Office of Child Development and Early Learning

Office of Child Development & Early LearningTom Corbett, Governor | Ronald Tomalis, Secretary of Education | Gary D. Alexander, Secretary of Public Welfare www.education.state.pa.us | www.dpw.state.pa.us

Office of Child Developmentand Early Learning

Because every child is Pennsylvania’s future


OCDEL ProgramsCertification Services:• Licensing and Inspection of child care • Information source on DPW regulations for child care

Subsidy Services:• Child Care Works• Child Care Information Services (CCIS) with Parent Counseling and Referral Services

Early Intervention Services:• Infant/Toddler Early Intervention• Preschool Early Intervention• Early Intervention Technical Assistance

Early Learning Services:• Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts• Keystone STARS• Keystone Babies• PA Early Learning Keys to Quality• Head Start State Supplemental• Early Head Start• Family Support Programs


Certification Services


Why Certification Services?

More than 300,000 children in Pennsylvania are served in certified or registered child care programs each year. 3,368 registered family child care homes 883 certified group child care homes 4,482 certified child care centers

(Figures as of June 2010)

Meeting health & safety requirements are a necessary foundation to build quality early learning opportunities.


Certification Services at a Glance Helping children and families reach their promise by certifying the health and safety of

certified child care centers, group child care homes and registered family child care homes.

Three regional offices provide certification services and conduct inspections.

Provides information source for starting up child care programs and for families wanting information on certified child care programs.

Contact to file complaints relating to child care facilities, both certified programs and facilities that are operating without the required certificate in violation of the law.

Regional offices provide orientation training for persons who want to operate child care facilities. Orientation training is required in order to receive a certificate of compliance or registration and open a facility.


Types of facilities regulated by OCDEL

Child Care Center

Group Child Care Home

Family Child Care Home


Child Care Center

A child care facility in which 7 or more children who are not related to the operator receive child care.

Requires certificate of compliance to legally operate. Inspected on an annual basis. 55 Pa. Code, Chapter 3270, Child Care Centers


Group Child Care Home

A child care facility in which 7 to 12 children of various ages or in which 7 to 15 children from 4th grade through 15 years of age who are not related to the operator receive child care.

Requires certificate of compliance to legally operate. Inspected on an annual basis. 55 Pa. Code, Chapter 3280, Group Child Care Homes


Family Child Care Home

A child care facility located in a home in which 4 to 6 children who are not related to the caregiver receive child care.

Requires certificate of registration to legally operate. Inspected on a random sample basis. 55 Pa. Code, Chapter 3290, Family Child Care Homes


Regional Offices of Child Development and Early Learning

Three regional field offices

Conducts: Inspections of child care programs Complaint investigations relating to alleged violation of regulations and statutes regarding

operation of a child care facility (for both regulated and illegal operations).

Provides: Technical assistance to programs Orientation training for prospective operators of new child care facilities Information to persons interested in opening a child care facility Information to families and the public regarding the Department of Public Welfare's

certification regulations and the certification history of child care facilities (i.e., compliance with regulations, certificates of compliance or registration, verified complaints, etc.)


Certified Child Care Facilities

To find out about certified child care facilities in your area: View a listing of facilities online or contact the local Child Care Information

Services (CCIS) agency. To find a provider, visit:

http://www.dpw.state.pa.us/forfamilies/childcareandearlylearning/index.htm For information on a child care program’s certification history (regulatory

violations, verified complaints, etc.) contact the Regional Office of Child Development and Early Learning.

Compliance history is also available online at: http://www.dpw.state.pa.us/forfamilies/childcareandearlylearning/index.htm


Starting a child care facility

Contact your Regional Office of Child Development and Early Learning.

Attend Orientation Session with regional office.

Receive information on statutes and regulations pertaining to child care facilities.


Regional Offices of Child Development and Early Learning

North Central RegionHarrisburg Office 1-800-222-2117Scranton Office 1-800-222-2108

Southeast Region 1-800-346-2929

Western Region 1-800-222-2149



Division of Regulatory Administration

The Division of Regulatory Administration (DRA), located in Harrisburg, is responsible for planning, developing, implementing, analyzing, coordinating, monitoring and evaluating regulation, policy procedures and operations relating to the certification and registration of child care facilities.


Certification: Achievements 2009-2010

Partnered with Better Kid Care to develop a distance training curriculum for new child care center directors to provide a firm foundation of basic regulatory knowledge needed by a facility director.

