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GIM Adopted: 7.1.14 Revised: 5.30.18 GIM-1302_(1)v7 ERSEA of 116

GIM Grantee Instructional Memo

Head Start and Early Learning Division

Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment, and Attendance (ERSEA)

GIM Number GIM-1302_(1)v7

Effective Date July 1, 2014 Revised: May 30, 2018

Primary Regulation Head Start Act Head Start Performance Standards 45 CFR §1302 Subpart A and B LACOE Subrecipient Agreement

Other Regulation(s)

Attachment(s) ERSEA Manual

Introduction

The 2018-19 program year is the fifth year of the Los Angeles County Office of Education’s (LACOE) five-year grant with the Office of Head Start (OHS). LACOE contracts with private non-profit organizations and school districts for the delivery of Early Head Start, Head Start, California State Preschool Program (CSPP), and General Child Care and Development Center-Based Program (CCTR) services to children and families. Guided by four pillars of responsibility: 1) Program Leadership and Accountability; 2) Collaboration, Communication, and Outreach; 3) Assessment and Continuous Improvement; and 4) Workforce Development and Professional Learning, LACOE, in collaboration with its delegate agencies (delegates), ensures every funded slot is filled with an eligible child and that all children and families receive quality services. LACOE monitors that services are consistent with the federal, state, and local regulations and provides all delegates the support needed to achieve full enrollment and deliver quality services to children and families in an efficient and effective manner.

Los Angeles County Office of Education Head Start and Early Learning Division Grantee Instructional Memo

GIM Adopted: 7.1.14 Revised: 5.30.18 GIM-1302_(1)v7 ERSEA of 116

Background

LACOE created the Eligibility, Recruitment, Selection, Enrollment, and Attendance (ERSEA) Manual to provide instructions for implementing program requirements. The manual:

• Clarifies regulations and definitions to improve consistency and continuity for all its programs;

• Includes LACOE’s mandates to standardize the ERSEA system across all delegates; and

• Provides instructions for aligning ChildPlus with ERSEA in order to sustain on-going monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting systems.

Mandates and Implementation

Delegates must adhere to all applicable state, federal, and local mandates, including the instructions provided in this grantee instructional memo (GIM) and its attachment. This GIM includes, where applicable, direct citations from federal, state, and local mandates with directives from LACOE for implementation.

Resources

See State Programs Manual if operating partnered or co-located state programs as well.

Los Angeles County Office of Education Head Start and Early Learning Division

ERSEA MANUAL ELIGIBILITY, RECRUITMENT, SELECTION, ENROLLMENT, AND ATTENDANCE

2018-19

Table of Contents Developing the ERSEA System .................................................................................................... 7

Key Points to Remember ........................................................................................................... 7

Selection Criteria .......................................................................................................................... 8

Contract Exhibit N................................................................................................................. 10

Tools for Setting Up the Program Year ............................................................................. 10

ERSEA Procedures ................................................................................................................. 10

Schedule I and K .................................................................................................................... 11

ChildPlus................................................................................................................................... 11

Program Schedule ................................................................................................................ 12

LACOE ERSEA System Overview .......................................................................................... 13

The Enrollment Process ............................................................................................................... 15

Recruitment ..................................................................................................................................... 21

Definitions.................................................................................................................................... 21

Requirements ............................................................................................................................. 22

Recruitment of Eligible Populations ............................................................................... 22

Building an Interest List ...................................................................................................... 25

Service Area ............................................................................................................................ 28

ChildPlus Recordkeeping and Ongoing Monitoring ................................................ 35

Eligibility ........................................................................................................................................... 37

Definitions.................................................................................................................................... 37

Requirements ............................................................................................................................. 38

Eligibility Interview ............................................................................................................... 38

Eligibility Determination ..................................................................................................... 38

Income Guidelines ................................................................................................................ 52

Verifying Eligibility ................................................................................................................ 55

Verifying Address .................................................................................................................. 58

Recordkeeping ....................................................................................................................... 59

Period of Eligibility ................................................................................................................ 63

Training on Eligibility ........................................................................................................... 68


Selection ........................................................................................................................................... 71

Definitions .................................................................................................................................... 71

Requirements .............................................................................................................................. 72

Determining Priority ............................................................................................................. 72

Assigning Points .................................................................................................................... 73

Selecting Applicants ............................................................................................................. 73

Children with Disabilities .................................................................................................... 77

Empty Slots .............................................................................................................................. 78


Enrollment ........................................................................................................................................ 81

Definitions .................................................................................................................................... 81

Requirements .............................................................................................................................. 82

Full Enrollment ....................................................................................................................... 82

Delay in Start Date ................................................................................................................ 83

Reserved Slots ........................................................................................................................ 84

Program Options ................................................................................................................... 86

Vacancies .................................................................................................................................. 93

Transfers ................................................................................................................................... 95

Immunizations ........................................................................................................................ 96

Parent Participation .............................................................................................................. 96

Policy on Fee for Service ..................................................................................................... 96

ERSEA Files for All Participants ......................................................................................... 96


Attendance ....................................................................................................................................... 99

Definitions.................................................................................................................................... 99

Requirements ............................................................................................................................. 99

Daily Sign In and Out .......................................................................................................... 99

Daily Attendance ................................................................................................................. 100

Reasons for Absences ....................................................................................................... 101

Follow-up ............................................................................................................................... 104

Chronic Absenteeism ......................................................................................................... 106

Attendance Analysis Report ............................................................................................ 106

Home Visits ........................................................................................................................... 109

Modified Attendance ......................................................................................................... 109

Dropped Children ............................................................................................................... 111

Makeup Days/Home Visits .............................................................................................. 112

Expulsions and Suspensions ........................................................................................... 113

ChildPlus Recordkeeping and Ongoing Monitoring .............................................. 113

Los Angeles County Office of Education Page | 7 Head Start and Early Learning Division

Developing the ERSEA System

Key Points to Remember • The eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance (ERSEA)

system stems from information gathered in the community assessment.

• The ERSEA system must be aligned with the following:

o Philosophy, Vision, and Mission

o Goals and Objectives

o Key findings from community assessment

• The implementation plans are described in each delegate’s funding application:

o Schedule I – Classroom and Slot Information

o Schedule K – Program Operation Calendars

o Head Start Enterprise System (HSES) Program Schedule

• Each delegate must determine priorities for enrollment by allocating points to the selection criteria identified by LACOE and include criteria specific to a delegate’s service area as adjustment factors.

• LACOE’s Policy Council and delegates’ Policy Committees must work in partnership with key management staff and the governing body to develop, review, and approve or disapprove the criteria for defining recruitment, selection, and enrollment priorities, in accordance with the requirements of 45 CFR 1302 Subpart A.

• Due to changing demographics and community needs, targeted populations may vary from year to year, depending on the dynamics of the community in which the program or site is located. As a result, recruitment activities and strategies must also change to ensure the delegate continues to recruit families most in need of services.


Page | 8 Los Angeles County Office of Education Head Start and Early Learning Division

Selection Criteria LACOE identifies criteria based on data from the community assessment. Delegates must assign points to the selection criteria categories and submit to LACOE, along with the ERSEA procedures and proper approvals, by April 1 of each year. The selection criteria is used to identify families with the greatest need for services; delegates must rank all applications using the approved selection criteria. The list below is in alphabetical order, not by order of priority:

• Age: Children enrolled in the program shall meet standard age criteria for Early Head Start or Head Start.

o Delegates must prioritize enrollment of three-year-olds when serving in communities where other publicly funded programs serve four-year-olds in a full-school-day setting.

• Children in protective services: The program will actively seek out and recruit children in the county’s protective services caseload, including those remaining in the home under supervision and those placed in foster homes. Since stability of placement can be an issue, delegates will pay particular attention to retention in Head Start when a child moves from one form of placement to another in order to maintain continuity for the child. Outreach to the natural or foster parents is an important element of care for children in protective services and will include access to the full range of Head Start services for parents.

• Children transitioning from Early Head Start to Head Start: Children transitioning from Early Head Start to Head Start, from another Head Start program, or from another preschool program must receive priority for services. Delegate staff must follow program guidelines for transitioning children and must assist the parent/guardian through the process in order to help them understand the new program and be prepared to support the child in the new learning environment.

• Children with disabilities: Children with identified and documented disabilities of all types are a high priority for enrollment.



• Dual language learners: Children whose home language is other than English can benefit from Head Start as they begin to acquire English before entering the K-12 school system.

• Foster children: An eligible foster child is a child placed with a person or family by an authorized placement agency or by a judgment, decree, or other order of a court of competent jurisdiction. Foster children must have priority for enrollment.

• Homeless families: Children in homeless families have mandatory priority for enrollment.

• Incarcerated Parent: Child with an incarcerated parent.

• Income-eligible children: Children whose family’s income is below the poverty level. Priority points should be assigned according to the lowest income level first (15% below federal poverty level [FPL], 10% below FPL, 5% below FPL, and at FPL).

• Military families: Children in military families have a mandatory priority for enrollment.

• Mothers suffering from postpartum depression: Mothers who have given birth within six months and are suffering from postpartum depression.

• Parent(s) employed or in job training: One or both parents of the child are employed or in job training can benefit from the availability of Head Start programs operating six hours or more per day. Such children also need to be income-eligible.

• Parent(s) with less than a high school diploma: One or both parents of the child have less than a high school diploma.

• Parenting teens: Teenagers currently parenting a child.

• Pregnant teens: Refers to a girl who has not reached legal adulthood, usually between the ages of 13 and 18, who is bearing a child.

• Public assistance (Supplemental Security Income [SSI] and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families [TANF]): Children in families receiving public assistance are prioritized for enrollment.



• Referred child from another agency: Children referred to the Head Start or Early Head Start program by an outside agency (such as Department of Children and Family Services [DCFS], Department of Public Social Services [DPSS], 211, or other referral agency).

• Returning child: Returning to the program allows children to build on initial experience and to strengthen school readiness, creating a priority for enrollment. Such children also need to be income eligible.

• Single parent: Children in families with only one parent who can benefit from Early Head Start (EHS) and Head Start (HS) programs.

• Transitioning children: Children enrolled in EHS, other HS programs and other preschool programs transitioning to HS.

Note:

If there is a special circumstance that does not fit within the set of established eligibility criteria, delegates may add adjustment factors and corresponding points. LACOE adds the adjustment points in the ChildPlus Adjustment field.

Contract Exhibit N

Exhibit N (Selection Criteria) is included in the LACOE Subrecipient Agreement. It identifies the approved selection criteria and points each agency uses to prioritize applications.

Note(s):

If changes to the Selection Criteria are needed during a given program year, the changes must be made through the Request for Advance Approval/Budget Adjustment Request (RAA/BAR) process.

Tools for Setting Up the Program Year

ERSEA Procedures

Delegates are required to adhere to the policies of the LACOE ESREA Grantee Instructional Memo (GIM). Every delegate is required to develop procedures that



outline how the delegate will implement the policies included in the LACOE ERSEA GIM. The procedures must include delegate staffs’ responsibilities in implementing and maintaining compliance with the eligibility, recruitment, selection, enrollment, and attendance system. The procedures must be submitted by April 1 of each year, with Policy Committee and board approvals.

Schedule I and K

Delegates submit this document to LACOE with the funding application. Once the form is reconciled with the HSES Program Schedule, LACOE uses the Schedule I and K to set up the classrooms and program options in ChildPlus. The Schedule I and K includes the following information:

• Center name and class numbers at each center

• Start and end date for each class

• Number of children allocated to each class

• Program options, hours of service, and dates of operation

• Total number of funded slots for each funding stream

During the funding application process, delegates must strategically plan and make decisions that affect the location of centers, number of classes, program options, staffing, etc., to ensure full enrollment. Any changes to Schedule I and K or the HSES program schedule must have prior approval from LACOE.

• For more information, the RAA/BAR process is available on the website at: http://prekkid.org/agency/fiscal/

ChildPlus

LACOE requires the use of ChildPlus to ensure that the information collected about program operations is gathered, recorded, and reported in a standardized format for all delegates. Delegates must fully implement ChildPlus according to the ChildPlus GIM.

http://prekkid.org/agency/fiscal/



Program Schedule

Delegates must complete the Program Schedule in the Head Start Enterprise System (HSES) when submitting a funding application for a new program year. The program schedule must align with the Schedule I and K and reflect the program design approved through the funding process.



LACOE ERSEA System Overview

Community Assessment determines geographical areas with

greatest need and selection priorities

Funding Application outlines the plan for the program

year

Approved Slot Allocation from funding application, and/or new

contract, including amendments

LACOE revises ERSEA GIM and trains delegates

Delegates revise and implement ERSEA procedures, and train staff

LACOE and delegates

collect data on ERSEA

LACOE and delegates

analyze data

Reporting Weekly, monthly, and/or quarterly

Is the delegate on target for meeting 100% enrollment and compliance in all

ERSEA areas?

No

Ongoing monitoring to ensure compliance and determine continued

level of support needed

Provide technical

assistance as needed

Redistribute slots and/or impose

other sanctions, as applicable

Process restarts at collection of data if slots redistributed or other sanction imposed

Ongoing Monitoring, Training & Technical Assistance

to sustain 100% enrollment and compliance in all ERSEA areas

Yes

If full enrollment and compliance achieved, process restarts at collection of data.

If full enrollment and compliance is not achieved, next steps determined, which may include moving to impose sanctions.


The Enrollment Process

Yes

Recruitment • Form interest list • Verify child is in delegate’s assigned service area and secure appropriate approvals as

necessary

Work with the family to secure appropriate documentation: • Provide resources • Conduct third-party

verifications, if necessary

• Follow up and document efforts

• Use applicant statement as a last resort

Yes

No Enter “Abandoned Date” in ChildPlus for applicant

Family interested?

Did the family have all the necessary documentation to determine eligibility?

No Remove

barriers to enrollment

Assign points in ChildPlus to reflect applicable selection criteria

Proceed to Eligibility

Staff must inform parents of program benefits and eligibility requirements

Staff must interview the family to: • Review the eligibility documentation • Complete page 2 of the Application for Services • Sign and date the Application for Services



Is the family eligible?

Yes

No

Staff must: • Explain eligibility

determination to family

• Offer the opportunity to remain on Waitlist with the understanding that children with the greatest need (points) will be offered a slot prior to over-income applicants

• Refer ineligible children to other programs and/or resources

• Enter abandoned date or Waitlist date, depending on parent choice

Staff must: • Print, sign, and date

Head Start Eligibility Verification form from ChildPlus

• Secure supervisor’s initials as approval

Supervisor agrees with the eligibility determination? No

Yes

Staff must: • Make corrections

and/or gather additional information as required by your supervisor

• Update applicable information in ChildPlus

• Determine eligibility, if applicable, based on new information

Proceed to Selection I

Eligibility • Determine eligibility • If at any point prior to entering the enrolled date in ChildPlus a family notifies

staff they are no longer interested, enter an “Abandoned Date” for the applicant



Yes

Yes

No

No

Selection I • Next steps taken depend on the purpose and/or status of the delegate agency

Is delegate trying to accept children 30 days prior to the first day of school?

