The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ (DHS) Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) announced the creation of regional Early Learning Resource Centers (ELRCs) to improve the quality of and access to early learning services in the state.Important information regarding Pennsylvania’s new Early Learning Resource Centers

Beginning July 1, 2018, ELRCs will provide a single point-of-contact for families, early learning service providers, and communities to gain information and access services that support high-quality child care and early learning programs. ELRCs will administer over $680 million in child care subsidy and supports. This state and federal investment in Pennsylvania’s working families enables parents to maintain employment while creating opportunities for the commonwealth’s children to develop and learn to their fullest potential.

Through the ELRC, child care professionals can obtain support in building quality outcomes for children by working with quality coaches to achieve Keystone STAR 3 and 4 status, building connections with community partners, and supporting children and families in accessing additional services, such as PA Pre-K Counts, Head Start, home-visiting, and Early Intervention.

All ELRCs will have a primary location in their designated region and will partner with community organizations to meet families’ needs where they naturally congregate.

ELRC Region 19 (Chester County):

Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) is the lead agency for Early Learning Resource Center 19, delivering Keystone STARS supports to early care and education providers, including quality coaching and support in processing grants.

PHMC has partnered with the Chester County Intermediate Unit to administer Child Care Works (PA’s subsidized child care program) and to offer enhanced child care resource and referral services for all PA families. These services were formerly offered through Child Care Information Services (CCIS) of Chester County.

The PHMC Professional Development Organization will coordinate all Technical Assistance and Professional Development activities for early care and education providers (STARS TA, ECMH, Infant/Toddler TA, CCHC, needs-based PD, etc.).

2019-2020 Merit and Education Retention Award

The 2019-2020 Merit and ERA request paperwork is now available. Please review the documents and contact your Quality Coach with any questions. Review the Quality Add-on Rates and Grants & Awards Structure Overview Fiscal Year 2019-2020 for eligibility and award amounts. Review Best Practices in Keystone STARS Financial Award Spending for guidance on what to purchase with your grant.

This year you must complete and submit a request form and a budget form for each grant type. Please note there are two versions of the budget form for each grant type. One is an Excel Workbook to be used for electronic submission and one is a PDF to be used if faxing.

Submit your Merit and/or ERA request via:

Email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Include your MPI#, your location name, and grant type in the “Subject” line of your email message
or Fax to 267-765-2397

Electronic submission is highly recommended to expedite the processing of your grant request. Another way to speed up your payment is to use electronic payment. If you are not already receiving your grant through electronic deposit, CLICK HERE to download and complete the form to start this process.

Click on the links below to download the appropriate forms.

MERIT AWARDS available to eligible:
STAR 2 Center/Group

2019-2020 Keystone STARS Merit Award Request Center/Group
2019-2020 Keystone STARS Merit Award Request Family
Attachment 1 Keystone STARS Merit Excel Budget Workbook (for electronic submission only)
Attachment 2 Keystone STARS Merit PDF Budget Worksheet (for paper submission only)

EDUCATION AND RETENTION AWARDS available to eligible:
STAR 2-4 Center/Group and Family Child Care

2019-2020 Keystone STARS ERA Request Center/Group
2019-2020 Keystone STARS ERA Request Family
Attachment 1 Keystone STARS ERA Budget Workbook(for electronic submission only)
Attachment 2 Keystone STARS ERA Budget Worksheet (PDF paper submission)

Announcements

Changes to Rising STARS Tuition Assistance Program

The Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) is making some changes to the Rising STAR Tuition Assistance program. Rising STARS helps cover a portion of tuition costs for early learning professionals. Funding has been secured through June 30, 2019.

Beginning immediately, degree waivers for programs outside of the approved degree list (PDF) will no longer be accepted. If you are already enrolled in a program with a previously approved degree waiver, your funding will continue until your program is completed.

Applications for out-of-state institutions will also no longer be accepted. If you are enrolled in a program at an out-of-state institution, your funding will continue until your program is completed.

To learn more, visit the Rising STARS Tuition Assistance.

Child Care Reimbursement Rates Increased and Rate Freeze Lifted!

The PA Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) has announced that effective August 1, 2018, the Child Care Works (CCW) program will both lift the base rate freeze for STAR 1 and STAR 2 providers, as well as, apply a general Maximum Child Care Allowance (MCCA) base rate increase of 2.5% across all counties, provider types, STAR levels, and care levels.

Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) will contact providers in July or August to both gather their program’s current private pay rates and to sign updated provider agreements. If a program serves children in Philadelphia or Allegheny County, they will receive this information through their Child Care Information Service Office. OCDEL is requesting that early learning providers be responsive to the ELRCs when they outreach around the provider agreements.

CLICK HERE for more information about Early Learning Resource Centers.

New 2019-2020 Enrollment Calculation Tool

The STARS Enrollment Calculation Tool, commonly known as the ECT, assists the provider in accurately determining enrollment, as a full-time equivalency (FTE), for individual children and the program as a whole. This form is required for STARS Designation and Renewal. The ECT is also required to be completed by all STARS 2-4 providers eligible for grant funding. It will assist the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) in identifying the number of children impacted by the continuous quality improvement efforts of STARS participating providers.

The timeframe of the data collection for the ECT can be any calendar week within the time period of 7/1-4/30 that best represents continued enrollment of the subsidy children. The worksheet must indicate which calendar week was used. (example 8/21/17 -8/24/17). The chosen week and the resulting FTE must be representative of the typical year-round enrollment of subsidy children.

You can download the documents below, choose either Word or Excel formats for your program type.

Please contact your Quality Coach if you need assistance completing your ECT.

All Past Announcements

2019-2020 Merit and Education Retention Award

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