Provided orientation training to 2,929 persons seeking to open new child care facilities.

Improved the usability of PELICAN Provider Certification, the electronic database used by certification staff for processing applications, certificates and inspections of child care facilities, to enable gathering of data relating to inspections, violations, complaints and incidents.


Certification: What’s ahead

Update certification protocols to ensure a consistent philosophy, consistent practices and a consistent decision making framework across the Bureau. The target to complete this update is December 2011. The protocols will be field tested for a period of six month to one year prior to finalization.

Participate in expansion of the PELICAN electronic certification management system into an enterprise system that includes other DPW Offices that certify facilities and agencies, beginning with the Office of Developmental Programs. The expansion includes further usability improvements that will benefit OCDEL.


Children served by programProgram FY 09-10 FY 10-11 1 FY 11-12 1 Program FY 09-10 FY 10-11 1 FY 11-12 1

Child Care Works Head StartTANF 34,845 38,612 37,623 Total Head Start in PA 36,602 36,561 36,561

Former TANF 33,807 31,854 32,611

Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program 5,632 5,500 5,500

Low Income 61,085 64,615 64,615 Keystone STARS 168,530 172,520 172,520TOTAL (monthly average) 129,737 135,081 134,849 Nurse-Family Partnership 4,635 4,635 4,635

Early Intervention PA Pre-K Counts 11,863 11,500 11,500Birth to 3 Program 33,288 34,385 35,3003 to 5 Program 45,442 47,300 48,800

1 Fiscal Year End Goal or Projection


2011-2012 Highlights: State and Federal

Investment (in thousands)

FY 2010-11 FY 2011-2012 Change

Keystone STARS/Keys to Quality

Child Care Services - State Funds $28,762 $28,762 $0

Child Care Services - Federal Funds $38,967 $38,967 $0

Total Funds $67,729 $67,729 $0

Child Care Works

Child Care Services - State Funds $142,959 $142,959 $0

Child Care Services - Federal Funds $203,225 $201,286 ($1,939)

Child Care Assistance - State Funds $189,582 $190,335 $753

Child Care Assistance - Federal Funds $197,197 $197,197 $0

Total State $361,303 $362,056 $753

Total Federal $439,389 $437,450 ($1,939)

Total ALL funds $800,692 $799,506 ($1,186)

Early Intervention

Early Intervention Birth - 3

State Funds $103,700 $117,800 $14,100

Federal Funds $84,376 $73,838 ($10,538)

Total Funds $188,076 $191,638 $3,562

Early Intervention 3-5

State Funds $182,142 $198,116 $15,974

Federal Funds $70,072 $60,611 ($9,461)

Total Funds $252,214 $258,727 $6,513

Total Birth -5 EI Funds $440,290 $450,365 $10,075

State only Funded Programs

Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts $83,620 $83,620 $0

Head Start Supplemental $37,655 $37,655 $0

Parent Child Home Program $2,084 $0 ($2,084)

Nurse Family Partnership (Includes Health Care Reform Home Visiting)

State Funds $11,978 $11,978 $0

Federal Funds $4,644 $7,740 $3,096

Total Funds $16,622 $19,718 $3,096

Funding amounts for FY 2010-2011 reflect post budgetary freeze amounts and/or actual available amounts.

References in Governor’s proposed budgetListed below are the appropriations by Department and the page number on which you can find these appropriations in the Governor’s budget proposal. The full document is available online at www.budget.state.pa.us

DPW programs Early Intervention – E35.9Child Care Works/ Keystone STARS - Child Care Services – E35.9 - Child Care Assistance - E35.9Nurse Family Partnership – E35.9

PDE programs PA Pre-K Counts - E14.6Head Start Supplemental - E14.6Early Intervention - E14.6


Useful links Pennsylvania Department of Education –

www.education.state.pa.us

Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare – www.dpw.state.pa.us

Pennsylvania Key – www.pakeys.org

Pennsylvania’s Promise for Children – www.papromiseforchildren.com


Resources

OCDEL Annual Report: http://www.pakeys.org/pages/get.aspx?page=EarlyLearning_Tools

Program Reach & Risk Assessment: http://www.pakeys.org/pages/get.aspx?page=EarlyLearning_Reach

BUILD ECE News: http://paprom.convio.net/site/PageServer?pagename=Build_home_page


Office of Child Development and Early Learning

Documents

certified child care

registered child care

child caresubsidy services

secretary of public

programscertification

certified programs

secretary of education

state supplemental early