• Rank applications and select those that have the greatest number of points

• Select a sufficient number of applications to fill available slots • Enter “Accepted Date” in ChildPlus • Assign applicant to a class or home-based group • Inform family of expected start date

Did applicant attend class or receive a home visit on the expected start date?

Proceed to Enrollment • Contact family on the first day • Document efforts to reach out to the family

After three days, has the family responded to the delegate’s attempts to communicate?

Enter “Abandoned Date” in ChildPlus on the fourth day

Yes

Proceed to Selection II


Does the family plan on bringing the applicant to the program?

Yes

• Follow up as needed and continue documenting • Family must attend within three days from the date contact is

made

Did the applicant attend the program by the agreed-upon date?

No

No

Yes

Proceed to Enrollment

No Enter “Abandoned Date” in ChildPlus




No

Selection II DA has either: • Accepted all children to meet full enrollment or • Met full enrollment and is building a Waitlist to be able to fill vacancies within 30 days

• Rank applications, select those that have the greatest number of points

• Select a sufficient number of applications to fill available slot(s)

• Communicate with family(ies) regarding slot(s) • Assign applicant to a class or home-based group • Inform family of expected start date

• Select all applications that do not have an accepted date and have completed the eligibility process, including over-income applicants that would like to be on the Waitlist

• Enter “Waitlisted Date” in ChildPlus for each applicant

Has a slot been identified that needs to be filled?

Yes

No • Applicant remains on the Waitlist until a vacant slot is identified

• Staff periodically communicate with families to keep them interested and ensure updated contact information

Yes

Did applicant attend class or receive a home visit on the expected start date?


No

After three days, has the family responded to the DA’s attempts to communicate? Does the family plan on bringing the applicant to the program?

Yes No

Enter “Abandoned Date” in ChildPlus on the fourth day

Did the applicant attend the program by the agreed-upon date?

Yes

Enter “Abandoned Date” in ChildPlus

Restart Selection II Process

• Contact family on the first day, and staff must document efforts to reach out to the family

• Follow up as needed and continue documenting • Family must attend within three days of operation from the

date contact is made




Attendance • Use ChildPlus to enter attendance within an hour of the class start time • Identify excused/unexcused absences according to DA’s policies • Maintain documentation of absences and drop as applicable • Monitor attendance and document communication with parents regarding absences • Verify accuracy of attendance reports in ChildPlus, print, sign, and submit to LACOE by fifth

calendar day

• The enrolled date is the date that the child physically attends class or receives the first home visit

• This is also the date used to track compliance with the services timelines

Which date is used as the “Enrolled Date” in ChildPlus?

• The enrolled date and start date, for an applicant filling a vacant slot within 30 days as a result of a drop, is the date that the child physically attends class or receives the first home visit

• This is also the date used to track compliance with the services timelines

Yes

Is it the beginning of the program year and delegate is filling a slot that has never been filled?

No

Enrollment Enter “Enrolled Date” in ChildPlus for all who attended class or received a home visit on or after the expected start date

In order to achieve and sustain full

enrollment

• Implement a system to track absences and follow up in a timely manner • Implement ongoing recruitment activities to maintain an adequate Waitlist • Communicate often with families on your Waitlist • Remove internal barriers, so that delegate staff can call applicants on a Waitlist to start the

very next day


Recruitment

Definitions Abandoned The status assigned to an application in ChildPlus when delegate staff have been unsuccessful in making contact with the family for missing the first day of class or participating in the first home visit. This status is also assigned to an applicant, prior to enrollment, when the parent/guardian notifies the delegate they are no longer interested in the program.

Interest List

The list generated from all the applications gathered during recruitment. The delegate recruits families, gathers basic information on the Application for Service page 1, verifies the child is in the delegate’s assigned service area, enters the application in ChildPlus, and secures appropriate approvals as necessary.

New (ChildPlus term)

The application status entered in ChildPlus when a family expresses interest in the program and a delegate is building an interest list. At this time, delegates gather basic information from the family (name, address, contact information). The delegate provides the family with a list of documents needed to determine eligibility, enters applicant’s information in ChildPlus, and assigns the application a “New” status.

Participant

A participant means a pregnant woman or a child enrolled and receiving services from a Head Start and/or Early Head Start program.

Recruitment

Recruitment is the systematic way in which a program conducts outreach to identify families whose children are eligible for Early Head Start and/or Head Start services, informs them of the services available, and encourages them to apply to the program.

Recruitment


Recruitment Area

The geographic locality within which a Head Start program seeks to enroll Head Start families. The recruitment area can be the same as the service area or it can be a smaller area or areas within the service area.

Service Area

Service area means the geographic area identified in the approved grant application. LACOE is designated a service area by the Office of Head Start (OHS). LACOE then assigns a portion(s) of its service area to its delegates to support families with services.

Vacancy

An unfilled slot. Vacancies occur when children and/or pregnant women were enrolled in a slot and later terminated because they withdrew from the program or stopped participating in the program.

Requirements

Recruitment of Eligible Populations

Delegates are required to recruit Early Head Start and/or Head Start eligible pregnant women and children including children with disabilities, homeless children, and children in foster care. LACOE standardized recruitment materials for all delegates. Delegates are required to use the LACOE standardized recruitment materials when recruiting families in their assigned service area. The following strategies can support recruitment efforts in the community:

• Engage board members, parents, Policy Committee members, community partners, and all delegate staff in recruitment activities; ongoing recruitment is the responsibility of the entire organization.

• Conduct community outreach through local community newspapers, public service announcements, and participation in community events such as health fairs, job fairs, events held at the local elementary schools throughout the year (such as back-to-school night, open house, fairs, and other community-oriented events).

Recruitment


• Disseminate information to inform the community(ies) served and promote the delegate’s programs and services by:

o Using LACOE’s Head Start and Early Learning program flyers and brochures

o Connecting with school districts’ phone message system to send outreach announcements

• Attend local school district meetings to inform and promote Early Head Start and/or Head Start services.

• Assist families in completing an application during recruitment events.

• Continue to foster partnerships and relationships that help the delegate create a pool for recruitment, such as:

o Communicating, on an ongoing basis, with:

Local shelters, community-based organizations, and local churches that offer services to homeless families and other vulnerable populations

Delegate and LACOE disability staff

o Contacting and/or visiting the following organizations:

Regional Centers and Easter Seals

Local preschools, public programs, and elementary schools

Public resource and referral agencies

Department of Public Social Services

Department of Children and Family Services

Department of Child Support

Foster family agencies

Homeless shelters

Transitional housing facilities

Local education agencies (LEAs) and Part C partners for identification of children with disabilities

Recruitment


LACOE Support

LACOE develops and implements countywide recruitment strategies that support the efforts of delegates, including identifying and scheduling various community events throughout Los Angeles County to recruit eligible children including with disabilities, families who are homeless, and children in foster care. Some of the strategies include:

• Producing public service announcements for radio, TV, cable, local newspapers, and the web

• Developing and distributing, during countywide events, informational materials such as:

o Bookmarks

o Posters/Flyers

o Videos and DVDs

• Maintaining a preschool hotline, 1-877-PRE-K-KID

• Updating and maintaining a webpage (www.prekkid.org) with information about programs and services and the Head Start Agency Referral System (facility site locator)

• Building relationships and sharing information with key countywide agencies, such as LAUSD; Child360; Los Angeles County Office for the Advancement of Early Care and Education; Women, Infants, Children (WIC); DCFS; DPSS; county libraries; homeless organizations; and more

• Generating letters of partnership with key countywide organizations serving children from birth to five and pregnant women

In addition, delegates may request individual support at any time during the year. All requests must be submitted to the Outreach team or ERSEA monitor via telephone or email. The following support is available for all delegates:

http://www.prekkid.org/

Recruitment


• Outreach “All-Stars” Training

o Outreach team provides participants with techniques and strategies to conduct outreach activities. Request for this training must be submitted through the training and technical assistance (T&TA) process.

• Outreach Publications

o Delegates may request outreach publications for recruitment.

• Outreach equipment rental

o Delegates may borrow outreach equipment, such as the LACOE Head Start banner, booth supplies (tablecloths, books, dolls, etc.), camera, and DVD/TV.

• Consultations

o LACOE Outreach team provides individualized consultation on delegate’s outreach materials, techniques, and strategies and makes recommendations for strengthening or improving delegate’s outreach efforts.

Building an Interest List

Each delegate must, throughout the program year, maintain and continuously update an interest list to ensure recruitment of children within the assigned communities. Delegates must use the LACOE Recruitment Log to document all outreach activities, gather data, and evaluate the effectiveness of the activities. Results will help delegates make data-driven decisions on recruitment activities for upcoming years. When building an interest list, the delegate is responsible for:

• Completing the Application for Services page 1 to gather basic information from families

• Entering all applications in ChildPlus and assigning the application a “New and Incomplete” status

• Updating ChildPlus to ensure the interest list is current

Recruitment


• Generating ChildPlus reports to monitor the interest list

• Developing strategies to connect with all families on the interest list

• Identifying the number of age-eligible siblings of returning families that may be interested in the program

• Documenting all recruitment activities in the Recruitment Log (see Table 1)

Table 1 Recruitment Log

Date Activity Materials Distributed

Interest Generated

Notes

Enter date of Recruitment Event or Activity

Enter name of event or activity

Identify the types and number of materials distributed

Enter the following as a result of the event or activity: • # of

applications collected

• # of phone calls received

• # of walk-ins

Enter notes based on the analysis of the recruitment event or activity data, such as: 1. How do you know if

the activity or event was successful?

2. What were some of the challenges encountered?

3. What improvements need to be made to make the activity or event better?

4. Has this activity been conducted in the past and were the results different?

Head Start - Early Head Start - State Programs APPLICATION FOR SERVICES (PART 1 OF 2)

CHILD PLUS ID (APPLICANT):

Form No. 604-547 Pg. 1 of 2 03/03/2011 Must Complete Part 2 To Determine Eligibility

Serving Students • Supporting Communities Leading Educators

A. GENERAL INFORMATION Agency Name Site Name Application Date Referred By

B. FAMILY MEMBERS Number of People in Family Date of Birth Applicant's Relationship

B1. PARENT/GUARDIAN A EMPLOYMENT STATUS

Student Homemaker Unemployed Employed Self-Employed CHECK ALL THAT APPLY

Has Custody of Applicant Lives with Family Teen Parent EDUCATION

Less than High School Grad. (Highest Grade ) High School Graduate Some College, Vocational or Associate Degree Bachelor's or Advanced Degree

B2. PARENT/GUARDIAN B EMPLOYMENT STATUS

Student Homemaker Unemployed Employed Self-Employed CHECK ALL THAT APPLY

Has Custody of Applicant Lives with Family Teen Parent EDUCATION

Less than High School Grad. (Highest Grade ) High School Graduate Some College, Vocational or Associate Degree Bachelor's or Advanced Degree

B3. ADDITIONAL FAMILY MEMBERS (Attach Additional Sheet if Necessary) Date of Birth Applicant's Relationship

C. APPLICANT (CHILD OR PREGNANT MOTHER APPLYING FOR SERVICES) First Name Middle Name Last Name Date of Birth Gender

Male Female Race Ethnicity Primary Health Coverage

Asian American Indian or Alaskan Native Black or African American Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander White Bi-Racial/Multi-Racial Other:

Hispanic or Latino Origin Non-Hispanic or Non-Latino Origin

Medicaid(MediCal) CHIP Private None Other:

Living Address Address Line 2 Zip Code City State

Mailing Address (If Different) Address Line 2 Zip Code City State

Contact Number Type (Check One) Alternative Number Type (Check One)

Cell Home Work Other Cell Home Work Other E-Mail Address Supervision Safety (Check all that apply): Parental Status

Does your child: Walk or run away from adult supervision Have trouble staying with a group or wander away Other: One Parent Two Parents

Primary Language of Family at Home (Select One)

English Spanish Native Central or South American and Mexican Languages Caribbean Languages Middle Eastern & South Asian Languages East Asian Languages

Native North American/Alaskan Native Languages Pacific Island Languages (e.g. Palauan, Fijian) European/Slavic Languages African Languages Other (e.g. American Sign Language):

Applicant's Primary Language English Spanish Asian Language Other:

Language(s) spoken to child by the parent(s)/primary caregiver(s)? English Spanish Asian Language Other:

Recruitment


Service Area

OHS assigns LACOE a service area to deliver Head Start, in specific communities, and/or Early Head services, in designated zip codes throughout Los Angeles County. LACOE assigns, in the LACOE Subrecipient Agreement Exhibit C-1, portions of its service area to delegates based on a regional approach to service delivery. Delegates must use data from LACOE’s community assessment to identify areas, within its assigned service area, that have the greatest number of unserved children in order to designate the recruitment areas for the current and upcoming program year. Delegates must ensure:

• Recruitment is only conducted within the delegate’s assigned service area; and

• Families residing outside the service area are referred to the appropriate delegate or grantee for services.

Delegates are allowed to enroll up to 5% of funded slots with children who live outside of their service area, but within LACOE’s boundaries, without requesting approval from the LACOE home delegate. The requesting delegate must complete an Interagency Enrollment Agreement (IEA) and document that the child is part of the 5% allotment. Once the 5% allotment is reached, delegates are required to complete IEAs as outlined in the process below.

Service Area Verification

Prior to entering the child’s application in ChildPlus, the delegate is required to verify that the family resides within the delegate’s assigned service area by using the Facility Site Locator (www.prekkid.org) and the current year Exhibit C-1. In the event an application entered in ChildPlus is not within the delegate’s service area, ChildPlus will display either an “outside of service area” or a “service area verification unavailable” message. If this happens, delegate must verify the address is valid and entered correctly and, if applicable, secure an interagency or grantee-to-grantee approval before enrolling the applicant.


Recruitment


Interagency Enrollment Agreement

An interagency enrollment agreement is required prior to enrolling a family residing in another LACOE delegate’s service area. The interagency enrollment agreement allows the delegate to serve a family when:

1. The family resides in another LACOE delegate’s service area

2. The family seeks services in order to accommodate one or more of the following situations:

a. Child care

b. Continuity of care

c. Training/school

d. Proximity, family must reside within a one-mile radius of the facility

e. Employment

Delegate’s Responsibility:

Delegates must build collaborative relationships with one another to help identify the delegate that can meet the family’s need and ensure the timely processing of requests. The delegate requesting the release of the family must:

1. Explain the process, policies, procedures, and applicable regulations governing service area to the parents to help them understand why they must be referred to the home delegate. The family must also be informed that if their needs can be met by the home delegate, and a vacancy exists, it is likely that the interagency enrollment agreement request will be denied.

2. Contact the home delegate to explain the family’s situation and find out if they have a vacancy and can meet the family’s need, prior to referring the family to the home delegate.

