Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL).
Family Support Needs Assessment
Oct. 22, 2020: The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) released a new Family Support Needs Assessment covering needs and challenges experienced by families with young children and opportunities to address these needs and better serve families across Pennsylvania. The assessment, which was developed in partnership with PolicyLab at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and OCDEL found that substance use, intimate partner violence and mental health challenges are among the most pronounced issues facing young families across urban and rural communities and shows overall improvement in maternal and child health outcomes across many of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties since the last statewide needs assessment in 2014. Read more.
Funding Opportunity
Oct. 16, 2020: The fiscal year (FY) 2021 Farm to School Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA) is now available. New for FY 2021, institutions operating the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program at non-school based sites are included in the definition of eligible schools and may apply for funding. This includes nonprofits and small businesses. Read more.
Study: COVID-19 Transmission in US Child Care Programs
Oct. 14, 2020: A study of more than 57,000 childcare providers across the United States has found that those who continued working through the initial months of the pandemic weren’t more likely to catch COVID-19 than those who were out of work. The findings, which were publishedOctober 14 in the Journal Pediatrics, indicate that child care programs aren’t likely to spread COVID-19 through the community when employees take precautions such as wearing masks and keeping the kids in their care socially distanced from each other. Read more.
