4.5 Supply Building

Building a supply of high-quality child care that meets the needs and preferences of parents participating in CCDF is necessary to meet CCDF’s core purposes. Lead Agencies must support parent choice by providing some portion of direct services via grants or contracts, including at a minimum for children in underserved geographic areas, infants and toddlers, and children with disabilities. 4.5.1 Child care services available through grants or contracts Does the Lead Agency provide direct child care services through grants or contracts for child care slots? [ ] Yes, statewide. Describe how the Lead Agency ensures that parents who enroll with a provider who has a grant or contract have choices when selecting a provider: [ ] Yes, in some jurisdictions, but not statewide. Describe how many jurisdictions use grants or contracts for child care slots and how the Lead Agency ensures that parents who enroll with a provider who has a grant or contract have choices when selecting a provider: [x] No. If no, describe any Lead Agency plans to provide direct child care services through grants and contracts for child care slots: The Lead Agency does not meet this provision of the final rule and will file a waiver. If no, skip to question 4.5.2. i. If yes, identify the populations of children served through grants or contracts for child care slots (check all that apply). For each population selected, identify the number of slots allocated through grants or contracts for direct service of children receiving CCDF. [ ] Children with disabilities. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Infants and toddlers. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children in underserved geographic areas. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children needing non-traditional hour care. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] School-age children. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children experiencing homelessness. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children in urban areas. Percent of CCDF children served in an average month: [ ] Children in rural areas. Percent of CCDF children served in an average month: [ ] Other populations. If checked, describe: ii. If yes, how are rates for slots funded by grants and contracts determined by the Lead Agency? 4.5.2 Care in the child’s home (in-home care) The Lead Agency must allow for in-home care (i.e., care provided in the child’s own home) but may limit its use. Will the Lead Agency limit the use of in-home care in any way? [x] Yes. [ ] No. If yes, what limits will the Lead Agency set on the use of in-home care? Check all that apply. i. [ ] Restricted based on the minimum number of children in the care of the in- home provider to meet the Fair Labor Standards Act (minimum wage) requirements. Describe: ii. [x] Restricted based on the in-home provider meeting a minimum age requirement. Describe: In-home providers must be at least 18 years of age. iii. [ ] Restricted based on the hours of care (i.e., certain number of hours, non- traditional work hours). Describe: iv. [x] Restricted to care by relatives. (A relative provider must be at least 18 years of age based on the definition of eligible child care provider.) Describe: Relative is defined as aunt, uncle, grandparent, great grandparent, or sibling not living in the home. v. [ ] Restricted to care for children with special needs or a medical condition. Describe: vi. [x] Restricted to in-home providers that meet additional health and safety requirements beyond those required by CCDF. Describe: Prior to approval, in- home providers must complete various background checks including a child welfare and criminal history check. Persons convicted of or entering a plea of guilty for (1) violence against a person, (2) child abuse or neglect, (3) possession, sale or distribution of illegal drugs, (4) sexual misconduct, or (5) gross irresponsibility or disregard for the safety of others are not approved as in- home providers. The in-home provider must also complete first aid and CPR training prior to approval. Once approved, the in-home provider must complete basic health and safety training and provide a self-certification within 90 days of approval. After the first year, the in-home provider must complete a minimum of 6 hours of training annually. If caring for a special needs child, the in-home provider must complete an additional 6 hours of training related to caring for a child with disabilities within 6 months of approval. vii. [x] Other. Describe: The provider must not be a member of the child’s household and can only care for the child of one family at a time. 4.5.3 Shortages in the supply of child care Lead Agencies must identify shortages in the supply of child care providers that meet parents’ needs and preferences. What child care shortages has the Lead Agency identified in the State or Territory, and what is the plan to address the child care shortages? a. In infant and toddler programs: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty-four child care deserts w/in the State. ii. Method of tracking progress: The lead agency monitors programs that received desert grant and exceptional needs funding, according to the appropriate licensing regulations. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty-four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty- four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. b. In different regions of the State or Territory: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify 34 child care deserts w/in the State. ii. Method of tracking progress: The lead agency monitors programs that received desert grant and exceptional needs funding, according to the appropriate licensing regulations. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty-four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty- four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. c. In care for special populations: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify 34 child care deserts w/in the State. ii. Method of tracking progress: The lead agency monitors programs that received desert grant and exceptional needs funding, according to the appropriate licensing regulations. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty-four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? The lead agency partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty- four child care deserts w/in the State. The lead agency offered a child care desert and exceptional needs grant to address supply demand and to provide programs with funding to assist with offering services to children with special needs. These grants were available to both child care centers and family child care homes. 