3. If the home delegate is unable to serve the family, document the approval received over the phone to proceed with serving the family. Include date, time of call, and name of the home delegate’s authorized representative granting approval. If the delegate is able to serve the family, email the family’s information to the home delegate with the Interagency Enrollment

Recruitment


Agreement and include information in the notes section of the date and time of the call, as well as the name of the person at the home delegate who was contacted and will be following up with the family to proceed with the enrollment process.

4. Inform the family of the results of the call to help them understand whether the family was referred for enrollment at their assigned delegate or an interagency enrollment agreement was approved.

a. If a referral was made with their home delegate, make an appointment with the person who will be assisting the family and provide the family all the relevant contact information.

i. The home delegate must contact the family to confirm the appointment and answer any questions the family may have.

b. If the interagency enrollment agreement was approved, delegates must secure supporting documentation to attach to the request. Supporting documentation includes:

i. Child care – documentation verifying the child care provider resides in the requesting delegate’s service area

ii. Continuity of Care – documentation verifying the child was previously enrolled in the program

iii. In training/school – documentation demonstrating parent(s) is/are enrolled in training/school and the location of the training/school is closer to the requesting delegate’s center than the home delegate’s center

iv. Proximity – documentation such as directions from MapQuest showing the distance between the family’s home and the requesting delegate’s center compared to the distance between the family’s home and the home delegate’s center

v. Working – documentation showing that the parent(s) is/are employed and that the employer is located in the requesting delegate’s service area

Recruitment


c. Once the supporting documentation is secured, maintain the documents in the child’s file

5. Enter the applicant as “New” in ChildPlus.

6. If the requesting delegate obtained approval for an interagency enrollment agreement in year one, another approval is not required in the subsequent year.

a. If participant is enrolled in the EHS program and has obtained approval in year one, the approval is valid for the duration of the child’s enrollment in EHS. However, if the child will be transitioning to HS, a new approval must be requested.

LACOE’s Responsibility:

The assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will process all overrides for interagency enrollment agreements within three business days of receipt of the form. If the requesting delegate informs the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor that it has been unsuccessful in contacting the home delegate regarding an interagency enrollment agreement, the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will contact the home delegate to make a determination if the child will be released to the requesting delegate or referred back to the home delegate for services.

1. If the child is released to the requesting delegate, the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will send an email to both the requesting and home delegates regarding the decision.

2. If the child is referred back to the home delegate, the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will email the requesting delegate the information to give to the parent regarding the appointment, date, time, and person who will be working with them to enroll the child(ren) at the home delegate. The home delegate will also be copied on the email sent to the requesting delegate.

Recruitment


Grantee-to-Grantee Requests

Grantee-to-grantee enrollment agreement requests are used when a child resides outside the LACOE service area. LACOE will work to establish memoranda of understanding with the grantees where the greatest number of requests are processed. Grantee-to-grantee requests must be a last resort. At no time may delegates enroll children that reside in another grantee’s service area without prior approval from LACOE. Families may request services if they meet one or more of the following conditions:

Employment

Proximity, family’s residence is closer to the LACOE delegate’s center than the home grantee’s center

Continuity of care

In training/school

Child care

Delegate’s Responsibility:

1. Explain the process, procedures, and applicable regulations governing service areas to the parents to help them understand that if their needs can be met by the home grantee and a vacancy exists, it is likely that the request will be denied.

2. Email all grantee-to-grantee requests (ensure all information on the grantee-to-grantee form is legible and correct) and supporting documentation, including those with an unassigned service area, to [email protected] and in the subject line type the following: Grantee-to-Grantee Request.

3. Enter the applicant in ChildPlus only as “New”, unless a grantee-to-grantee request has been approved.

4. The delegate’s assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will notify the delegate and send the signed approval once a decision from the home grantee is received and will notify the ChildPlus help desk to process the override in ChildPlus.

mailto:[email protected]

Recruitment


5. Maintain a copy of the signed, dated, and approved grantee-to-grantee request in the child’s file.

a. If the delegate has obtained approval in year one, another approval is not required in the subsequent year.

i. If participant is enrolled in the EHS program and has obtained approval in year one, the approval is valid for the duration of the child’s enrollment in EHS. However, if the child will be transitioning to HS, a new approval must be requested.

b. Delegates requesting approval to enroll children residing in unassigned service areas will receive a letter from LACOE.

i. The letter regarding LACOE’s decision must be maintained in the child’s file.

ii. The assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will notify the ChildPlus help desk to process the override in ChildPlus.

LACOE’s Responsibility:

1. Upon receipt of a request from the delegate, LACOE’s designated program development specialist and/or program control consultant will contact the home grantee.

a. This may include:

i. Verifying programs and services that may be available to meet the needs of the family; and/or

ii. Determining if additional information is required from delegate.

2. The delegate’s assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor:

a. Notifies the delegate, via email, regarding the outcome of the decision and sends the signed approval

b. Authorizes the override for the senior data processing specialist to process in ChildPlus

Recruitment


c. Once the override is complete, the senior data processing specialist:

i. Notifies the delegate via email that they may proceed with accepting the applicant; and

ii. Copies the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor on the email sent to the delegate.

3. If the request is to provide services in an unassigned service area, then the delegate’s assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor will gather all the documentation needed, verify the service area is indeed unassigned, and prepare the request to submit to OHS for approval.

a. Once approval from OHS is received, the delegate’s assigned ERSEA monitor will:

i. Prepare the letter of approval for the delegate

ii. Notify the delegate

iii. Authorize the override for the senior data processing specialist to process in ChildPlus

b. Once the override is complete, the senior data processing specialist:

i. Notifies the delegate via email that they may proceed with accepting the applicant; and

ii. Copies the assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor on the email sent to the delegate.

Recruitment


ChildPlus Recordkeeping and Ongoing Monitoring

Tier 1 Monitoring Reports

The delegate is required to use ChildPlus Enrollment Status Report #2115 for ongoing monitoring of its recruitment efforts and the interest list to ensure the delegate is recruiting as many eligible families as possible within its assigned recruitment area. Delegates must filter the report to identify children with the status of “New.”

The delegate must use the ChildPlus Service Area Exception Report #2290 to monitor interagency and grantee-to-grantee requests.

• Review the report for accuracy and verify the children identified as undetermined have been entered correctly in ChildPlus and that the address entered is valid.

o Addresses appearing as undetermined must be corrected prior to enrolling the child in order for the report to correctly reflect the home delegate or other grantee.

o Support from LACOE is available at [email protected].

• Use the report to track the number of Interagency/Grantee-to-Grantee Enrollment Agreements processed.

• Review all participant files identified on the report to ensure all contain approvals.


Recruitment


• Filter the report as indicated below to preview or print the Service Area Exceptions report. Refer to the ChildPlus Manual for more instructions.

Los Angeles County Office of Education Page | 37 Head Start – State Preschool Division

Eligibility

Definitions Age Head Start

To be eligible for Head Start services, a child must be at least three years old or turn three years old by September 1 and not be older than compulsory school age.

Early Head Start

To be eligible for Early Head Start services, except when the child is transitioning to Head Start, a child must be an infant or a toddler younger than three years old.

Income

Income means gross cash income and includes but is not limited to:

• Earned income

• Military income (including pay and allowances except those described in Section 645(a)(3)(B) of the Act)

• Veterans’ benefits

• Social Security benefits

• Unemployment compensation

• Public assistance benefits

Additional examples of gross cash income are listed in the definition of “income” that appears in the U.S. Bureau of the Census Current Population Report, series P60-185 (available at https://www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-185.pdf).

https://www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-185.pdf

Eligibility


Family

Family for a child means all persons living in the same household who are: (1) supported by the child’s parent(s)’ or guardian(s)’ income; and (2) related to the child’s parent(s) or guardian(s) by blood, marriage, or adoption; or the child’s authorized caregiver or legally responsible party. Family, for a pregnant woman, is all the individuals who financially support the pregnant woman. Consistent with the policy of maximizing the federal recognition of same-sex spouses/marriages, the term “family” as used to determine the eligibility of a child to participate in a Head Start or Early Head Start program shall include a same-sex spouse (ACF- IM- HS-14-03).

Waitlist

The Waitlist is a ranked list of children and/or pregnant women that identifies the criteria applicable to the applicant and includes points assigned based on the approved selection criteria. Each Early Head Start and Head Start program must develop a list at the beginning of each enrollment year, and maintain it during the year to ensure staff accept applicants most in need of services as vacancies occur.

Requirements

Eligibility Interview

Delegates must conduct an in-person interview with interested families. In the event that an in-person interview is not possible or convenient for the family, delegates may conduct phone interviews. Complete page 2 of the Application for Services form when all documents necessary to determine eligibility have been received. Both the parent and staff member must sign and date the form.

Eligibility Determination

A pregnant woman or a child is eligible if:

• The family’s income is equal to or below 100% of the federal poverty level (FPL);

Eligibility


• The family is eligible for or, in the absence of child care, would be potentially eligible for public assistance, including TANF child-only payments;

• The child is homeless; or

• The child is in foster care.

Over-Income Applicants

• If the family does not meet the eligibility criterion, delegates may enroll an over-income child or pregnant woman who would benefit from services, provided these participants only make up 10 percent of a program’s total funded slots.

• Delegates may also enroll 35 percent of the program’s total funded slots with participants whose family’s income is between 101 to 130 percent of the FPL.

Age

Head Start

In order to be age-eligible for Head Start, a child must:

• Be at least three years old, or turn three years old by September 1, and

• Be no older than the age required to attend school.

Early Head Start

In order to be age-eligible for Early Head Start, a child must:

• Be an infant or a toddler younger than 36 months.

Three-year-olds are not age-eligible for EHS; they must be referred to HS.

There is no age criteria applicable to pregnant women.

Eligibility


Note(s):

• A pregnant woman is counted as two members of the household only when determining eligibility for Early Head Start services. Delegates must maintain documentation on the verification of pregnancy in the applicant’s file.

• A pregnant, unmarried teen living with her parents is counted as a family of two and her own income determines her eligibility, not her parents’ income. Delegates must maintain documentation on the verification of pregnancy in the applicant’s file.

• For enrolled pregnant women after delivery, delegates are required to provide a newborn visit with each mother and baby to offer support and identify family needs.

o Delegates must schedule the newborn visit within two weeks after the infant’s birth.

o After the home visit is completed, the delegate must complete page 1 of the Application for Services form to confirm that the child will continue participating in the EHS program. Verification of birth must be secured at this time.

• After the delegate completes page 1 of the application for services form, the mother is dropped in ChildPlus and the newborn is enrolled.

o Redetermination of eligibility is not required when enrolling the infant of a pregnant mother who was enrolled in the EHS program.

Public Assistance

A family that receives CalWORKs (TANF, including TANF child-only payments) and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), is eligible for Early Head Start and Head Start services, regardless of family income.

The program does not need to verify the family’s income; however, the public assistance benefit amount must be calculated for 12 months on Section D4 of the Application for Services.

Eligibility


CalWORKs

CalWORKs is the State of California’s version of the federal assistance program known as TANF. The following are not considered public assistance for the purpose of determining eligibility:

• Families receiving only food stamp benefits (CalFresh)

• Episodic (one-time-only benefit based on emergency need)

• Noncash benefits, such as federal noncash benefit programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Medi-Cal, as none of these meets the definition of public assistance for Head Start

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

SSI is a federal income supplement program funded by general tax revenues (not Social Security taxes). Income from Social Security retirement benefits or Social Security disability benefits are not considered SSI.

SSI is designed to help aged, blind, and disabled people who have little or no income. It provides cash to meet basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter.

Eligibility


• In order to be considered an SSI recipient, and, therefore, eligible for Head Start or Early Head Start, the SSI recipient must be the child enrolling in the program or a family member as defined by the Head Start Program Performance Standards.

• LACOE requires that delegates request a letter of approval with a Social Security Administration header that includes the monthly benefit amount as verification that a family is receiving SSI benefits.

Eligibility


Homeless Families

Homeless children are eligible for Early Head Start and/or Head Start. Families in a residential program (incarcerated programs) are not considered homeless. Head Start uses the definition in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act to determine homelessness. Homeless individuals are defined as follows:

Homeless are individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; this includes:

a. Children and youths who share the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; live in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to lack of alternative adequate accommodations; live in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement.

b. Children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

c. Children and youths who live in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings.

d. Migratory children who qualify as homeless because they live in circumstances described in a-c above.

Identifying Homeless Families

Due diligence must be applied to support the delegate’s determination that a family is homeless. A family that is living with relatives may not automatically qualify as a homeless family. Following are questions to help staff identify homeless families:

• Sample questions for determining if residence is “Fixed”:

a. Is this a permanent arrangement or just temporary?

b. Are you looking for another place to live?

c. Where did you live right before this place? Why did you leave?

Eligibility


d. Where would you go if you could not stay where you are?

e. Are you sharing the home equally or are you more like guests in the home?

• Sample questions for determining if residence is “Regular”:

a. Do you stay at the same place every night?

b. How often do you have to move or find a place to stay for the night?

c. How long have you been at that place? How long do you plan to stay?

d. How long did you live at your last place?

• Sample questions for determining if residence is “Adequate”:

a. How many people are living in the home? How many bedrooms/ bathrooms does it have?

b. Are you and your children sharing a room? How many people are staying in one room?

c. Does the home have heat/electricity/running water?

d. What is the condition of the home? Do you feel safe?

Additional Considerations:

• Is the family in the home as an urgent measure to avoid being on the street?

• Does the family share housing with another family because of a loss of housing stemming from financial hardship?

• If the family is living in a trailer park, for example, ask questions about the condition and size of the trailer, the number of people living there, etc.

• If the family is living in a place not designated as an ordinary sleeping accommodation for human beings (such as an office, a car, or an unfinished basement), then it can be determined substandard.

Eligibility


• Develop collaborations and partnerships with other agencies serving homeless children.

Transitioning Enrolled Homeless Families

The delegate must prioritize the enrollment of homeless families moving from one service area to another. If a delegate receives a referral from another delegate or grantee indicating the need to transition a homeless family, the receiving delegate must collaborate with the former delegate or grantee where the child is/was enrolled to transition records and facilitate placement to avoid disruption of services. The receiving delegate must give priority for enrollment to the family identified in the referral to fill the first vacancy once it occurs.

The delegate currently serving the family must:

• Inform the family about the benefits of allowing the release of documents to the new delegate. If the family agrees, the delegate must secure the family’s signature on the Authorization to Release Information form.

• Contact the LACOE help desk at [email protected] for assistance in sending the documents electronically so that the family will not have to transport paperwork from one delegate to the other.

• Be sensitive and ensure family’s confidentiality.

• Contact the receiving delegate.

Foster Care

Foster children are eligible for Head Start and Early Head Start even if the family income exceeds the income guidelines. Foster care means 24-hour substitute care for children placed away from their parents or guardians and for whom the state agency has placement and care responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Placements in foster family homes;

• Foster homes of relatives;

• Group homes;

• Emergency shelters;


Eligibility


• Residential facilities;

• Child-care institutions; and

• Pre-adoptive homes.

