We are collecting statewide experiences of childcare providers to identify which resources providers have access to, rely on, gaps in available resources, desired technical assistance, and other resources providers need to inform the development of a suspension and expulsion prevention program (SEPP).
Please take this survey and share your experience as a Child Care Provider in Oregon. We are collecting statewide experiences of childcare providers to identify which resources providers have access to, rely on, gaps in available resources, desired technical assistance, and other resources providers need to inform the development of a suspension and expulsion prevention program (SEPP). Your response will be anonymized and no personal, identifiable information will be shared.
The survey will take about 15-20 minutes to complete. As a token of our appreciation, you will receive a $25 digital gift card once your status as a child care provider is confirmed. The results of the survey will be available to the public by January 2025.
If you are a child care provider, and interested in taking the survey please email the DELC research team at delc.research@delc.oregon.gov to receive the survey link.
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Oregon conducts a Market Price & Supply Study (MPSS) every two years to understand the current prices and supply of child care across the state.
Oregon conducts a Market Price & Supply Study (MPSS) every two years to understand the current prices and supply of child care across the state. By participating, you help Oregon leaders have the information they need to make policy decisions, such as setting subsidy rates and investing in child care supply.
The 2024 study will be conducted between October 1 – December 31. You will be asked to verify the rates you charge for your program and current child care capacity. This can be done in the Find Child Care Oregon (FCCO) Provider Portal or through your local CCR&R. Your program information is combined with other facilities for local and state decision-making purposes. Price information is not shared with parents and is reported without identifiable program information.
The study is a partnership between your local Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R), The Research Institute at Western Oregon University, Oregon State University, and the Department of Early Learning and Care (DELC).
Watch for more information from your Child Care Resource & Referral in early October!
Learn more about previous Market Price and Supply studies by clicking on the documents below!
Let’s celebrate Oregon Pre-Kindergarten (OPK) and Early Head Start programs!
Launched in 1965, Head Start programs promote children’s development through services that support early learning, health, and family well-being. Let’s celebrate Oregon Pre-Kindergarten (OPK) and Early Head Start programs!
We are happy to share that the 2023 Preschool Development Grant (PDG) Provider Survey Report is now available.
We are happy to share that the 2023 Preschool Development Grant (PDG) Provider Survey Report is now available. This survey is the fourth in a series of surveys that asks early care and education (ECE) professionals questions about themselves, their work and well-being, and the families they serve. The survey also collects information about what can help or hinder programs providing ECE to children and their families.
We want to thank the 2,705 professionals across Oregon who shared their thoughts and experiences. The report highlights the challenges that ECE programs face in finding, retaining, and compensating staff; the high levels of job-related stress experienced by members of the workforce; the challenges in accessing training and supports related to supporting children with perceived challenging behaviors; racial disparities in rates of suspension and expulsion; and the opportunities to improve Professional Development opportunities available to providers.
The authors of this report offer recommendations that will help to guide the Department of Early Learning and Care’s (DELC) continuous improvement work, keeping provider perspectives at the core.
The Provider Survey was conducted by Portland State’s Center for Improvement of Child and Family Services and Oregon Social Learning Center Developments, Inc., and it was funded by the Preschool Development Grant. DELC would like to thank these research partners for their collaboration and commitment to improving the Early Childhood Education system.
On Monday, September 30, DELC staff joined in observance of National Orange Shirt Day, a day of both remembrance and celebration of resilience.
On Monday, September 30, DELC staff joined in observance of National Orange Shirt Day, a day of both remembrance and celebration of resilience. The day honored the Indigenous children in the United States and Canada who endured the harrowing experiences of Indian Boarding/residential schools, where they were pressured to abandon their rich cultural identities in favor of assimilation. The day also served as a solemn reminder of the trauma caused by these schools, and also a celebration of the strength and spirit of the survivors.
