6.1 Supporting the Child Care Workforce

Lead Agencies have broad flexibility to implement policies and practices to support the child care workforce. 6.1.1 Strategies to improve recruitment, retention, compensation, and well-being a. Identify any Lead Agency activities related to strengthening workforce recruitment and retention of child care providers. Check all that apply: i. [x] Providing program-level grants to support investments in staff compensation. ii. [ ] Providing bonuses or stipends paid directly to staff, like sign-on or retention bonuses. iii. [x] Connecting family child care providers and center-based child care staff to health insurance or supporting premiums in the Marketplace. iv. [x] Subsidizing family child care provider and center-based child care staff retirement benefits. v. [x] Providing paid sick, personal, and parental leave for family child care providers and center-based child care staff. vi. [ ] Providing student loan debt relief or loan repayment for family child care providers and center-based child care staff. vii. [x] Providing scholarships or tuition support for center-based child care staff and family child care providers. viii. [x] Other. Describe: For the Baby Promise Program, CCR&Rs work closely with Baby Promise Program Providers on their budgets, including compensation, and other benefits for employees to determine a cost per slot that supports recruitment and retention of the work force. Starting September 2023, Oregon offers employees paid leave in the form of a new program, Paid Leave Oregon. If someone is eligible for benefits, it means they’re able to participate in Paid Leave. Employees who currently work in Oregon and who made at least $1,000 in Oregon in their base year before they apply for Paid Leave may be eligible for benefits. If you work full time, part time, or for more than one job or employer, it counts. If you’re self-employed or an independent contractor, you’re not automatically covered￿but you can choose coverage. Tribal governments aren’t automatically covered and aren’t required to participate but can choose to offer coverage to their employees. Federal government employees aren’t eligible for Paid Leave benefits. Elected officials, judges, and holders of public office aren’t eligible for Paid Leave benefits. Employees can take up to 12 weeks paid leave in a 52-week period (starting the Sunday before the date their leave begins) for family, medical, or safe leave. If pregnant, in some situations, an employee may be able to take up to 2 more weeks for a total of 14 weeks. Employees can choose when and how to take the time off, as long as they take entire days or weeks. Paid Leave pays employees a percentage of their wages while they’re on leave. Paid leave protects an employee’s job and role if they’ve worked for the same employer for at least 90 consecutive days. b. Describe any Lead Agency ongoing efforts and future plans to assess and improve the compensation of the child care workforce in the State or Territory, including increasing wages, bonuses, and stipends. For the Baby Promise Program subcontractors (providers) are required to compensate staff at competitive and comparable Salary levels with those of other Early Educators in their region serving publicly funded programs. The Baby Promise Program also collects provider budgets to assess compensation for the infant and toddler child care workforce for participating providers. The passage of House Bill 3073 in the 2021 Oregon Legislative Session required Oregon to plan to move to an alternate rate setting structure based on the cost of quality. The Alternative Rate Methodology Committee formed and drafted a report for the Oregon legislature in December 2022. Due to the creation of DELC as a new agency, the re-design of Oregon’s QRIS (Spark), budgetary constraints, and the development of a new provider management platform, movement to an alternative rate setting structure is ongoing. Oregon has a contract with Prenatal to 5 Fiscal Strategies presently providing technical assistance to Oregon State University, who will eventually conduct future cost modeling to inform Oregon’s application to use alternative rate methodology. c. Describe any Lead Agency ongoing efforts and future plans to expand access to benefits, including health insurance, paid sick, personal, and parental leave, and retirement benefits. The Lead Agency and AFSCME CCPT, the union who represents licensed family child care providers in Oregon, are part of a joint labor management committee that is working to determine the steps that may be taken to begin supporting Family Child Care Providers access to high-quality healthcare. The committee will submit a report to state leadership by May 31, 2024, that includes a detailed analysis of total annual cost projections and implementation considerations for health benefits. The Lead Agency does not have any funding secured for this benefit. AFSCME CCPT represented providers currently have access to telehealth benefits through June 30, 2025. AFSCME has an enterprise agreement with a telehealth provider, and the Lead Agency reimburses the union through a reimbursement grant. This benefit was originally funded through $5M in ARPA dollars. The Lead Agency does not have any additional funding secured for this benefit. Baby Promise Program Providers work closely with technical assistance partners at their local CCR&R’s (with whom they have subcontracted) to carefully construct and review their budgets to determine wages and benefits for themselves and their