A child is in foster care in accordance with this definition regardless of whether the foster care facility is licensed and payments are made by the state or local agency for the care of the child, adoption subsidy payments are being made prior to the finalization of an adoption, or there is federal matching of any payments made.

Note(s):

• For all children referred by DCFS, delegates must:

o Write “DCFS” in the “Referred by” box of page 1 of the Application for Services form, Section A;

o Check the “DCFS Case” box on page 2 of the Application for Services form, Section E; and

Eligibility


o Select the “Child Protective Services” box in ChildPlus and enter “DCFS” in the “Referred by” box in the “Agency Specific” section of the ChildPlus family application screen.

Caregiver Arrangement

This is an informal arrangement in which the natural parent designates a person to care for the child. This arrangement does not involve the court system and requires the Caregiver Affidavit form in the child’s file.

Some families may have a court order indicating that they are the child’s legal guardian. This may or may not be considered a child in the foster care system; this information can be clarified by seeking additional information from the legal guardian or contacting the social worker assigned to the case.

Income

The delegate must calculate a family’s income and determine eligibility using the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Documentation of income eligibility and calculations must be maintained in the file for all participants.

Determining Income

The relevant period for determining income eligibility is 12 months preceding the month in which the application is submitted or during the calendar year preceding the calendar year in which the application is submitted, whichever more accurately reflects the needs of the family at the time of application.

• In the event Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax forms are used to determine income, delegate staff must maintain copies of the signed tax forms in the child’s file.

o If the family filed electronically through a tax preparation agency, then a copy of the electronic submission verification page or electronic signature verification must be kept on file, and the signature page must contain a PTIN (Preparer Tax Identification Number) number.

Eligibility


o If the family self-prepared their taxes and filed electronically, then the signature page must contain an electronic signature or a PTIN demonstrating the documents were electronically filed with the IRS.

o If the family self-prepared their taxes and mailed the forms, then use the W-2s submitted to the IRS or request a tax return transcript or tax account transcript from the IRS.

o Families who have lost their copy of their tax return may request a tax return transcript or tax account transcript from the IRS by following the instructions on the IRS website at https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript.

o When a family’s tax forms show a negative income, for instance from a business loss, the gross income is zero.

o Self-employed families with self-employment tax deductions on their IRS 1040 Form must use the adjusted gross income (line 37).

The only applicable deduction for the adjusted gross income is the self-employment tax (line 27).

• Gross income must be used when determining eligibility (refer to definition of Income in the Eligibility Definitions Section of this manual).

• Income calculations must be captured on the Application for Services form or on the Application Attachment form. The total family income must be entered in the ChildPlus system (show your work).

• When determining eligibility for a child in a partnered program, the family must be income eligible for both funding sources.

o If an over-income child is interested in a Head Start program partnered with a part-day California State Preschool Program (CSPP), the family’s income may not exceed 15 percent of the 70 percent State Median Income (SMI) level.

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript

Eligibility


o Exception:

Children with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) whose income level exceeds 15 percent of the 70 percent SMI may be enrolled in a program partnering HS and part-day CSPP when the delegate has enrolled all of the following first:

• Children receiving child protective services due to risk of abuse, neglect, or exploitation

• Eligible four-year-olds

• Eligible three-year-olds

• Families whose income level does not exceed 15 percent of the 70 percent SMI

• When calculating income, all the cents must be included until the total income for the year has been established. Then, using basic math principles, the total income may be rounded to the nearest dollar.

• All overtime and commissions must be included either for the 12 months immediately preceding the month in which the application is submitted or for the calendar year immediately preceding the calendar year in which the application is submitted, whichever more accurately reflects the family's need.

• If the family gives consent, delegate staff may accept written statements from third parties about the family’s eligibility for the relevant period.

• Applicant statements may be used only as a last resort when a parent has exhausted all possible avenues to obtain income documentation. The delegate must ensure that sufficient documentation is gathered to accurately capture the period to be considered for eligibility.

Military Personnel Income

There are numerous categories of pay and allowances. Some are counted as gross cash income and others are not. Include the following as gross cash income, unless the income received is paid for service in a combat zone:

Eligibility


• Basic pay, which includes active duty, back wages, drills, reserve training, training duty

• Bonuses – career status, enlistment, officer, overseas extension, reenlistment

• Incentive pay – submarine, flight, hazardous duty, high altitude/low altitude

• Other payments – accrued leave, high deployment per diem, personal money allowances paid to high-ranking officers, specified student loan repayment programs

Do not include the following as gross cash income:

• New exemptions in certain military pay and allowances according to the Improving Head Start For School Readiness Act of 2007

o Duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger

o Basic allowance for housing

• Living allowances – Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), Basic Allowance for Subsistence, housing and cost of living allowances abroad, Overseas Housing Allowances

• Moving Allowances – moving household and personal items, storage, moving trailers or mobile homes, temporary lodging, dislocation, military base realignment and closure benefit

• Travel Allowances – annual roundtrip for dependent students, leave between consecutive overseas tours, reassignment in a dependent-restricted status, transportation during ship overhaul and inactivation, per diem

• Family Allowances – specified educational expenses for dependents, emergencies, evacuation to a place of safety, separation

• Death Allowances – burial services, death gratuity payments to eligible survivors, travel of dependents to burial site

Eligibility


• In-Kind Benefits – dependent care assistance, legal assistance, medical/dental care, commissary/exchange discounts, space-available travel on government carriers

• Other payments – disability, group term life insurance, professional education, ROTC educational and subsistence allowances, uniform allowance, survivor and retirement protection plan premiums

Participants Whose Income Exceeds FPL

Federal regulations allow children whose family income exceeds the federal poverty level (FPL) to be enrolled in HS or EHS. Delegates may enroll pregnant woman and children whose family’s income exceed 100 percent of the FPL, either as an over-income participant, not to exceed 10 percent of total funded slots, or as a participant whose family’s income is between 101 and 130 percent of the FPL, not to exceed 35 percent of total funded slots.

Prior to enrolling participants whose income exceeds 100 percent of the FPL, the delegate must:

• Develop procedures that ensure eligible applicants are served first

• Conduct outreach to eligible children or pregnant women, including children with disabilities

• Maintain evidence of outreach efforts conducted throughout the year

• Establish and implement procedures to conduct ongoing monitoring of the ERSEA system to ensure compliance and continuously improve processes so that families most in need of services are identified and served first

Over-Income

Up to 10 percent of the funded enrollment slots may be participants from families that exceed the low-income guidelines but who meet the approved criteria for selecting such applicants and who would benefit from EHS or HS services. For example, if the delegate is funded for 100 slots, at no time can the number of over-income children enrolled exceed 10 (100 X .10 = 10).

Eligibility


The income of families enrolled in this category may not exceed 15 percent of the State Income Guidelines without the delegate first securing approval from LACOE.

130 Percent Federal Poverty Guidelines

Up to 35 percent of the total funded enrollment slots may be participants whose family’s income is between 101 to 130 percent of the FPL. Delegates must conduct outreach to eligible families throughout the year and serve those most in need of services first.

Income Guidelines

Income at 100% of the Federal Poverty Level

To determine eligibility for HS and EHS programs, use the income guidelines at 100% FPL.

2018 Federal Poverty Guidelines at 100% FPL Family Size Annual Income

1 $12,140 2 $16,460 3 $20,780 4 $25,100 5 $29,420 6 $33,740 7 $38,060 8 $ 42,380

For each additional person, add: $ 4,320

Eligibility


Income at 130% of the Federal Poverty Level

Use to the federal poverty guidelines at 130% when a HS or EHS family’s income exceeds 100% of the federal poverty line.

2018 Federal Poverty Guidelines at 130% FPL Family Size Annual Income

at 100% at 130%

1 $12,140 $15,782 2 $16,460 $21,398 3 $20,780 $27,014 4 $25,100 $32,630 5 $29,420 $38,246 6 $33,740 $43,862 7 $38,060 $49,478 8 $42,380 $55,094

For each additional person, add: $4,320 $5,616

Income at 70% of the State Median Income

New Child

When determining eligibility for a new HS or EHS child who is being considered for a program partnering with CSPP or CCTR, the family’s eligibility must also be determined for the state-funded program using the state income guidelines at 70 percent of the state median income (SMI).

State Income Guidelines at 70% SMI Family Size Family Monthly Income Family Yearly Income

1–2 $4,030 $48,361 3 $4,340 $52,076 4 $4,877 $58,524 5 $5,657 $67,888 6 $6,438 $77,252 7 $6,584 $79,008 8 $6,730 $80,763 9 $6,877 $82,519 10 $7,023 $84,275

Eligibility



11 $7,169 $86,031 12 $7,316 $87,786

New families whose income exceeds the 70% SMI level may be enrolled in a HS program partnered with part-day CSPP only if the family’s income is no more than 15 percent above the 70 percent SMI.

New families whose income exceeds 70% of the SMI level may not be enrolled in CCTR or full-day CSPP.

State Income Guidelines 15% above the 70% SMI Family

Size Monthly Income Annual Income at

70% SMI Annual Income at

15% above the 70% SMI

1 – 2 $4,030 $48,361 $55,615 3 $4,340 $52,076 $59,887 4 $4,877 $58,524 $67,303 5 $5,657 $67,888 $78,071 6 $6,438 $77,252 $88,840 7 $6,584 $79,008 $90,859 8 $6,730 $80,763 $92,877 9 $6,877 $82,519 $94,897 10 $7,023 $84,275 $96,916 11 $7,169 $86,031 $98,936 12 $7,316 $87,786 $100,954

Eligibility


Returning Child

When determining eligibility for a returning HS or EHS child who is seeking to continue in a program partnered with CSPP or CCTR, the family’s eligibility for the state program must be redetermined using the state income guidelines at 85 percent of the state median income (SMI).


1–2 $4,894 $58,724 3 $5,270 $63,235 4 $5,922 $71,065 5 $6,870 $82,436 6 $7,817 $93,806 7 $7,995 $95,938 8 $8,172 $98,070 9 $8,350 $100,202 10 $8,528 $102,334 11 $8,705 $104,466 12 $8,883 $106,598

Income Guidelines for New Program Year

When a Federal Register Notice is released with new poverty guidelines, LACOE and its delegates will use the revised guidelines, effective immediately, for determining eligibility in the current and subsequent year.

Verifying Eligibility

Age

Delegate staff must maintain records verifying the child’s age in the file. Date of birth must be verified using one of the following documents:

• Birth certificate

• Passport

• Immunization Records

• Other document issued by a government agency such as DCFS or DPSS.

Eligibility


If a family is unable to provide staff with necessary documents, this should not be a barrier to enrolling the child. Families must be provided reasonable time to present these documents if they are not able to present them at the time of eligibility determination.

Public Assistance

The documentation used as verification that the family is receiving public assistance must be dated within six months of determining eligibility. LACOE requires delegates to obtain one of the following as verification that the family is receiving or is eligible for public assistance:

• Notice of Action (NOA) from the Department of Public Social Services (DPSS)

• Verification of Benefits from DPSS

• Electronic verification of benefits from DPSS is an acceptable form of documentation as long as the recipient can provide proof to support the identification number

• Third Party Verification form—delegates, with parent’s authorization, may use this form to call 1-877-328-9677 and verify public assistance status

Homelessness

To verify whether a family is homeless, the delegate must obtain one of the following documents as verification that the family is homeless:

• Written statement from a homeless services provider, school personnel, or other service agency attesting that the child is homeless

• Other documentation that indicates homelessness, including documentation from a public or private agency

• Information gathered on the residency questionnaire section of the LACOE Application for Services form, and notes from an interview with staff that were used to establish the child is homeless

If the family provides one of the documents listed above, delegate staff must also document efforts made to verify the accuracy of the information provided in the

Eligibility


ChildPlus Enrollment module. For example, if a delegate receives a direct referral from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), the delegate could simply enter notes in the ChildPlus Enrollment module that state: homeless status verified through LAHSA on (date), spoke to (person’s name).

If the family cannot provide documentation, delegate staff may:

• Accept a family’s signed written declaration stating the child is homeless, which would also include a statement from the delegate staff describing the family’s living situation that meets the definition of homeless.

• Seek information from a third party who knows about the family’s living situation, if the family provides written consent.

The delegate must remove barriers that hinder the process and work with the family to gather the needed documentation or information. For example, for families that do not have a mailing address, the delegate may use the delegate’s address to enter the child in ChildPlus.

Foster Care

Delegates must accept one of the following documents to verify the child is in foster care:

• Court order or other legal or government-issued document

• Written statement from a government child welfare official that demonstrates the child is in foster care

• Proof of a foster care payment

Note(s):

• The delegates must maintain documentation in the file demonstrating the child is in foster care as of the date eligibility is determined.

• Foster children are considered a family size of “one” and need to be documented as such in the Application for Services and ChildPlus.

Income

Delegate staff must use one of the following to verify eligibility based on income:

Eligibility


• Tax forms

• Pay stubs

• Other document that can be used as proof of the family’s income

Income must be for the 12 months preceding the month in which the application is submitted or for the calendar year prior to the one in which the application is submitted, whichever more accurately reflects the needs of the family at the time of application.

• When using a year-to-date total on a paystub dated in December, delegates must consider the pay period to ensure that the total includes the entire month and not a fraction of a month.

If the family reports no income for the relevant period, a program may accept the family's signed declaration to that effect on the Applicant Statement form. In addition, one of the following must occur:

• Program staff document efforts made to verify the family’s income and explain how the family's total income was calculated in both ChildPlus and page 2 of the Application for Services form

• Program staff contact the third party identified by the family on the Parental Release/Employer Verification form

Verifying Address

The delegate is required to secure documentation to verify the family’s address and ensure the applicant(s) reside within the delegate’s service area. Documentation to verify address must be kept in the child’s file. Proof of address must be verified by one of the following documents:

• Utility bills

• Rental agreements

• Other official documents

• DMV identification card

• Address Affidavit

Eligibility


If the same document is used for multiple purposes, the delegate must label the document and identify each of the intended purposes. For example, if the delegate has a copy of the TANF Notice of Action in the file, circle and label the information used as verification of income and circle and label the information used as proof of address.

If a homeless family cannot provide address verification, it is permissible to use the address of the delegate main office or center where the child will be enrolled.

Recordkeeping

After securing all eligibility verification documents, delegate staff must:

• Complete page 2 of the Application for Services form with the parent and secure the parent and staff signatures

• Enter eligibility information in ChildPlus. Enter the type of interview that was conducted in the Enrollment tab (Eligibility sub-section) of the applicant’s ChildPlus record

• Print the Head Start Eligibility Verification (HSEV) form from ChildPlus and verify that the eligibility information aligns with the documentation in the file

o The staff and parent signature dates, on page 2 of the Application for Services form, and the staff signature date on the HSEV form must all be the same.

o The signing of the HSEV form verifies that eligibility was determined on the date the interview was conducted.

o The delegate ERSEA coordinator or designee is required to review the ERSEA files to ensure accuracy and completeness and agree with the staff determination of eligibility.

