Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) is expanding Community Services for Children’s administration of child care services from 13 to 18 counties in northeast Pennsylvania effective July 1.
Currently CSC administers one of six Regional Keys which deliver quality improvement services to child care providers. The state is reducing the six Regional Keys to five. Columbia, Sullivan, Bradford, Lycoming, and Tioga, the five new counties, will join Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Monroe, Pike, Wayne, Susquehanna, Lackawanna, Schuylkill, Wyoming, and Luzerne in CSC’s Regional Key territory. The number of child care providers currently enrolled in the Stars program will jump from 800 to 900 plus. An estimated 35,000 children are already affected by the quality improvements provided by the Stars program in the Northeast region.
Pennsylvania’s initiative to improve the quality of child care has multiple services available through the Northeast Regional Key and their partners.
- Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation offers site specific professional development and technical assistance to link and bridge systems and service options on behalf of a child,.
- Keystone STARS is a state-wide initiative to improve, support and recognize the continuous quality improvement efforts of early learning and school-age care and education in Pennsylvania. By meeting standards of practice and professionalism child care facilities move through designations to the highest level known as a STAR 4 facility.
- Low cost professional development opportunities designed to help early learning and school-age education professionals move upward through a career lattice. The NE Key in partnership with more than 80 instructors and organizations offers workshops, symposiums, conferences and also partners with institutes of higher education to fund credential and credit-bearing courses.
- Free onsite technical assistance offered to Keystone STARS facilities to assist in enhancing quality and moving to the next STAR level.
- STARS grants and awards assist regulated programs enhance the quality of children’s programs.
- The School-Age Child Care Project is designed to assist school-age facilities and practitioners with supports and resources geared toward school-age children.
- And the Infant/Toddler Project provides on-site support to Infant and Toddler classrooms.
- The Northeast Regional Key support Line is where practitioners can call and speak with a Technical Assistance Manager.
- A weekly email, called The Key Connection, highlighting Regional Key and partner updates and new, upcoming professional development, opportunities, resource information and announcements.
- Technical Assistance Papers (TAP’s) with information on a variety of topics.
Child Care programs are encouraged to contact the Northeast Key at 800-528-7222 extension to learn more about the services and opportunities available to the Early Learning community. A special transition phone line has been set up for the 5 new counties – call 800-528-7222 extension 2320.
CSC is a regional leader in early childhood education and family development, affecting the lives of 40,000 children annually. CSC believes all children deserve a chance to succeed in school, which begins in early childhood within a nurturing family.