parents and caretakers of children birth to age five. To register, visit the event webpage. Submit A Question You may ask questions in advance (anonymously if you prefer) by emailing shawn.towey@pacca.org, or you can enter them in the chatbox during the session. Share this flyer with your network.