In order to confirm review of the file, the ERSEA coordinator or designee must initial next to the staff signature on the HSEV form.

• Assign the family ranking points in ChildPlus

Eligibility


• Maintain eligibility documentation in the file

Note(s):

• The Eligibility Category identified in the HSEV is driven from the Income Status in the eligibility section of the participant’s enrollment tab in ChildPlus.

o Delegates must not select “Counted as part of the 49% maximum.” LACOE and its delegates do not operate programs authorized to use this category.

• All applicants must complete the family residency questionnaire section of the Application for Services.

o Section D4 of the Application for Services form must be left blank for participants determined homeless or in foster care.

Head Start - Early Head Start - State Programs APPLICATION FOR SERVICES (PART 2 OF 2)

Form No. 604-547 Pg. 2 of 2 09/25/201

Serving Students • Supporting Communities Leading Educators

D. ELIGIBILITY D1. Family Residency Questionnaire

CHILD LIVES WITH 1 Parent or Guardian 2 Parents or Guardians 1 Parent & Another Adult A Relative An Adult (Not Parent, Guardian, or Relative) Other:

FAMILY LIVING SITUATION: (CHECK ALL THAT APPLY)

None of the Options Apply Transitional Housing Program Name: Shelter Name: Other places not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping Motel/Hotel Name: accommodation for human beings (explain) Single Room Occupancy (SRO)

Temporarily in one of the following due to inadequate housing, financial hardship, or loss of housing:

Car, Trailer, or Campsite Rented Trailer, Motor Home on Private Property Rented Garage Another Family's House or Apartment With Another Adult (Not the Parent or Legal Guardian)

D2. Age Eligibility D3. Categorical Eligibility (If not Categorically Eligible, must Complete Section D4) BIRTH DATE VERIFICATION

Birth Certificate Passport Baptismal Certificate Other:

If the family is categorically eligible, select one of the boxes below and attach appropriate documentation. The documentation must be current (within six months from the date of application for services) to show family is receiving services.

TANF/CalWORKs Supplemental Security Income Homeless Foster Care Note: If family is categorically eligible, do not complete the D4 Income Eligibility section of this form.

D4. Income Eligibility Parent/Guardian A:

Occupation: Years at Present Employer:

Column A Current YTD

Column B Time Period Covered / Type of Income Documentation

Column C Prior YTD

Column D Time Period Covered / Type of Income Documentation

Total Income Parent/Guardian A: $

Parent/Guardian B:

Occupation: Years at Present Employer:

Column A Current YTD

Column B Time Period Covered / Type of Income Documentation

Column C Prior YTD

Column D Time Period Covered / Type of Income Documentation

Total Income Parent/Guardian B: $

Total Family Income (Parent /Guardian A + Parent /Guardian B): $

E. SELECTION CRITERIA Disability Status Applicant Status (Check all that apply) Crisis (Check all that apply) Parent/Guardian (Check all that apply)

None IEP RTI IFSP Suspected

Transitioning EHS Student Returning Student 5 Year Old - Kindergarten Unavailable Agency Referral

Child Protective Services Incarcerated Parent Domestic Abuse DCFS Case

In Military Pregnant Mother Disabled Grandparent

Additional Criteria (Capture from Page 1)

Parental Status (One Parent, Teen Parent) Health Coverage (No Insurance) Parent Education (Education Level & Student Status) Dual Language Learner

Application Notes / Clarifications / Special Circumstances:

I certify that the information about the family, income and number of persons in this family given above is true and correct.

I have reviewed the above documentation and verify that the information is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.

Signature of Parent/Guardian or Client Date Signed Signature of Head Start Staff Date Signed

Eligibility


Eligibility


Period of Eligibility

Head Start

Once a child has been determined eligible, the child remains eligible for Head Start services through that enrollment year and the immediately succeeding enrollment year, provided the child is not dropped during the current program year. If the child is dropped and the family wants to return, eligibility must be redetermined.

Early Head Start

Children enrolled in Early Head Start remain eligible for the program until the child is three years old. If the child is going to be transitioned into Head Start, the family’s eligibility must be re-determined.

Returning Children

Returning children are children who actively participated in the program during the enrollment year and are seeking to continue services in the following program year. Returning children are eligible based on the applicable period of eligibility described above for the respective program. Delegates must engage families and support them in the process of enrolling as a returning family for the following program year.

The delegate must contact the family to determine if the child will be returning to the program for the succeeding program year and must:

• Update new contact information for the family as needed in ChildPlus

• Maintain the documentation used to determine eligibility in year one in the child’s file

• Rank all returning children to ensure that children with the greatest need for EHS or HS services are prioritized for enrollment

• Print the Family Application in ChildPlus by:

1. Selecting Print application in the family’s application tab

2. Checking the “print the family information page” box

Eligibility


3. Selecting the participant whose enrollment record will be printed

• Have the parent or guardian sign and date the form printed from ChildPlus

This form must be updated, printed, signed, dated, and maintained in the returning child’s file for each year the child is eligible to return to the program.

Applicants Not Enrolled in Current Year

Applicants who remained on the waitlist for the current program year and were never enrolled but wish to be considered for the new program year must have their eligibility redetermined.

Eligibility


Eligibility


Third-Year Returning Children

If a Head Start child is returning for a third year, the delegate must redetermine eligibility.

Transitioning from EHS to HS

In order for children to fully reach their potential for school readiness, EHS children are transitioned to Head Start or another early education program that meets the needs of the child and family. Transitions must begin at least six months prior to the child’s third birthday. Delegate services staff and ERSEA coordinator must work together to plan and identify appropriate placements for children transitioning from EHS to HS.

Transitions must take place as soon as possible after the child’s third birthday. Delegates must allow children to remain in Early Head Start for a limited number of additional months following the third birthday, if necessary for an appropriate transition to occur. However, the delegate must also be in compliance with all other applicable regulations related to center-based programs, such as licensing, when determining how long a child will be able to remain in EHS.

Children enrolled in an EHS home-based program may not be terminated until an appropriate transition to HS or other program has been made. Delegates must ensure staff is trained and able to meet the needs of the three-year-old in the home-based program option.

For more guidance on transitions, refer to the Family and Community Engagement Services GIM. In addition, delegate staff working with transitioning children must:

• Have knowledge of both EHS and HS programs to better facilitate the transition process

• Individualize transitions

• Eliminate barriers and be prepared to enroll these children in Head Start, if eligible

Eligibility


• Support families through the enrollment process with other programs or delegates when the current delegate is unable to continue serving the child or the family is no longer eligible for Head Start

Delegates enrolling a child in EHS who is at or above two years and six months of age and younger than three years of age, must review the Early Head Start Transition Notification with the parent and secure the parent’s signature. In addition, EHS programs must inform the parents of the following during the enrollment process:

• Child and family will engage in activities to transition the child to HS or other program as soon as the child is enrolled in EHS.

• Eligibility must be redetermined prior to the child turning three years old in order to transition to HS.

When a child is transitioning from EHS to an HS program operated by another delegate, the current delegate must:

• Contact the Head Start delegate and discuss the transition plan

• Email [email protected] and copy the assigned ERSEA monitor to assist the receiving delegate in adding the child in ChildPlus:

o The email to [email protected] must include the child’s name, date of birth, and ChildPlus identification number.

o The receiving delegate will “add new family” in ChildPlus and work with the current delegate and family to determine eligibility for HS.

• Assist the receiving delegate and support the family in gathering documentation to determine eligibility:

o Once eligibility has been determined, the current delegate must update the child’s status in ChildPlus.

o Families may not be enrolled until the receiving delegate verifies that the child has been dropped or completed from the current EHS program.

• Update ChildPlus to allow the receiving delegate to enroll the child


Eligibility


Training on Eligibility

Delegates must train individuals on:

• Methods for collecting complete and accurate eligibility information from families and third party sources;

• Strategies for treating families with dignity and respect and for dealing with possible issues of domestic violence, stigma, and privacy; and

• Program policies and procedures that describe actions taken against staff, families, or participants who attempt to provide or intentionally provide false information.

Training must be conducted within specified timeframes for the following groups:

• Management, and staff members who make eligibility determinations within 90 days of hiring new staff

• Governing body and Policy Committee members within 180 days of the beginning of the term of a new governing body or Policy Committee

At the conclusion of the training, delegates must complete the LACOE Certification of Eligibility Training and maintain the form in the staff’s personnel file. After the initial training, delegates must provide training annually.


Tier 1 Monitoring

The delegate is required to use ChildPlus for ongoing monitoring to ensure:

• A sufficient number of children are recruited and placed on a waitlist to meet and sustain full enrollment

• Priority points are assigned and applicants are placed on a ranked waitlist

• Eligibility is determined in a timely manner for all families recruited in the community

• Communication with families is taking place to keep them interested and build a relationship with them to avoid their leaving to other programs

Eligibility


• Effective and efficient recordkeeping of eligibility information in ChildPlus is supported by the documentation maintained in the child’s file

o Delegates must use the ERSEA File Review Checklist located at http://prekkid.org/login/

o All files must be reviewed no later than April 30

o Delegates must analyze the information resulting from file review to correct identified challenges and provide staff ongoing support and training to sustain compliance

The delegate must use the ChildPlus Enrollment Priority List Report #2025 to monitor the delegate’s prioritized (ranked) waitlist and identify applicants with the highest priority points. Filter the report to identify:

• Children with the status of “New” prior to the start of the program year

• Children with the status of “Waitlisted” when the program is seeking to fill a vacancy that occurred after the start date as a result of a drop

http://prekkid.org/login/

Eligibility



Selection

Definitions Accepted Applicants who have met the eligibility requirements and have been selected in ChildPlus to fill an empty slot prior to the first day of school or were selected to fill a vacancy. Accepted applicants have also completed the enrollment process and are waiting to start the program on the designated start date.

Empty Slot

An empty slot is a slot that has never been filled.

Selection of Children

Formal process for using the selection criteria to assign points to applicants to prioritize applications and identify those with the greatest need for services.

Selection List

The ranked list of applicants, created prior to the beginning of the program year where delegate staff assign an “accepted” date to child /pregnant mother selected in ChildPlus to fill an empty slot.

Waitlist

The ranked list of applicants, maintained once the program year has begun and throughout the program year, used to identify the next applicant who will fill a vacant slot. Applicants on a waitlist are waiting for a vacancy to occur and are assigned a “waitlisted” date in ChildPlus.

Selection


Requirements

Determining Priority

LACOE conducts a countywide community assessment and uses the data to identify the selection criteria. Delegates assign points to the established criteria in order to select and rank families with the greatest need for services and may also include adjustment factors to reflect criteria that may be unique to a given service area.

In selecting children and families to be served, the delegate must also consider the eligibility, the age of the child, the availability of kindergarten, and the extent to which a child or family meets the criteria that each program requires.

• Delegates must ensure sufficient priority points are allocated to families whose income is at or below federal poverty guidelines for their family size, families eligible for public assistance, and homeless and foster children.

• If a program operates in a service area where Head Start eligible children can enroll in high-quality publicly funded pre-kindergarten for a full school day, then the program must prioritize three-year-olds as part of the selection criteria.

• Children transitioning from EHS programs must also receive priority for enrollment to ensure continuation of services and seamless transitions even if the delegate does not operate an EHS program.

• Every delegate must use the selection criteria included in Exhibit N of the LACOE Subrecipient Agreement. These are the approved criteria used to set up selection in ChildPlus.

Note(s):

• All eligible applicants must be included in the ranking system and assigned points according to the criteria applicable to each family.

Selection


Assigning Points

After the child has been determined eligible for services, the application is assigned priority points for the selection criteria that is applicable to the family.

Priority for programs operating more than six hours must be given to families who are:

• Employed or in job training

• Attending school

Prior to ranking applicants for the new program year, eligibility must be redetermined for all children remaining on the Waitlist at the end of the program year.

Selecting Applicants

The delegate must ensure that the selection process takes into account the specific requirements outlined in the regulation and reflects the current needs of families in the service area. Delegates must select applicants from a ranked list identifying those with the greatest need for services. The delegate must also accept all children and/or pregnant women needed to meet full enrollment 30 days prior to the first day of class operation.

The delegate must select children for enrollment according to the highest ranked application.

• When children are selected to fill a slot the applicant status in ChildPlus must be changed to “accepted.”

• When more than one applicant on the list has the same number of priority points, the applicant who has been on the list the longest shall be selected first.

If the family refuses to accept a vacant slot, the family should be offered the opportunity to remain on the Waitlist.

• Delegate staff must change the status in ChildPlus for families requesting to remain on the Waitlist from “Accepted” to “Waitlisted.”

Selection


Children not selected for enrollment at the beginning of the program year must remain Waitlisted for an opportunity to be selected when a vacancy occurs throughout the program year.

In order for the delegate to accept all children needed to meet full enrollment, the delegate must have a selection procedure that allows staff to incrementally identify and select applicants to fill an empty slot or vacancy. The delegate is required to:

• Identify the number of returning children for the new program year;

• Work with the families of returning children to keep them interested and informed about the process to continue in the program;

• Identify the number of slots that will need to filled to meet full enrollment;

For example:

o Big Stars Delegate Agency (BSDA) is scheduled to start classes on September 6, and is funded to serve 500 HS children.

o BSDA has been recruiting, building an interest list, and determining which currently enrolled children are age-eligible to return for a second year and contacting their families to determine if indeed they plan on continuing in HS for a second year.

o BSDA identified 100 families interested in continuing in the program for a second year.

o BSDA must recruit more than 400 families to ensure that it accepts all children needed to meet full enrollment 30 days prior to the start date (500 – 100 = 400), place the remaining families on a prioritized waitlist, and work with the families to be ready to start immediately after BSDA identifies empty slots resulting from families that changed their mind about participating in the program.

o BSDA maintains ongoing communication with all families that have been accepted or waitlisted by:

Selection


Communicating with them often, at least once per month, inviting them to open houses and other events that provide opportunities to meet the teachers and program staff;

Reminding all those accepted in the program of the start date;

Providing assistance with completing any outstanding items prior to the start of program to avoid delays in children being able to start the program;

Informing families about the program and what they can expect and answering any questions;

Mailing monthly newsletters, brochures, or other information containing a variety of topics of interest to families;

Introducing the family service worker and their role in working with and assisting the family;

Providing opportunities to get involved and sharing parent testimonials about the program; and

Scheduling parent orientations and explaining and stressing the importance of attending on the expected start date.