staff. Guidance documentation for providers encourages them to include paid sick time, personal time, and other benefits for themselves and their staff, further they are required to set wages at competitive and comparable Salary levels with those of other Early Educators in their region serving publicly funded programs. Currently the provider payment system that is utilized to pay child care providers is complex and takes significant effort to update. The agency is in the process of developing a new Provider Management Platform that when implemented will allow for changes in compensation practices including enrollment-based pay. Moving to enrollment-based pay will enable providers to be paid for necessary time off for holidays and professional development. d. Describe any Lead Agency ongoing efforts and future plans to support the mental health and well-being of the child care workforce. ELSI, which is not funded by CCDF, has a focus on workforce wellness. Activities include analyzing Oregon’s SEQUAL report, identifying and developing professional development activities and resources to support workforce wellness. The Research Institute at Western Oregon University, Oregon’s Central Coordination state entity for Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, conducts an annual training assessment for all 15 of the regional CCR&Rs. The results inform the Training and TA plans for universal, targeted, and intensive training for CCR&R staff. These trainings prepare the CCR&Rs to support their local child care providers. Wellness is an important component of the training plans for both CCR&R staff and child care providers. Additionally, CCR&Rs conduct an annual training assessment for their child care providers in order to plan and design their trainings in response to child care providers’ needs. These also incorporate strategies to support the mental health and well-being of the child care workforce. The Research Institute at Western Oregon University also administers Child Care Substitute of Oregon (CCSO). While not currently funded by CCDF, this program support workforce wellbeing by providing substitute staff when a provider is ill, on vacation, attending a professional learning event or meetings, or is in need of additional staffing. This program provides up to 50 hours of substitute care for early learning programs, at no cost. This program currently operated in several counties across Oregon, with the goal to continue to employee additional substitutes in each county. The Oregon Child Care Alliance provides an employee assistance program provided through Canopy Wellness Services although not funded through CCDF, they continue to provide ongoing supports towards the mental health and well-being of child care workforce. This service provides free 1:1 consultation to providers in the shared services program. These consultations are given for multiple counseling services and legal aid. Infant Toddler Specialists across the CCR&R regions receive training in trauma responsive practices and relationship based professional development supports. They support provider’s well-being by meeting with them individually to provide concrete TA support as well as connecting them to other infant and toddler providers within the field in order to decrease isolation and improve cross program connections. Infant Toddler Specialists use a trauma-responsive approach to their work that prioritizes relationships with providers and connection both to mental health resources for themselves and the families they serve. e. Describe any other strategies the Lead Agency is developing and/or implementing to support providers’ recruitment and retention of the child care workforce. Local Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies implement several strategies to support providers’ recruitment and retention of the child care workforce for their regions. These efforts are a primary focus of their funding and regional strategic plans. In partnership with the regional Early Learning Hubs and other early learning partners, community assessments are conducted to determine the supply of child care vs the need. CCR&Rs provide data reports through the state database of child care providers and referrals, Find Child Care Oregon. From these data, strategic plans are developed to target recruitment of needed child care in areas where children and families are furthest from opportunity and high-quality child care. Recruitment efforts include outreach to high schools that offer ECE classes, community colleges, universities, Small Business Development Centers, word of mouth and required training to become regulated are offered at no cost to those entering the field. Retention strategies include a variety of opportunities that are relationship-based, create a sense of connection and belonging, and promote the understanding that child care providers are professionals in a crucially important field for the healthy growth, well-being, and success of Oregon’s children. These activities incorporate regular check-ins and professional growth and peer learning and include Focused Child Care Networks, coaching and consultation, trainings that are universal, targeted, and intensive dependent upon need, CCR&R Quality Improvement Specialists who are their main point of contact for questions, guidance, and support. Child Care Providers also receive a variety of incentives for attending training, participating in Focused Child Care Networks and continual advancement in Spark, Oregon’s QRIS and the Oregon Registry, Oregon’s