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 West Virginia Department of Human Services Division of Early Care and Education does not currently have a dedicated program for grants or contracts. It is the intention of the state to develop a program that will provide grants, via the child care resource and referral agencies, to child care providers who are awarded a grant. Each child care provider awarded a grant will be responsible for keeping the slot filled with an eligible child; eligible children include those that qualify for child care subsidy and are infants/toddlers, children with disabilities (who agree to work closely with both the parent(s) and West Virginia Birth-3 (the states primary system of services and supports for children under age three who have or are at risk of a developmental delay). In addition, grants will be available for child care providers who begin providing services during nontraditional hours and in underserved areas. Child care providers who are either a Tier II or III program will be given priority at time of application. Those that are a Tier I will be given consideration if they begin the process of doing the work necessary to achieve a higher quality tier within the grant period. West Virginia currently has six child care resource and referral agencies which oversee every grant in the state based on regions. Each child care resource and referral agency will be tasked with awarding, at the onset of the grant, two awards for each of the categories mentioned above ￿ infants/toddlers, children with disabilities and underserved populations. Initially, the new grant program will serve a total of 36 children. The grant will pay child care providers the statewide average rate applicable for each child served. WV will seek a waiver for this new federal requirement, it is anticipated that grants will be implemented by August 2026. Before that, data will be collected to ensure grants are targeting the appropriate groups. Stakeholder meetings will be held to discuss aspects applicable to this new initiative, including, but not limited to, the grant requirements, funding totals and policies/procedures for the grant process. 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. [x] 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: Payment to the provider must equal minimum wage. ii. [x] Restricted based on the in-home provider meeting a minimum age requirement. Describe: The in-home provider 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: The in-home provider must be related to the children in care and cannot be a resident sibling. v. [x] Restricted to care for children with special needs or a medical condition. Describe: There must be a valid medical reason that the child cannot attend a program outside the home. vi. [ ] Restricted to in-home providers that meet additional health and safety requirements beyond those required by CCDF. Describe: vii. [ ] Other. Describe: 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: Child care resource and referral agencies are charged with assessing the and quality and supply of infant and toddler child care in their catchment areas. ii. Method of tracking progress: Child Care Resource and Referral agencies are required to submit their reports to the State yearly, this is the data source used to track progress. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes Child care resource and referral agencies are charged with assisting and recruiting family child care providers as part of their contract. They use a variety of methods, including social media campaigns, community events, and advertising. CCR&Rs support individuals in navigating the background check and regulatory requirements. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? Not applicable b. In different regions of the State or Territory: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: Child care resource and referral agencies are charged with assessing the quality and supply of child care in their catchment areas. ii. Method of tracking progress: Child Care Resource and Referral agencies are required to submit their reports to the State yearly, this is the data source used to track progress. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? Child care resource and referral agencies are charged with assisting and recruiting family child care providers as part of their contract. They use a variety of methods, including social media campaigns, community events, and advertising. CCR&Rs support individuals in navigating the background check and regulatory requirements. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? The lead agency is not currently focused on building supply through the use of child care centers. Much of West Virginia is quite rural, and does not have the population base to support a child care center. The lead agency has elected to focus on building supply through family child care settings. c. In care for special populations: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: West Virginia does not have special populations identified at this time. ii. Method of tracking progress: Not applicable. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? Not applicable. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? Not applicable. 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: Child care resource and referral agencies are charged with assessing the supply and quality of supply of child care in their catchment areas. They are required to submit a report to the Division of Early Care and Education documenting areas of need. They network with Family Regional Networks to collect data, and attend community events to recruit potential providers. b. Infants and toddlers. Describe: Each Child Care Resource and Referral agency employs two Infant Toddler Specialists and an Infant Toddler Coaching Specialists, for a total of 18 across the state. These staff help child care providers improve the quality of the care they provide through technical assistance, professional development, coaching and linkages with infant and toddler resources and equipment. Child care resource and referral agencies also survey and assess the supply of infant and toddler care, and recruit as necessary within their regions. Families who qualify for services sometimes call to state that they can’t find an open child care slot for their infant or toddler. This information is relayed to the Provider Recruitment Committee as is any information that we receive from child care centers about their wait lists for infants and toddlers. c. Children with disabilities. Describe: Each Child Care Resource and Referral agency employs two behavior consultants to assist child care providers in supporting children with special needs. There are a total of 12 in across the state. These staff help child care providers improve the quality of care provided to children with disabilities through technical assistance, professional development, coaching and linkages to resources and equipment. In addition, the Lead Agency funds a network of six Nurse Health Consultants who can provide education, consultation, technical assistance and support for children with special health needs. In addition, the lead agency provides an enhancement rate of $3 per day, per child for children with documented disabilities, Child care resource and referral agencies can assist in connecting parents with Birth to Three and/or Help Me Grow to provide access to enhanced rates. d. Children who receive care during non-traditional hours. Describe: The Lead Agency provides a supplement of $6 per child per day for providers who provide care during non- traditional hours. To target potential child care providers, the Provider Recruitment Team located at the CCR&Rs developed a video advertisement to be played at movie theaters. This thirty second advertisement is played repeatedly before each movie begins and expose many movie goers to the benefits of becoming a child care provider. The Provider Recruitment Team also developed a newspaper advertisement that was placed in newspapers. This ad was placed in physical newspapers and as digital ads. CCR&R staff continue to attend community events, job fairs, and informational sessions to spread the word about the importance of and need for child care providers. e. Other. Specify what population is being focused on to increase supply or improve quality. Describe: Not Applicable. 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 is currently the recipient of a Preschool Development Grant Birth to Five planning grant. The Lead Agency has completed its needs assessment and is now working on its strategic plan to set goals for the next five years, which will include increasing access to high quality programs for all families. Each CCR&R's Provider Support Specialist used Child Care Aware of America’s Mapping the Gap tool to prioritize the top three counties in need of child care in their region, and plans promotional events in those specific areas. 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.