• Analyze previous year’s data to determine how many applicants, on average, have resulted in no-shows in order to recruit sufficient children and/or pregnant women to fill the slots of children and/or pregnant women whose applications are abandoned;

• Analyze the ranked list/interest list to identify if the delegate has a sufficient number of children to reach and sustain full enrollment;

• Select children, at a minimum, on a weekly basis from the ranked list/interest list until all children and/or pregnant women needed to meet full enrollment have been accepted;

Selection


• Maintain ongoing communication with families that are accepted to ensure they attend class on the first day of school, if enrolled in a family child care or center-based program, or participate in the first home visit as scheduled, if enrolled in a home-based program; and

• Maintain ongoing communication with families on the waitlist to keep them interested in the program and ensure they are ready to start as soon as a slot becomes available.

Note(s):

• Over-income families may be selected for enrollment only after eligible children and/or pregnant women with the highest priority have been accepted.

Selecting Children when Income Exceeds FPL

When selecting a child whose family’s income exceeds the FPL, but is facing factors identified in the delegate’s selection criteria, the following must be conducted:

• Print a copy of the ChildPlus Enrollment Priority Listing Report #2025 in order to demonstrate that no eligible child is being displaced. Keep a copy of the report in the child’s file.

• Count the child in one of two over-income categories in the current and subsequent year, unless the income changes in the subsequent year. Over-income children are counted in one of the two following categories:

o 10 percent of total funded slots may include children whose family’s income exceeds the FPL

o 35 percent of total funded slots may include children whose family’s income is between 101 to 130 percent of the FPL

Selection


Children with Disabilities

Children with disabilities must also meet the eligibility criteria outlined for HS and EHS as applicable. Delegates must enroll children with disabilities for at least 10 percent of the total number of funded slots. The delegate’s disabilities coordinator must refer children to the LEA for evaluation as soon as the need is evident for children participating in the HS or EHS program. The sources of referral include parent concern, teacher observation, screening and assessment results, and collateral information from other service providers. See the LACOE Disabilities Services GIM for more information.

• The total percentage of children with disabilities is calculated by multiplying the total number of funded slots by 10 percent.

o For example: a delegate funded for 144 children must enroll 14 children with disabilities (144 X .10 = 14).

• Only children with an IFSP, if enrolled in EHS, or an IEP, if enrolled in HS, may be counted in the 10 percent.

• Income-eligible three-year-old children with IEPs must be recruited and enrolled prior to enrolling over-income four-year-old children.

• The 10 percent requirement must be maintained throughout the program year.

o For example: A delegate funded for 144 children must have 14 children with a disability enrolled throughout the program year.

The number 14 is not a cumulative number.

The actual number of children enrolled in a program on any given day determines compliance. In this example, if LACOE pulls an enrollment report on October 31, the delegate must have 14 children with disabilities enrolled on October 31 in order to be in compliance.

Selection


• If a child with a disability is dropped from a program, the delegate has 30 days to fill the slot; failure to fill the slot within 30 days will negatively impact the 10 percent requirement and may also impact the delegate’s overall compliance in sustaining full enrollment.

• Slots may not be shared.

o For example, if a child’s IEP/IFSP states that the child can attend the program only a few days per week, then the slot is considered occupied for the remaining days; therefore, no other child may be enrolled in the same slot.

Midpoint

Each delegate must meet the 10 percent requirement by January 31.

Empty Slots

An empty slot is a slot that has never been filled. Delegates are considered under-enrolled until all empty slots have been filled. A child whose application is abandoned results in an empty slot and the delegate must fill the slot immediately. Delegates do not have 30 days to fill an empty slot because no child or pregnant woman has ever been identified as enrolled.

Children and/or pregnant women selected to participate in the program are expected to attend the first day of class (family child care or center-based) or receive the first home visit (home-based). For children and/or pregnant women who do not attend the first day of class or receive the first home visit:

• Delegate staff must follow up immediately to determine reason for absence or missed home visit.

• For center-based and family child care programs, after three consecutive days of class and unsuccessful attempts to contact the family, the delegate must abandon the child’s application on the fourth day.

• For home-based programs, after two consecutive parent-canceled home visits and/or unsuccessful attempts to contact the family, the delegate must abandon the child or pregnant woman’s application the day following the second canceled home visit.

Selection



Tier 1 Monitoring

Delegates are required to use the ChildPlus Enrollment Priority List Report #2025, filtered to identify all children with the Accepted status, for ongoing monitoring to ensure:

• Eligibility points assigned to an applicant are in alignment with the delegate’s selection criteria

• Children with the highest priority are selected prior to the delegate’s start date

o Also, when filling a vacancy that occurs during the program year, the report is used to identify the child with the highest priority to fill the slot.

The ChildPlus Enrollment Priority List Report #2025 must also be used when selecting a child whose family income exceeds the FPL to:

• Verify that over-income eligible children were not selected over eligible children on the delegate’s Waitlist

• Serve as documentation by keeping a copy of the report in a delegate file to show children selected for enrollment

Selection


See example that follows for filtering the ChildPlus report to identify children on the Waitlist.


Enrollment

Definitions Co-location Co-location is an arrangement in which HS children and children funded by other sources are enrolled in the same classroom (not to exceed 20 children).

Double Session

A 3.5-hour center-based program in which a single teacher is employed to work with one group of children in the morning and a different group in the afternoon.

Empty Slot

An empty slot is one that has never been filled. If the program year begins and empty slots exist, then the delegate is considered under-enrolled and LACOE will enforce the sanctions outlined in the Subrecipient Agreement, Enforcement Sanctions.

Enrolled

Participant has been accepted and attended at least one class for center-based or family child care option or at least one home visit for the home-based option.

Enrolled Date/Start Date/Entry Date

The enrollment date, start date, and entry date are interchangeable terms meaning the date at the beginning of the program year that the child attends class (for center-based or family child care) or receives a home visit (for home-based).

Enrollment year

The period, not to exceed twelve months, during which a Head Start program provides center- or home-based services to a group of children and their families.

Enrollment


Funded Enrollment

The number of participants that LACOE receives funds to serve, as indicated on the grant award. Delegate’s funded enrollment is identified in the subrecipient contract.

Part-Day

A center-based program providing services at least three-and-a-half hours per day.

Program Options

Options are EHS or HS services provided to children through center-based, home-based, or family child care settings.

Transfer

Transfer is when a child moves from one classroom or site to another classroom or site within the delegate.

Requirements

Full Enrollment A delegate achieves full enrollment by enrolling a participant in every funded slot. Delegates are required to recruit and enroll participants to meet and sustain the funded enrollment level for each program throughout the program year. Delegate staff must monitor enrollment and fill all vacancies. All delegates are required to use ChildPlus to monitor enrollment and set up the Enrollment Dashboard. At a minimum, the dashboard must include:

• Funded enrollment

• Current enrollment

• Drops within 30 days

• Number accepted

• IEP/IFSP actual enrollment

• Enrollment by eligibility category (over-income, foster, homeless, etc.)

Enrollment


Enrolled Date

The enrolled date, start date, and entry date are interchangeable terms. In order for an applicant in ChildPlus to count towards meeting or sustaining full enrollment, an enrolled dated must be entered.

The enrolled date, for center-based or family child care option, is the date that the participant attends at least one class. For home-based option, the enrolled date is the date the child or pregnant woman receives a home visit. Only participants with an enrolled date in ChildPlus will be counted as part of the delegate’s total enrollment.

The enrolled date for an applicant filling a vacant slot that occurred as a result of a drop is the date the participant actually attends class (center-based and family child care) or receives the first home visit (home-based). The enrolled date is also the date used to track compliance with the service timelines.

In order for LACOE to count a participant as enrolled, the following must occur:

• The participant must be accepted in ChildPlus

• Delegate must assign the participant to a center and class

• Participant must attend class or participate in a home visit, as described in the preceding paragraph

• Delegate must enter the enrolled date in ChildPlus

Delay in Start Date

All classes must be operational by September 30 to ensure compliance with the required number of operational days. Delays in start date beyond the dates approved in a delegate’s funding application must follow LACOE’s RAA/BAR procedures to secure proper approvals before a delegate may implement the change.

Enrollment


Reserved Slots

Delegates may request to reserve one or more slots for pregnant women and children experiencing homelessness and children in foster care, when a vacancy occurs. Delegates must receive approval from LACOE prior to reserving slots. No more than 3 percent of the delegate’s funded enrollment slots may be reserved.

• Delegates must fill all reserved slots within 30 days; if not filled, then the slot becomes vacant. From the time the reserved slot becomes vacant, the delegate must fill the slot as soon as possible and not exceed 30 days.

• If the vacancy is an empty slot, a slot the delegate never filled, then the delegate may reserve a slot for no more than 30 days from the class start date.

EHS-CCP Programs ONLY

Unlike the traditional Early Head Start program, which allows delegates to serve pregnant women, infants, and toddlers, the Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership (EHS-CCP) program may only serve infants and toddlers in a center-based setting. Some of LACOE’s delegates operating EHS-CCP serve very specific and unique populations in centers that may not enroll children from the general population. Examples of such centers are the Prototypes facility, a facility for incarcerated women served by Pomona Unified School District (Pomona); Fritz Burns, a group home served by St. Anne’s Maternity Home (St. Anne’s); and centers operating on high school campuses that only allow the enrollment of children born to teens enrolled at that specific high school. Delegates operating EHS-CCP programs in these controlled environments may reserve slots for a child who is still in their mother’s womb, as long as the delegate complies with the requirements described in this section.

In addition, LACOE will not issue a noncompliance for under-enrollment in the event that there are no children on the waitlist for centers with controlled environments and the delegate is under-enrolled because it is awaiting:

a. Birth of a pregnant woman’s child who will be enrolled in the EHS-CCP program; or

Enrollment


b. Assignment of a woman with an eligible child by the court or applicable institution for the EHS-CCP program.

However, the pregnant women do NOT count towards the EHS-CCP enrollment in the OHS Head Start Enterprise System (HSES), and the delegate must comply with the following:

1. The reserved slot may only be at a center with a controlled environment.

2. Delegates may only count the pregnant mother in one program; therefore, if the reserved EHS-CCP slot is for an unborn child, the delegate may not enroll the mother in a home-based program from the delegate’s traditional grant.

3. A pregnant mother must decide if she prefers a home-based or center-based program, and the delegate must explain the benefits of both programs so the pregnant mother makes an informed decision and the delegate does not need to transfer participants.

4. The delegate must explain to the pregnant mother that in the event a mother with an infant or toddler is referred to the center prior to her delivering her baby, that child will be enrolled and the delegate will work to identify another vacant slot for the unborn child.

5. Delegates must provide all services to the pregnant mother as outlined in 1302.80–82 [Subpart H – Services to Enrolled Pregnant Women] and must document the services provided in ChildPlus as appropriate.

6. In order for LACOE to accurately report the status of the vacant slots to OHS through HSES every month, the delegate must email the assigned delegate liaison team leader and ERSEA monitor the following information every month:

o Number of pregnant women for whom the delegate is reserving a slot;

o Pregnant woman’s name and expected date of delivery;

o Class number for which the baby is expected to be enrolled; and

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o Expected date the baby will begin participating in the EHS-CCP program.

Recordkeeping and Reporting in ChildPlus

When the assigned ERSEA monitor receives and reviews the information submitted by the delegate reserving a slot for a pregnant mother, LACOE will create a slot in ChildPlus under the current EHS-CCP program year and the applicable site. Since the pregnant mother may not be enrolled in the EHS-CCP program, the delegate will “accept” the pregnant mother under < the applicable site > < No Classroom >.

Delegates must document and track the services provided to the pregnant woman by using ChildPlus. Services provided to the pregnant woman may include, but are not limited to, the following:

a. Referrals

b. Parent education

c. Home visits screenings and assessments

d. Prenatal and postnatal education

Delegates must enter all services provided to the pregnant mother in the ChildPlus Family Services module and enter health screenings and assessments in the Health module.

Once the baby is born, the delegate must change the pregnant woman’s status to “abandoned,” enroll the child as the “participant” in the EHS-CCP program, and assign the child to the applicable site and class.

Program Options

The program option(s) implemented must meet the needs of children and families based on the community assessment. Delegates may choose to implement one or more of the following program options:

• Center-based

• Home-based

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• Family child care

• Locally-designed

o Prior approval from LACOE and OHS is required before implementing a locally-designed option.

Delegates may only operate program options approved in the funding application and LACOE Subrecipient Agreement. Any proposed changes must be submitted following the RAA/BAR process and may not be implemented until formally approved by LACOE and, when applicable, OHS.

Center-based Option

The center-based option delivers the full range of services primarily in classroom settings.

Ratios and Group Size

Delegates must follow the regulation that is more stringent when a conflict in teacher-child ratios and group size exists between state, federal, or local licensing requirements.

Prior to the start of the program year, delegate staff must:

• Monitor to ensure that staff-child ratios and group size meet the requirements as determined by the age of the majority of children and the needs of the children present.

• Adjust the group size, if necessary, to ensure compliance and secure LACOE approval prior to changing group/classes sizes following the RAA/BAR process.

Once full enrollment has been met in a specific class, the group size must not change during the program year, even if there are changes in the age composition of the children in the class.

• This class size is expected to be maintained throughout the program year.

• Delegates must request and receive approval for any changes in class size prior to implementing the change following LACOE’s RAA/BAR process.

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• The delegate must fill vacancies with the child on the Waitlist with the highest priority points, regardless of the child’s age (three-year-old or four-year-old).

Center-based Group Size for Head Start Programs

Majority Age of Group

Requirement

4- and 5-year-olds No more than 20 children enrolled in any class No more than 17 enrolled in any double session class

3-year-olds No more than 17 enrolled in any class No more than 15 enrolled in any double session class

Center-based Group Size for Early Head Start Programs

Majority Age of Group

Requirement

Under 36 months (3 years) old

No more than 8 or 9 children enrolled in any class, depending on the number of teachers

Service Duration

The revised Performance Standards made significant changes to the service duration requirements for children enrolled in center-based settings. Revisions include the timeline and requirements for implementation.

Early Head Start

Delegates are required to provide all enrolled children 1,380 annual hours of planned class operations by August 1, 2018. Compliance with the service duration requirement for EHS is determined by multiplying the number of days by the number of hours of service provided of planned class operations.

A delegate that provides services to teen parents enrolled in high school, residential programs, or other school settings may meet the service duration requirements if it operates a center-based program schedule during the school year aligned with its local education agency requirements and provides regular home-based services during the summer break.

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Head Start

Delegates must maintain the same number of slots that operated 1,020 hours or more during the 2016-17 program year and future program years thereafter. In addition, any delegate that requested an enrollment reduction to increase the number of slots operating 1,020 hours or more and/or received dosage funding to increase the annual hours to operate at least 1,020 must continue operating those slots in the subsequent years. LACOE and its delegates must maintain the current status of slots operated at 1,020 hours or more and must continue working toward operating 100% of all center-based classes at 1,020 hours or more by August 1, 2021.

Delegates that have center-based slots operating 3.5 hours per day must comply with the following timeline:

Date Requirement August 1, 2019 Delegates must operate 50% of Head Start center-based

funded enrollment at a minimum 1,020 hours annually. This requirement is being waived in accordance with Program Instruction ACF-PI-HS-18-01 released by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.