Each year, on National Orange Shirt Day, the American Indian and Alaska Native communities stand together in solidarity, acknowledging the devastating impacts that the Indian boarding school system in the U.S. had on many Tribal families, and honoring the diversity that enriches our world and fostering connections built on understanding and respect. Each story and experience are part of the intricate tapestry of Tribal culture—a culture that thrives on diversity, resilience, and the indomitable spirit of its people. It is a call to support survivors and actively combat all forms of racism, including systemic injustice and bullying. Together, we can help cultivate a society that cherishes the beauty of Tribal culture and diversity, ensuring that our collective past informs a brighter, more inclusive future.
Orange Shirt Day opens the door to crucial conversations about the impacts of the Indian boarding/residential school system, creating a platform for meaningful dialogue about the legacy that persists today. It is not only a day of remembrance but also an opportunity to uplift survivors and affirm their stories and experiences. The mantra “Every Child Matters” resonates deeply, reminding us that the journey toward healing includes everyone, regardless of age or background.
Each year on September 30, we encourage you to wear orange in support of Indian Boarding/residential school survivors, to honor the children who never returned home, and to promote reconciliation.
October 2024 Department of Early Learning and Care Updates
A Message from the Director
I can’t believe we are officially entering the Fall season! Another month has flown by, and I am excited to share some of my high points with you all as we close out September.
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Our October Update
Culture Assessment We have conducted an in-depth culture assessment of the agency with the support of Workplace Change. We were able to share our plans to respond to this assessment with DELC staff a couple of weeks ago, and are in the process of developing a dashboard to track out progress. As a new agency, DELC has a tremendous opportunity to be intentional in our work, the internal structures and processes we develop, and the culture we want to foster across our teams. Our Executive Leadership Team is committed to living our agency values of equity, integrity and continuous improvement and look forward to sharing more information in the coming months!
Hunt Institute I had the opportunity to travel with Kate Denison, Government Affairs Manager, as well as the Governor’s Office, Rep. Hoa Nguyen, Rep. Lucetta Elmer, and The Children’s Institute to spend two and a half days talking about and thinking about early learning alongside all 50 states and territories. We heard from leaders from across the country as they shared innovative ideas for increasing access to preschool and child care, along with the importance of the early years on a child’s long-term development. We also got to have State Team time to think about priorities for the next legislative session. While the days were long, it was a great reminder for me to pause and focus on relationship building not just within Oregon, but with our partner agencies in other states as well.
Head Start Awareness Month This month is Head Start Awareness Month! Head Start has been serving children and families across the country since 1965. Recognizing the tremendous impact of this two-generation program, Oregon created the Oregon Prenatal to Kindergarten program (Oregon Prekindergarten at the time) to duplicate the federal Head Start model with state funds. Now, thousands of families are benefiting from these services across the state. You can learn more about Oregon Prenatal to Kindergarten/Head Start on our website: https://www.oregon.gov/delc/programs/Pages/head-start-opk.aspx.
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Join our Family Child Care Rules Advisory Committee (RAC)
The Child Care Licensing Division (CCLD) is revising the Oregon Administrative Rules (OARs) that apply to Certified Family and Registered Family Child Care Homes. CCLD will create a Rules Advisory Committee (RAC) to gather valuable feedback on proposed rules and identify financial and equity effects that might result from the proposed updates.
CCLD would like to invite members of the following groups to apply to participate in this RAC:
Parents/family members of children in family child care programs
Certified Family Child Care Providers
Registered Family Child Care Providers
Child Care Provider Union Representatives
Child Care Resource and Referral Representatives
Early Learning HUB Representatives
Tribal Nation Representatives
Reimbursement:
Participants will be reimbursed for their time and expertise.
The application period opens on August 2, 2024 and closes on August 23, 2024.
Meeting Details:
Meetings will begin in September. Four meetings will be held. The meetings will be virtual. Meeting days and times will be finalized with the selected participants.
Additional questions?
For questions about participation, please contact Carol Petersen, at carol.a.petersen@delc.oregon.gov
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First Children’s Finance is hosting focus group sessions in August to hear from child care business owners about the experience of starting a child care business in Oregon.
