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Keystone STARS
Continuous Quality
Improvement Award

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The Keystone STARS Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Awards are paid to eligible child care programs with a Department of Human Services (DHS) regular Certificate of Compliance (CoC) and designated as a Keystone STAR 2, 3, or 4. The intent of the Awards is to improve, support, and recognize the quality of Pennsylvania’s early learning and school-age programs.

Eligibility

To be eligible for an Award, a provider must meet all the following requirements both as of August 1, 2024, and at the time the Award payment is issued by an ELRC:

  1. The provider holds a regular DHS Certificate of Compliance.
  2. The provider is designated as a Keystone STAR 2, 3, or 4 program and is not in a Keystone STARS Suspension status.
    *See Policy Eligibility Exception for STAR 1 Programs and Special Consideration for STAR 2 and STAR 3 Programs.
  3. If applicable, the provider must:
    1. Have completed the reporting requirements for the 2023-24 CQI Awards; and/or
    2. Not have an open referral to the Office of Attorney General (OAG) or an ongoing repayment plan with an ELRC for fund recoupment associated with ARPA Stabilization Grants, Workforce Support Grants 1.0, and Workforce Support Grants 2.0.
  4. The provider does not owe liens/liabilities to the commonwealth.

Policy Eligibility Exception for STAR 1 Programs 

OCDEL is providing a policy exception for STAR 1 programs who successfully move up to a STAR 2, 3, or 4 designation. Programs must be successful in moving up to a STAR 2, 3, or 4 as evidenced by a completed designation case in the PD Registry System and a confirmed designation in PELICAN Keys to Quality on or before October 31, 2024. In addition, these programs must meet all other eligibility criteria at time of payment by the ELRC.

Special Consideration for STAR 2 and 3 Programs

OCDEL is also providing a special consideration for STAR 2 and STAR 3 programs that meet all eligibility criteria on August 1, 2024, and move to a higher STAR designation. To receive a higher CQI Award amount, STAR 2 and 3 programs must be successful in moving up in STARS as evidenced by a completed designation case in the PD Registry System and a confirmed designation in PELICAN Keys to Quality on or before October 31, 2024. In addition, these programs must meet all other eligibility criteria at time of payment by the ELRC.

Allowable Expenses

Eligible programs can use the Keystone STARS CQI Award funds for eligible expenses in the following categories:

  • Staff Qualifications and Professional Development
  • Early Childhood Education Program
  • Partnerships with Families and Communities
  • Leadership and Management
  • Accreditation Costs (toward an OCDEL-approved Alternate Pathway)

These categories align with the Keystone STARS Performance Standards and represent the most closely associated areas with quality activity expenses for ECE programs. Award funds can be applied to eligible expenses incurred from July 1, 2024, to February 28, 2025. Providers should refer to the Keystone CQI Award FAQ for Providers for additional information on allowable expenses.

Process & Timeline

A child care provider application for the Award is not required. Rather, eligible child care providers will receive an Eligibility and Acceptance Letter from their regional ELRC. The Eligibility and Acceptance Letter will include the maximum award amount an eligible child care provider can receive.

After spending the award on eligible expenses, the child care provider will be responsible for submitting a Final Expense Report (FER). The FER will be made available in Microsoft Excel and PDF versions by the ELRCs.

The following timeline reflects important dates for eligible providers to consider.

Beginning on September 3, 2024, eligible providers will:

  1. Receive a Keystone STARS CQI Award Eligibility and Acceptance Letter from their ELRC electronically or through the United States Postal Service (USPS). The Eligibility and Acceptance Letter will include the following:
    1. The maximum dollar amount of the CQI Award the provider is eligible to receive.
    2. The eligible spending categories.
    3. The legal requirement to use the funds and submit a final expense report.
    4. General timeline requirements.
    5. An attestation statement.

Beginning on September 3, 2024, but no later than December 13, 2024, eligible providers must:

  1. Review the Keystone STARS CQI Award Eligibility and Acceptance Letter that they receive from the ELRC.
  2. Enter the dollar amount they wish to receive (up to the maximum allowable amount).
  3. Sign and date the Keystone STARS CQI Award Eligibility and Acceptance Letter acknowledging that they understand and agree to the attestation information.
  4. Return the Keystone STARS CQI Award Eligibility and Acceptance Letter to the ELRC electronically (through email or fax) or USPS on or before December 13, 2024.

Beginning on October 7, 2024, but no later than February 28, 2025, eligible provider must:

  1. Spend award funding on eligible expenses. Award funds can be applied to eligible expenses incurred from July 1, 2024 through February 28, 2025..

Beginning February 10, 2025, but no later than March 28, 2025, eligible provider’s that receive an Award must:

  1. Submit their FER and return any unspent funds to their regional ELRC.
Contact your ELRC for more information.

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