August 1, 2021 Delegates must provide, at a minimum, 1,020 hours annually of planned class operations over the course of eight months for 100% of Head Start center-based funded enrollment

Delegates providing fewer than 1,020 annual hours of planned class operations or fewer than eight months of service are considered to meet the requirements if approved by LACOE and the delegate can demonstrate:

• Its program schedule aligns with the annual hours required by its local education agency for grade one; and

• The schedule alignment is necessary to support partnerships for service delivery.

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Until a delegate is operating 100% of its Head Start center-based funded enrollment at the required 1,020-hour service duration, a program must provide, at a minimum, the following:

• If operating 5 days per week, then 3.5 hours per day, 160 days per year

• If operating 4 days per week, then 3.5 hours per day, 128 days per year

• Double session classes: may only operate 4 days per week, 3.5 hours per day, 128 days per year

Makeup Days

When delegates have to close due to unforeseen circumstances, (e.g., no water or electricity), delegates must make every effort to schedule makeup days using existing resources if hours of planned class operations fall below the number required per year.

Home-based Option

The home-based program option delivers comprehensive HS or EHS services to children and pregnant women primarily in their home, as well as group socialization opportunities in a Head Start classroom, community facility, or on field trips. Home visit schedules are developed with the child’s parent. See the Family and Community Engagement GIM for more instructions on conducting home visits and socializations.

Service Duration

The service delivery is central to the success of the home-based model and therefore delegates are required to meet the service duration as described below:

Early Head Start

Delegates must provide:

• One home visit per week, minimum of 46 visits per year, per family, lasting at least an hour and a half; and

• 22 group socialization activities over the course of the program year.

http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/policy/45-cfr-chap-xiii/_link

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Head Start

Delegates must provide:

• One home visit per week, minimum of 32 visits per year, per family that lasts at least an hour and a half; and

• 16 group socialization activities over the course of the program year.

Makeup Home Visits

All delegates operating either an EHS or HS home-based program must:

• Make up planned home visits or scheduled group socialization activities canceled by the delegate and must attempt to make up planned home visits canceled by the family, in order to meet the minimum number of required home visits and socialization activities.

o Attempts to reschedule a home visit must be documented in the ChildPlus Family Services module in the case worker notes section.

o Home visits canceled by delegate staff must be made up within one week of the canceled visit.

• Develop procedures to monitor home visitors on a regular basis.

o If families (or staff) are not participating in visits or socializations as intended, delegates must determine the cause and take appropriate action to remedy the problem.

• Support and work with the family to determine if the home-based model is the appropriate choice for that family when there is a consistent pattern of canceled or missed appointments (three home visits).

• Identify and help remove barriers that prevent the family from fully participating in the program or find another program option that better meets the family’s needs. The delegate must follow up in assisting the families with chronic absenteeism resulting from lack of participation in socializations or canceled home visits.

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Family Child Care Option

Family child care option delivers the services in the home of a family child care provider or other family-like setting, such as a space in a public housing complex which has been licensed by the state and set aside specifically for the provision of or purpose of providing family child care. The delegate must ensure the family child care provider can accommodate children with disabilities.

Ratios and group size

A program operating a family child care option serving Head Start and/or Early Head Start children must ensure the group size does not exceed the following limits:

Family Child Care Ratios and Group Size

Number of FCC providers Maximum group size

Requirement

1 family child care provider 6 children no more than 2 of the 6 children may be under 24 months of age

1 family child care provider and 1 provider assistant

12 children No more than 4 of the 12 children may be under 24 months of age

1 family child care provider 4 children younger than

36 months

No more than 2 of the 4 children may be younger than 18 months of age

Note(s):

• If the family child care provider’s own children under the age of six are present, they must be included in the group size.

• Delegates must maintain appropriate ratios during all hours of program operation.

Service Duration

Delegates operating a family child care option must operate sufficient hours to meet the child care needs of families and not less than 1,380 hours per year.

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Makeup Days

When delegates have to close due to unforeseen circumstances, (e.g., no water or electricity), delegates must make every effort to schedule makeup days using existing resources if hours of planned class operations fall below the number required per year.

Locally-designed Program Option

A locally-designed program option is a combination of program options used as an alternative approach for providing program services in order to better meet the unique needs of a delegate’s community.

Delegates must submit to LACOE the proposed plan to operate a locally-designed program option through the funding application process. The proposed plan must include the following elements:

• Program design (program schedule) and information supporting the change that demonstrates how the program proposed aligns with the delegates goals.

• Evidence demonstrating the locally-designed variation effectively supports appropriate development and progress in children’s early learning outcomes.

Delegates may not implement the program option until OHS and LACOE grant approval.

Vacancies

A vacancy is an unfilled slot. Delegates must fill vacancies immediately and not wait 30 days in order to maintain full enrollment.

• Slots that have been vacant for more than 30 days result in under-enrollment, and LACOE may impose sanctions as stated in the Subrecipient Agreement, Enforcement Sanctions section, and the Monitoring for Successful Outcomes GIM.

• Delegates must maintain an active ranked waitlist to be able to fill vacancies immediately.

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• Children with the highest number of points on the waitlist must be selected to fill vacancies for EHS or HS as applicable.

o When filling a Head Start vacancy during the program year, three-year-old children must not be overlooked on the waitlist regardless of the class size. Delegates must ensure appropriate staffing in the classroom and that services are provided to three-year-olds while maintaining the class sizes approved at the beginning of the year.

o Class sizes must not change during the program year, regardless of changes in the age composition of the children in the class.

Example: How vacancies impact enrollment

• David was accepted to a 3.5-hour HS program on July 7.

• By August 7, the program had accepted all the children needed to meet full enrollment.

• The HS program’s first day of program operation is September 9.

• On September 9, 10, and 11, David failed to show for the first three days of class. After he failed to attend the third day of class, the delegate conducted a home visit the next morning and the parents communicated to delegate staff that the child was attending a transitional kindergarten program.

• The delegate abandoned the child on the fourth day (September 12). Impact to enrollment: The delegate is under-enrolled by one slot.

• The HS program must fill the slot immediately as the vacancy remains and the delegate is under-enrolled until the slot is filled and the participant attends class (center-based or family child care program) or receives one home visit (home-based program).

Explanation

Children may not be counted as enrolled until they attend a class or receive a home visit. In the example provided, the delegate does not have 30 calendar days to fill the vacancy since David did not attend class and the slot was a slot that has

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never been filled—an empty slot. The delegate is under-enrolled until the slot is filled and may be cited as noncompliant for being under-enrolled.

Reporting Vacancies

Delegates are required to monitor the program’s enrollment and vacancies on a weekly basis. This includes reporting the status of filling vacancies to the delegate’s assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor. At a minimum, include the following:

• Site and class number where vacancies have been identified

• Date slots became vacant

• Name of children identified to fill slots, appointment dates, and expected start dates to fill slots

Transfers

A transfer does not fill a vacancy and does not change the fact that the delegate has fewer children enrolled than it is funded to serve. Transfers move the vacant slot to another location and do not gain additional time to fill a slot. Therefore, delegates are required to ensure the following when transferring a child:

• Continuously recruit children to maintain healthy waitlists for all sites.

• Identify two children to complete the transfer: the first child is the child who is being transferred from one class to another and the second child will fill the slot vacated by the child who is transferring to another class.

• Transfer the child in ChildPlus from the current class to the new class and accept the child on the Waitlist with the highest priority to fill the vacant slot.

o Failing to accept a child will result in under-enrollment. Delegates do not get a new 30-day grace period to fill the vacancy resulting from a transfer.

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Immunizations

Delegates must comply with the Health Services GIM to identify which immunizations are required for enrollment and attendance in Head Start and Early Head Start programs, including any exceptions made for homeless children.

Parent Participation

Parent Participation in any Early Head Start or Head Start program activity is voluntary, including consent for data sharing, and is not required as a condition of the child’s enrollment.

Policy on Fee for Service

A Head Start program must not prescribe any fee schedule or otherwise provide for the charging of any fees for participation in EHS or HS programs. Under no circumstances shall a delegate solicit, encourage, or in any other way put conditions on child’s enrollment or participation contingent on a fee.

ERSEA Files for All Participants

Delegates must maintain separate files for all participants enrolled in programs with multiple funding sources. The files must comply with the requirements of the specific program’s funding source and contain all required LACOE forms. Delegates may download a list of forms and instructions on completing the forms from www.prekkid.org. LACOE requires that all applicant files contain LACOE ERSEA-required documents in the following order:


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New Applicant• ERSEA File Content Checklist• Year 1 Application for Services Form• Age Documentation (EHS-Pregnancy Verification, if applicable)• Year 1 Head Start Eligibility Verification Form (printed from ChildPlus)• Eligibility Documentation• ChildPlus Enrollment Priority Listing Report #2025 (when enrolling

over-income children)• Address Verification Documents• Approved Interagency Enrollment Agreement (if applicable)• Grantee-to-Grantee Approval Letter (if applicable)• Over-Income Grantee Approval Letter (if applicable for families over

15% of state guidelines) • Caregiver Affidavit (if applicable)

Returning Applicant• ERSEA File Content Checklist• ChildPlus Family Information, Income, and Contacts form• Year 1 Application for Services Form• Age Documentation (EHS-Pregnancy Verification, if applicable)• Year 1 Head Start Eligibility Verification Form (printed from ChildPlus)• Eligibility Documentation• ChildPlus Enrollment Priority Listing Report #2025 (when enrolling

over-income children)• Address Verification Documents• Approved Interagency Enrollment Agreement (if applicable)• Grantee-to-Grantee Approval Letter (if applicable)• Over-Income Grantee Approval Letter (if applicable for families over

15% of state guidelines) • Caregiver Affidavit (if applicable)

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Tier 1 Monitoring

The delegate is required to use ChildPlus for ongoing monitoring to:

• Assign eligibility points;

• Rank all applicants according to highest priority;

• Select children with the highest priority first; and

• Track enrollment.

The delegate must use the ChildPlus End of the Month Enrollment Report #2005 to monitor enrollment to ensure full enrollment is met and sustained throughout the program year. This report informs the delegate regarding the enrollment status of the participants at each of the delegate sites and classes.


Attendance

Definitions Absences

Absences are the days an enrolled child does not attend class.

Average Daily Attendance

The aggregate number of days of attendance of all children during a program year or specific time period, divided by the total possible number of days the program is in session during that year or specific time period.

Chronic Absenteeism

When the sum of all excused and unexcused absences results in a child missing 10 percent or more of the total number of actual school days. A child who on an average misses two days per month is considered “chronically absent.”

Consecutive Absences

Absences that occur sequentially.

Requirements

Daily Sign In and Out

The California Department of Social Services published a Provider Information Notice (PIN #18-03-CCP) that addressed the migration from paper to electronic data management. This allows delegates to use the ChildPlus sign in and out feature on electronic mobile devices. Delegates must print out the sign in and out sheets, if requested by a licensing analyst or other reviewer. Refer to the ChildPlus Manual for instructions on printing out sign in and out sheets.

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Daily Attendance

To promote regular attendance through education and support of families, delegates must, within the first hour of class operation, document attendance in the ChildPlus Attendance Module and follow up on absences. Attendance can be entered in ChildPlus using:

• ChildPlus attendance app with either an iPad or Android device

• Scanning ChildPlus ID cards

• Directly entering into ChildPlus via workstation, laptop, etc.

Using the Attendance App

ChildPlus mobile application must be downloaded on a tablet (iPad or Android). Delegates may enter attendance, track meals, and report absences on the mobile application. The data collected is sent directly to the child’s ChildPlus record. Attendance defaults can be set so that the delegates will only need to make changes to children’s attendance if different from the default. Delegates using the attendance app must adhere to the following:

• Log in to ChildPlus using the assigned user name and password.

• Select the classroom and site from the drop-down menu on the top left-hand side of the screen.

• Record attendance for the child (present, excused, unexcused, no class).

o If the attendance needs to be edited or daily attendance notes need to be entered, select the icon with three dots on the right-hand side of the child’s name.

If the child was absent and the parent reported the reason, delegate staff must enter the documentation in the text box provided.

If the child was absent and the parent did not report the reason, delegate staff must enter the reason as an unexcused absence.

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The child’s check-in and check-out time can be edited in this section.

Select done when completed.

Using ChildPlus ID Cards

Daily attendance may also be entered using the ChildPlus child ID cards. The ID cards are designed to be used when children enter or leave the center. The ID cards must be scanned using a wired or wireless barcode scanner. After the child’s ID card is scanned, ChildPlus records the child’s arrival and departure times. Delegates may add the child’s photo, center, classroom, allergies, and release-to information. In order to generate the cards, the following must occur:

• Secure a photo release for each child enrolled.

• Take a photo of each child and upload into ChildPlus.

o Optional: upload the delegate’s logo if printing on card.

• Generate ChildPlus Attendance Scanning Barcode Report #2340.

• Print the ID cards in standard 2-1/4” x 3-1/2” size.

o ID cards may be printed all in one sheet so the teacher may be the holder of the ID cards or individually so the children can use them to scan in and out.

• Set up the computer or laptop to “Attendance Scanning” via Entry Express.

Reasons for Absences

Absences must be classified as excused or unexcused, and the reason for the absence(s) must be documented. Determine and document, in the ChildPlus Attendance Module, if absence is due to one of the following:

Excused Absences

• Sick

o Use Sick as a reason for the absence(s) when the child missed school due to the child being ill.

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o The family services staff must, as applicable, work with the family and determine the type of supportive services needed, given the type and duration of illness.

• Medical

o Use Medical as a reason for the absence(s) when the child missed school to attend a doctor’s appointment.

o Use Medical as a reason when a child was excluded from class due to a circumstance identified in the Health Services GIM (this should not be a common occurrence).

o The child’s family and delegate family services and health services staff must work collaboratively to provide the support needed to allow the child to begin class as soon as possible.

• Best Interest

o Best interest days may not exceed 10 days in a program year and should be used when:

A child is absent in order to attend court-ordered visitations with another parent or because of a mutual agreement between both parents.

• If the visitation or custody agreement follows a fixed schedule that requires the child to attend the program only certain days of the week, then a modified attendance should be set up for the child in ChildPlus indicating the “no class” days, instead of using the Best Interest days.

A child is absent in order to go on a family vacation.

• Other

o Use “Other” to classify an absence due to an illness of the child’s parent or guardian, death in the family, or family emergency.

Family emergency is defined as an unforeseeable circumstance that prevents the parent(s) or guardian(s) from taking the child to the program. For example:

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• The car won’t start and the family does not live within walking distance from the program.

• One of the utilities (lights, gas, water, power) goes out in the house.

• A child has to travel with a parent, not for vacation purposes but to take care of other matters that could not wait until the child is on summer, winter, or spring break.

o Specific reasons for the absence must be documented in the attendance notes in ChildPlus.