Career Lattice. Additional retention strategies include providing Technical Assistance, training/professional development, and consultation to strengthen child care business acumen and support long-term sustainability of both child care businesses and the workforce. Technical Assistance resources and support will be targeted to keep child care businesses open and operating efficiently to retain jobs to keep the child care workforce employed. Partial CCDF funding will be used to contract with First Children’s Finance to provide statewide technical assistance, consultation, and virtual professional development opportunities. Additionally, Business Coaches at CCR&Rs, although not directly funded by CCDF, will work with child care business owners to identify recruitment and retention strategies to maintain and build the workforce. The provision of a 12-month contract for Baby Promise Program Providers offers providers an opportunity to potentially build their businesses, offering an opportunity to hire additional staff. Providers who demonstrate to the community the ability to qualify for and contract for Baby Promise slots are sending a message to families in the community that they are not only stable but offer high quality programming. Further, continued support from CCR&R staff promotes continued growth and development for matters related to business and programming. The Baby Promise Program supports recruitment and retention efforts and offers providers an opportunity to become stable and sustainable over time. ELSI, which does not get CCDF funds, provides mentorship and other forms of professional development for instructional coaches working in DELC-funded programs, as well as quality specialists who consult with program leaders to improve quality. Cultivate Learning, which does not get CCDF funds, provides access to the Oregon Coaching Companion ￿ another resource for instructional coaches. Although not primarily retention strategies, these activities help recruit and retain technical assistance staff, as lack of support, preparation, and resources may discourage professionals from joining and staying in the early learning workforce. The same may be said for instructional coaching and quality consultation by technical assistance staff: although not primarily retention strategies, they can nevertheless reduce burnout and turnover in the early learning workforce. Consortia, which are designed to support students seeking degrees and certification in early childhood education, with wrap-around academic, language, and person support, were expanded through a planning grant and subsequent implementation grants. Oregon now has one university and 8 community colleges across the state. In addition to offering students support and a pathway to debt free degrees, consortia have increased program enrollment, course success and graduation rates. These partnerships have had ripple effects, encouraging those, even outside of the consortia, to work together towards better alignment and support for students. A scholarship was created that can be used for working and not yet working students to achieve degrees at community colleges and universities or have their out-of-country degree evaluated, where previously only lower- level degrees were possible, and the student was required to already be working. and passed in the legislature but has yet to be funded. This scholarship has been highly accessed, and the Lead Agency hopes to use that data to demonstrate the demand and push for funding a HECC scholarship that was passed but unfunded in the legislature. Portland State University (PSU) who is Oregon’s registry and clearinghouse of early childhood training, including approval of trainings and trainers, partnered with National Workforce Registry Alliance to make recommendations for system improvement. The Lead Agency is currently in the process of finalizing the workplan from those recommendations. Possible items include translation of the registry into Oregon’s 5 languages and shifting approval processes to invite more trainers, resulting in more training, from a diversity of backgrounds and who speak languages other than English among other changes. Spark, Oregon’s QRIS, is currently being redesigned. Before embarking on the redesign, the Center for the study of Child Care Employment conducted the Supportive Environmental Quality Underlying Adult Learning (SEQUAL) survey and created recommendations to enhance program quality and improve provider well-being. Spark specific recommendations included embedding work environment standards to emphasize their importance and to direct quality improvement resources toward improving conditions. The Lead Agency is exploring how to implement those recommendations with the community-driven Spark redesign team, known as the Spark Accountability Team. One strategy is to shift from one-time Spark support funds to annual or biannual grant awards and to provide guidance to programs on eligible expenses which will include improving provider well-being and workplace conditions. The planning process for implementing this strategy is currently underway. 