First Children’s Finance is hosting focus group sessions in August to hear from child care business owners about the experience of starting a child care business in Oregon. The focus groups are for child care business owners who opened their program in the last two years or those currently in the process of starting a new child care business. Insights from these sessions will be used to inform recommendations made to state officials about how to better support child care business owners in the critical years after launch. Participants will be compensated $25 for their time and can only participate in one focus group session.
The focus group sessions in August will take place on Monday, August 26th at 6:00PM and Wednesday, August 28th at 6:00PM. Registration is now closed.
You can visit First Children’s Finance Oregon State Office webpage for more information and access other child care business resources at https://www.firstchildrensfinance.org/oregon/.
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You are invited to join the Provider Management Platform Engagement Session
The creation of DELC brought together the Child Care Licensing Division (CCLD) and the Employment Related Day Care (ERDC) program into the same new agency. Both are using 20+ year-old legacy systems. DELC is designing a new Provider Management Platform that will integrate CCLD licensing and the ERDC program into one system. The Provider Management Platform will allow child care providers to login and access certain licensing information, complete licensing applications, and track training requirements. Additionally, ERDC providers will be able to login and complete and submit billing forms using the Provider Management Platform. While we are designing this new Provider Management Platform, we want to hear what would be helpful to you to manage ERDC and Licensing.
If you are interested in participating in an Engagement Session for this new system, please register for an engagement based on the type of care you provide. You can register here.
Certified Centers & School Age programs
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. or
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, at 6:00 p.m.
Licensed Exempt ERDC providers
Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. (interpretation available)
Certified and Registered Family providers
Wednesday, August 28, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. (interpretation available)
If you are unable to attend any of these times, there will be additional opportunities in the future.
August 2024 Department of Early Learning and Care Updates
A Message from the Director
Welcome to the July Edition of Chatterjee Chats! This month represented a big milestone with the celebration of One Year of DELC! This past year has been a blur of activity – we have accomplished so much together, and there is still more work to do. Here are some reflections from me as we close out the month and head into Year Two 😊
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Our August Update
Customer Service Survey As a new agency, we will be launching our first DELC Customer Service Survey in August. If you have received funding from us, called our customer service team, been licensed or interacted with us in any way – we want to hear from you! While all agencies are required to conduct a customer service survey, we are particularly excited to hear from you as we’ve offered services as DELC. This survey should take you less than five minutes, and any feedback you share with us will help us operationalize our value for continuous improvement. For more information, please check out our website: Department of Early Learning and Care : About Us : State of Oregon
Budget Development This will continue to be a topic here for awhile! We are entering the last month of Agency Request Budget (ARB) development. ARB will be released by September 1, 2024. Given the current revenue forecast, our ARB requests will be smaller compared to last biennium, but it is just the first step in the process and there is still a lot of work to do before the Governor’s Recommended Budget (GRB) is released in December.
Legislative Concepts In addition to budget development, another part of preparing for the Legislative Session is preparing legislative concepts (LCs) for consideration. While ARB will be released in September, LCs will take a bit more time. We won’t expect to receive a draft of our legislative concepts until late October, and we will have a very short turnaround (a few days). From there, our legislative concepts will still need to be reviewed and approved by the Governor’s Office prior to release. More information to come, but this is still in the works.
Tribal-State Government-to-Government Summit On July 24, DELC’s Tribal Affairs Director, Paulina Whitehat and I had the great pleasure of attending the 2024 Tribal-State Government-to-Government Summit, co-hosted by Governor Tina Kotek and the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians. The summit took place in Canyonville at Seven Feathers Casino Resort. Tribal leaders of Oregon’s nine federally recognized sovereign Tribal nations along with staff from multiple state agencies discussed a range of issues including evolving best practices in Tribal consultation approaches, indigenous ecological knowledge, and topics related to economic and sustainable futures. It was wonderful to see so many colleagues and partners in person, and the summit is always an informative and moving event. We are deeply appreciative of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe for hosting this year’s gathering.
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