• Community Concern

o Use Community Concern as a reason for the absence(s) when the child missed school due to community violence, unforeseen absence of a parent, or emergency due to other community issues. For example:

Community violence is used to refer to a wide range of events including riots, gang wars, drive-by shootings, workplace assaults, terrorist attacks, bombings, and war.

Unforeseen absence of the parent refers to a parent’s unexpected removal from the home, willingly or unwillingly.

Other community issues may include immigration-related incidents, neighborhood lockdowns, and street closures.

o Specific reasons for the absence must be documented in the attendance notes in ChildPlus.

Unexcused Absences

Unexcused absences are all other absences not described as excused absences and when the reason for the absence is unknown. If the delegate is unable to contact the parent(s) or guardian(s) and the parent(s) or guardian(s) did not notify the delegate about the child’s absence, the absence must be considered unexcused. After the child returns to the program and the parent informs the

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delegate of the absence reason, the delegate must update the absence reason in ChildPlus.

Homeless Children

For children identified as homeless:

• A program must allow the homeless child to attend for up to 90 days, or as long as allowed under state licensing requirements, without immunization and other records, to give the family reasonable time to present these documents.

• A program must work with homeless families to get children immunized as soon as possible in order to comply with state licensing requirements. See Health Services GIM for more information.

Follow-up

Staff must make multiple attempts to contact and establish communication with the child’s parent(s) or guardian(s) through various means, including conducting home visits, and must document the attempts/communication in the ChildPlus Attendance Module.

• Notes in ChildPlus Attendance Module must include:

o The date contact was attempted;

o Who attempted the contact;

o The type of contact attempted, such as a home visit or phone call; and

o The result of the contact.

• If the delegate is able to contact the family and confirm that the child will continue in the program, the delegate must work with the family to identify a date when the staff can expect the child to return to the classroom.

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o Contacts with family must emphasize the benefits of regular attendance, while at the same time remaining sensitive to any special family circumstances influencing attendance patterns.

o Staff must follow up immediately with the family if the child does not attend class on the date identified. Staff should provide additional support to the family if needed or determine if the family has decided to drop the child from the program.

Sending Absence Notifications

Delegate staff must provide supportive services as appropriate and conduct ongoing follow-up to assist the family in building good attendance habits for the child. If the parent did not contact the program within one hour of program start time to inform the program of the child’s absence, the program staff must attempt to contact the parent to ensure the child’s well-being.

For the initial attempt to contact the parent regarding a child’s absence from the program, delegates must call parents directly or set up ChildPlus to send families text messages or emails. If communication with the parent is unsuccessful, delegates must reach out to the family using a different mode of communication than the one used during the initial attempt.

When using the feature in ChildPlus to send parents text or email messages, ChildPlus logs messages and keeps a record of all communication sent to parents. In order to send attendance notifications using ChildPlus, delegates must:

• Determine if the parent would like to be notified of their child’s absence via text message or email by having the parent complete the LACOE General Consent form.

a. If the parent provided consent, include the parent’s cell phone number and/or email address in the Application section of the child’s record and select the option to “Opt In” in ChildPlus.

b. The form can be located by logging in to the ERSEA section of the prekkid.org website.

• Generate a notification email or text message using the ChildPlus Report LM20.

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a. The report allows delegates to include a valid email address where the parents may send a reply message.

b. Delegates may select not to include a “reply to” email address; however, the delegate must include in their procedures how the parent will inform the program of the child’s absence reason.

Chronic Absenteeism

Children missing 10 percent of program days or more (on average two days per month) are considered to be “chronically absent.” OHS has placed a great emphasis on the importance of consistent, on-time attendance and the development of good attendance habits. Delegates are required to conduct the following:

• Use the ChildPlus Attendance Works Chronic Absence Report #2336 and ChildPlus Attendance Works Chronic Absence Charts Report #2335 to monitor chronic absences

• Identify students who are severely or moderately chronically absent.

o Severely chronically absent children miss 20 percent or more of the total program days.

o Moderately chronically absent children miss between 10 and 19 percent of the total program days.

• Analyze attendance data to identify patterns of chronic absenteeism by month, but also cumulatively across multiple months.

• Look at all attendance patterns and develop targeted plans to work with families who are chronically absent.

• Develop support strategies to address each family’s needs.

Attendance Analysis Report

Delegates must adopt a multidisciplinary approach when reviewing the Attendance Analysis Report and analyzing attendance to identify the issues facing the child and/or family. The multidisciplinary team must determine how best to

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provide services to the child and family to resolve the issues identified, reengage the family, retain the child in the program, and improve attendance.

Delegates must analyze center-based attendance and home-based program participation for all children by conducting the following:

• Analyze center-based attendance, average daily attendance (ADA), home visit completions, socialization participation, and chronic absence data to develop strategies to maximize children’s attendance.

• Identify causes of absenteeism and systematic issues that contribute to the program’s absentee rate and participation rate.

• Utilize attendance reports in the ChildPlus system to monitor and follow up on chronic absenteeism.

• Complete the Attendance Analysis Report when the delegate’s ADA, home visit completion, or socialization participation falls below 85% for a given month.

o Submit the report to the delegate’s assigned LACOE ERSEA monitor by the seventh calendar day of the following month.

Average Daily Attendance (ADA)

Analysis for Center-based and Family Child Care Programs

The delegate must maintain an overall average daily attendance (ADA) of at least 85 percent in all center-based and family child care EHS and HS programs. The analysis for center-based and family child care attendance must include:

• The causes of absenteeism

o A study of the pattern of absences for each child identifying:

The reasons for the absences

The number of absences that occur on consecutive days

A plan of action addressing chronic absenteeism

• Identification of any systemic issues that contribute to the overall program’s absentee rate

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o An analysis of the children’s absences per class and center, identifying trends and strategies delegate will implement to improve ADA

o Information regarding how often the delegate’s ADA has fallen below 85 percent

• An explanation of how the data was used to make necessary changes in a timely manner as part of ongoing oversight and correction

o Include information regarding:

Strategies implemented

Outcomes—successes and challenges the delegate identified resulting from implementing the strategies identified to improve ADA

• A description of the continuous improvement plan implemented

Supporting Families

In order to support families in building good attendance habits for their children, delegates must:

• Provide information about the benefits of regular attendance;

• Support families to promote the child’s regular attendance;

• Conduct a home visit or make other direct contact with a child’s parents if a child has multiple unexplained absences (such as two consecutive unexplained absences); and

• Within the first 60 days of program operation, and on an ongoing basis thereafter, the program must use individual child attendance data to identify children with patterns of absence that put them at risk of missing 10 percent of program days per year and develop appropriate strategies to improve individual attendance for the identified children.

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Home Visits

Home-based Programs

Delegates must monitor home visits monthly to ensure that families receive the number of required home visits. Each delegate is required to monitor its completion of home visits to date. In order to track home visits, the delegate must generate and analyze the ChildPlus Home Visit Report #4140 by identifying:

• The number of home visits required to date, number of home visits completed, number of staff cancellations and number of family cancellations.

• The reasons for staff and family cancellations and the strategies implemented to address the issues identified in order to improve participation in the home visits.

Delegates must also generate and analyze the ChildPlus Family Service Action Report #4130 to identify the number of families that have participated in socializations to date and develop a plan to improve the participation rate if it falls below 85%.

Modified Attendance

Modified attendance is designed to accommodate a child with a disability, according to the instructions identified in his or her IFSP or IEP, or a child who is unable to attend the program on a daily basis due to custody arrangements. When implementing a modified attendance schedule for a child, the delegate must demonstrate this type of schedule is appropriate for the child.

Children with Disabilities

The decision to modify attendance for a child with a disability is allowable only under the following circumstances:

• If the child enrolled in HS or EHS has a disability documented through an active IEP or IFSP and it is determined by the IEP/IFSP team, based on the unique needs and abilities of the child, that modified attendance would

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be beneficial for the child, then modified attendance can be considered an option by the IEP/IFSP team.

• The decision to modify attendance must be specific, in writing, and included in the IEP/IFSP.

Setting Up the Attendance for a Modified Schedule

If a child has an active IEP/IFSP that requires a modified attendance schedule, and the child can attend class only a specific number of days, absences related to disability services must be recorded as “no class” days. If a child is absent on a day not identified as a “no class” day, the reason for the absence must be documented in ChildPlus following the instructions identified under the Reasons for Absences section of this manual.

Entering Attendance for a Modified Schedule

If using Entry Express Attendance, select the option labeled “no class” for the days identified in the IEP/IFSP as days the child will not be in class. Do not leave the option blank (--), because this will result in inaccurate ADA and a possible noncompliance. Please use the following settings when running attendance report #2305:

• Head Start: Select “P” only for the DA attendance code

• State Programs: Select “P” and “E” for the DA attendance code

Children with Custody Arrangements

The delegate must evaluate the circumstances facing each child with a custody arrangement that may require a modified attendance schedule prior to enrolling the child. In order to benefit from the EHS or HS program, the child must be present to receive the services.

However, in some circumstances, a child may need a modified attendance schedule in order to comply with a custody arrangement. Custody arrangements, whether formal or informal, must follow a fixed schedule in order for the delegate to identify the “no class” days for the child and for staff to be prepared to serve the child when in attendance. When the custody arrangement requires the child to miss more than one or two days per month, the delegate must evaluate if

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center-based services are the best option for the child or if the child would be better served in another program option or program.

If the delegate determines the child would be best served in an EHS or HS center-based program option, and the child will have more than two “no class” days per month, then the delegate must contact their designated LACOE ERSEA monitor to request approval prior to enrolling the child. Programs must not enroll children who will miss half of the Head Start year unless the program can demonstrate that the child has such special needs that the program believes a “half-time” enrollment would still be an appropriate placement. Such a proposed placement must be approved by LACOE.

Dropped Children

When a child is dropped from a program, the delegate must follow its procedures to notify the family in writing at the last known address. The delegate is considered under-enrolled until the slot is filled. However, for reporting purposes to the Office of Head Start’s Head Start Enterprise System (HSES), the child is included in the current enrollment number only until the vacancy is filled or for 30 calendar days, whichever comes first. If a vacancy remains unfilled for more than 30 days, the delegate will be reported in HSES as under-enrolled.

• The slot is considered vacant the day a drop occurs. The dropped date entered in ChildPlus must align with the date documented in the attendance module and the participant’s sign-in sheet.

• A participant may fill the vacant slot the day following the drop. The drop date must be entered into the ChildPlus system first and then the highest ranked participant from the Waitlist may fill the slot.

• If the vacancy is filled in the same month that the drop occurred, the days of attendance for the new enrollee should be counted and included in the monthly report.

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Makeup Days/Home Visits

Center-based and Family Child Care Programs

When a delegate has to close a center and/or classroom and send children home because of an unforeseen emergency, the school day does not have to be made up. The delegate must have a plan in place for services to continue the following day. Any days the program is closed following the day the children were sent home must be made up in order to meet the minimum contracted days of operation.

The delegate must notify LACOE when an emergency occurs. If an emergency occurs and children are not on site, then that day or days must be made up.

Home-based Programs

All home visits canceled by staff and not the family must be made up. Although delegates are not required to make up home visits canceled by the parent, delegates must work with the family to keep them engaged in the program and document the reasons for the cancellations. If cancellations are chronic, then the delegate must develop a plan to improve participation.

The exception to making up home visits canceled by the parent is when the delegate is attempting to complete the first home visit. If delegate staff worked with the parent to schedule the first home visit and the parent is not home at the time of the visit, the delegate must make multiple attempts to contact the family to determine if the parent intends to participate in the home-based program.

• If delegate staff is unsuccessful in contacting the family, and no response is received by the next scheduled home visit or within a week, the applicant must be abandoned in ChildPlus. The slot must be filled with the next child on the Waitlist.

• If the parent informs the delegate the family is no longer interested in the home-based program prior to the first home visit, the delegate must abandon the family in ChildPlus.

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• If the parent informs the delegate the home visit schedule does not work for the family, the delegate must work with the family to identify a schedule that is mutually convenient.

Expulsions and Suspensions

Delegates cannot expel or terminate a child from Early Head Start or Head Start because of a child’s behavior.

Delegates may use suspension only in extraordinary circumstances, where there is a serious safety threat that cannot be reduced or eliminated by the provision of reasonable modifications. If a temporary suspension is deemed necessary by the multidisciplinary team (MDT), the delegate must continue to work with the child and family, as indicated in the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), Disabilities, Mental Health, and MDT GIMs/Manuals, to help the child return to full participation in all program activities as quickly as possible.

An absence for a child suspended from the program is recorded as follows:

• Enter the absence as an excused absence and select Other as the reason

• Document in the attendance notes section:

o The date the MDT meeting was held

o Who is working with the child and family to return the child to full participation in the program

o When the child is expected to return to class


Tier 1 Monitoring

The delegate is required to use ChildPlus for ongoing monitoring to ensure the following:

• Children’s attendance and home visits are being entered as required.

• ADA and absences are being analyzed and reports submitted to LACOE according to established timelines.

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• Strategies implemented to address ADA, home visit completion, socialization participation, and chronic absenteeism are effective and producing the expected outcomes.

The delegate is required to use the ChildPlus Monthly Attendance Report #2305 to monitor daily attendance.

• The report must be used to monitor that attendance is entered and reconciled by the fifth calendar day of the month.

• The report must be filtered to identify children with the status of “Enrolled” and “Dropped” to track the attendance of children who participated at least one day in the month.

• The report must be cross-referenced with the sign-in and sign-out sheets at the sites to identify any discrepancies and correct any errors identified prior to submitting the report to LACOE.

At a minimum, the delegate must monitor ADA on a monthly basis using the ChildPlus Average Daily Attendance Report #2301. The report must be filtered to identify children with the status of “Enrolled,” “Dropped,” and “Drop/Wait.” The information in the report is used to:

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• Identify the ADA for each child, classroom, and center.

• Determine if the strategies identified in the delegate’s plan improved its ability to meet or exceed the 85 percent target.

• Identify if there was an improvement on the attendance of a specific child and/or group.

The delegate must use the ChildPlus Consecutive Absences Report #2330 to identify how many children have been absent four or more days. The following are the requirements for monitoring consecutive absences:

• By setting the correct parameters for the ChildPlus Consecutive Absences Report #2330, the delegate is able to identify children with consecutive absences for a given month, specific time period, program year, or year to date.

• At a minimum on a weekly basis, delegate staff must print the ChildPlus Consecutive Absences Report #2330 to identify children who have been absent four or more days.

• Delegate staff must use the report to identify that follow-up is being conducted and that appropriate support is being provided to families with chronic absenteeism to ensure the child returns to the classroom.

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• The report must be filtered to identify children with the status of “Enrolled.”

The delegate is required to use the ChildPlus Monthly Attendance Report #4140 to monitor home visits. The information in the report is used to conduct the following:

• The report must be used to monitor the number of home visits.

• The report must be filtered to identify children with the status of “Enrolled” and “Dropped.”

• For ongoing monitoring purposes, the report should be cross-referenced with the home-based lesson plan.