6.1.2 Strategies to support provider business practices a. Describe other strategies that the Lead Agency is developing and/or implementing to strengthen child care providers’ business management and administrative practices. CCR&R agencies that subcontract with Baby Promise Providers are required to submit an annual ￿Shared Services Plan￿ in which they outline supports provided to Baby Promise Providers and outcomes of trainings provided for them. Baby Promise Providers are supported through CCR&R technical assistance on development of budgets, and other business practices before and during their sub contractual period. The Lead Agency has entered into a contract with First Children’s Finance (FCF), a non-profit organization which specializes in technical assistance for child care businesses. Although not funded by CCDF, FCF will interact and provide services which all child care businesses will be able to benefit from. For child care business the following menu of services are available through FCF: business coaching, cohort-based learning opportunities focused on several different business practices and competencies, templates and materials to support effective business practices and access to additional technical assistance to support access to public funding. FCF also supports system building. FCF has developed a statewide child care business ecosystem report, with companion state system recommendations. They have also been contracted to support technical assistance connected to forthcoming public infrastructure grants, which will allow them to set up a state center focusing on Oregon’s unique business characteristics. Spark (Oregon’s QRIS) currently offers one-time support funds for classroom and program administration materials and professional development. Instead of one-time support funds, we are preparing to offer grants that providers/programs can apply for annually or biennially to strengthen their practices. During our first stage of the Spark redesign process, families voiced the importance of providers and programs having access to Spark before children are in their care, and we are exploring ways to accommodate their request so programs can start with stronger business practices in place. DELC provided additional FTE funding to several regional Child Care Resource and Referral agencies to employ Business Coaches as part of a Shared Services project. Technical assistance and professional learning supports are offered to Business Coaches through Oregon Child Care Alliance (OCCA). Oregon Child Care Alliance supports child care providers to develop stronger and more sustainable business practices through business coaching, business training, financial management software and other business services. The goal is to help child care providers increase their revenue, solve challenging business problems, and manage what we call the ￿Iron Triangle￿ of child care business: 1) full fee collection on time every month; 2) full enrollment; and 3) setting rates that cover the true cost of programming. Individuals interested in becoming a Registered Family child care provider must complete the Introduction to Registered Family Part 1 and 2. These courses include general information on several child care business topics including: marketing, insurance, record keeping and payment policies. b. Check the topics addressed in the Lead Agency’s strategies for strengthening child care providers’ administrative business practices. Check all that apply: i. [ ] Fiscal management. ii. [x] Budgeting. iii. [x] Recordkeeping. iv. [x] Hiring, developing, and retaining qualified staff. v. [x] Risk management. vi. [x] Community relationships. vii. [x] Marketing and public relations. viii. [x] Parent-provider communications. ix. [x] Use of technology in business administration. x. [x] Compliance with employment and labor laws. xi. [ ] Other. Describe any other efforts to strengthen providers’ administrative business: 6.1.3 Strategies to support provider participation Lead Agencies must facilitate participation of child care providers and staff with limited English proficiency and disabilities in the child care subsidy system. Describe how the Lead Agency will facilitate this participation, including engagement with providers to identify barriers and specific strategies used to support their participation: a. Providers and staff with limited English proficiency: All forms, templates, and guidance documents may be translated into different languages for providers and staff with limited English proficiency. Interpretation is offered for meetings in which providers with preferred language preferences are attending. CCR&R staff include bilingual Quality Improvement Specialists and Infant Toddler Specialists to assist child care providers with limited English proficiency in accessing the subsidy system. They strive to hire multi- lingual/bilingual staff to meet the needs of the languages in their regions. The registry houses training for incoming subsidy providers, that training is translated (online, in person and self-study) into the 5 main languages in Oregon. In addition, the study of the registry offered recommendations that the registry should be translated as well. That workplan is currently under development. b. Providers and staff who have disabilities: A variety of strategies are used to recruit providers who have disabilities into the subsidy system. Child care resource and referral programs recruit and support child care providers with disabilities by providing professional interpretation and signing for deaf or hearing-impaired providers to enter the field. Supportive activities include Introduction to Registered Family Programs Child Care or the orientation to the subsidy program, as well as ongoing training. The Lead Agency pays for interpreting services. Child care resource and referral programs work to provide appropriate methods of communication to ensure full participation, as well as ADA accommodations.