4.5.4 Strategies to increase the supply of and improve quality of child care Lead Agencies must develop and implement strategies to increase the supply of and improve the quality of child care services. These strategies must address child care in underserved geographic areas; infants and toddlers; children with disabilities, as defined by the Lead Agency; and children who receive care during non-traditional hours. How does the Lead Agency identify any gaps in the supply and quality of child care services and what strategies are used to address those gaps for: a. Underserved geographic areas. Describe: The Lead Agency will continue to focus on recruitment efforts throughout the state by offering opportunities for the public to learn about licensed child care and the availability of services offered by being a licensed program. These efforts include the Lead Agency Quality Coaches conducting regional partner meetings which include licensing, community partners and contracted partners. These meetings serve to share and discuss issues that are unique to child care community and collaborate in these efforts. These meetings are conducted quarterly throughout regions of the state. The Lead Agency also provides recruitment and informational opportunities throughout the state as provided by the licensing specialist assigned areas and the Quality Rating System stars outreach specialist. These are supported multiple times throughout the year. The Oklahoma Child Care Resource and Referral Association (OCCRA) works actively offering services through statewide regional offices. They provide reconnect events and are active in local communities throughout the state to increase awareness of the child care industry needs. Each of these services are available and provided throughout the state to include areas determined to be underserved. b. Infants and toddlers. Describe: Through a quality contract with OCCRRA, Infant Toddler specialist work entirely with programs providing care to infants and toddlers. These services include training and technical assistance centered around this unique care. Oklahoma Child Care Warmline can assist with offering resources and referrals to programs caring for this age group. Oklahoma Child Care Quality Coaches may provide practice-based coaching around infant toddler centered care. OCCRRA also provides pyramid focused training and services to improve the quality of care of infants and toddlers throughout the state. OCCRRA infant toddler specialist actively participates in events throughout the state providing information of supports available through their services. c. Children with disabilities. Describe: The Lead Agency provides a special tiered rate for providers that care for children with disabilities meeting the criteria. Licensing specialist monitor to ensure that training is completed specific to the child in care. These efforts are shared during recruitment and public events by the Lead Agency and contracted partners throughout the state. d. Children who receive care during non-traditional hours. Describe: Recruitment efforts include providing information on need for children during those non-traditional hours of operation. These efforts are supported through licensing recruitment efforts, and OCCRRA. e. Other. Specify what population is being focused on to increase supply or improve quality. Describe: Efforts are being made to support family child care homes through the OCCRRA Thrive Network. This establishes cohorts of providers in regions throughout the state providing specialized training and supports for business practices, specialized needs and a network focusing on special needs of the home care provider. Also available through the regional OCCRRA offices are established business coaches whose main focus is on supports leading to successful business practices. 4.5.5 Prioritization of investments in areas of concentrated poverty and unemployment Lead Agencies must prioritize investments for increasing access to high-quality child care and development services for children of families in areas that have significant concentrations of poverty and unemployment and do not currently have sufficient numbers of such programs. Describe how the Lead Agency prioritizes increasing access to high-quality child care and development services for children of families in areas that have significant concentrations of poverty and unemployment and that do not have access to high-quality programs. The Lead Agency values the prioritization of increasing the availability of access to high-quality programs throughout the state and partnered with The Center on American Progress to identify thirty-four child care deserts within the state. Child Care Desert Grants were available within the identified area for expansion and creation of new programs. A multi-system approach involving agency personnel, and partner agencies is used to improve the quality and availability of programs throughout the state. *The Oklahoma Child Care Resource and Referral will make contact with each program located within their region. Resources and technical assistance are available to improve the quality of care. These services are available within every county and region of the state. Infant Toddler specialist with go in and work exclusively with personnel working with infant and toddler age children. *Child Care Services Quality Coaches work with programs to improve overall quality by offering in depth practice-based coaching on identifies quality criteria. *Lead Agency Stars Outreach Specialist work with any program that participates in the state Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) and work to increase participation in the program by holding monthly meetings and being available for onsite consultation with licensing specialist working on QRIS monitoring. *Through the Center for Early Childhood Professional Development (CECPD), professional development is available with the focus on providing quality child care in all settings. Also, through the CECPD, Leadership Academy is available for center and home personnel that works to increase the management skill within a program, increasing overall quality. 5 Health and Safety of Child Care Settings Child care health and safety standards and enforcement practices are essential to protect the health and safety of children while out of their parents’ care. CCDF provides a minimum threshold for child care health and safety policies and practices but leaves authority to Lead Agencies to design standards that appropriately protect children’s safety and promote nurturing environments that support their healthy growth and development. Lead Agencies should set standards for ratios, group size limits, and provider qualifications that help ensure that the child care environment is conducive to safety and learning and enable caregivers to promote all domains of children’s development. CCDF health and safety standards help set clear expectations for CCDF providers, form the foundation for health and safety training for child care workers, and establish the baseline for monitoring to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements. These health and safety requirements apply to all providers serving children receiving CCDF services – whether the providers are licensed or license-exempt, must be appropriate to the provider setting and age of the children served, must include specific topics and training on those topics, and are subject to monitoring and enforcement procedures by the Lead Agency. CCDF-required annual monitoring and enforcement actions help ensure that CCDF providers are adopting and implementing health and safety requirements. Through child care licensing, Lead Agencies set minimum requirements, including health and safety requirements, that child care providers must meet to legally operate in that State or Territory. In some cases, CCDF health and safety requirements may be integrated within the licensing system for licensed providers and may be separate for CCDF providers who are license- exempt. This section addresses CCDF health and safety requirements, Lead Agency licensing requirements and exemptions, and comprehensive background checks. When responding to questions in this section, OCC recognizes that each Lead Agency identifies and defines its own categories of care. OCC does not expect Lead Agencies to change their definitions to fit the CCDF-defined categories of care. For these questions, provide responses that best match the CCDF categories of care.