Programs
School Readiness
The State of Florida’s Division of Early Learning (DEL) provides funding each year to the ELC for the administration and implementation of the School Readiness Program. Child care partners are a key component to the successful implementation of this valuable program, which provides tuition assistance for child care and a variety of support services for families and child care providers.
What is the School Readiness Program?
The School Readiness program is a state and federally funded child care tuition assistance program that prepares children to become ready for school assists families in becoming financially self-sufficient and provides families with information about child development and other topics of interest. Child care providers may choose to contract with the ELC to become a part of the Provider Network and participate in the School Readiness program.
Each year the ELC’s Provider Network membership includes over 300 child care programs throughout the Big Bend Region. Providers include family child care homes, private child care centers, faith-based programs, and public school programs. New providers are welcome to contract with the ELC if all requirements for participation are met.
If you are not currently a child care provider, contact the Department of Children and Families to determine what steps are necessary to become a child care provider.
Anyone seeking to open a child care program should click here and watch the Important Information about Opening a Child Care Facility.
How do providers become eligible to participate in the School Readiness Program?
If you are currently a child care provider and are licensed or registered through the Department of Children and Families, you are eligible to become a part of our School Readiness Provider Network. Informal, license or religious exempt providers, private schools, and public schools may also be eligible to become contracted School Readiness providers.
For more information or to begin the contracting process, please contact Provider Relations at providerrelations@elcbigbend.org or (850) 552-7337.
For more information about the School Readiness program, visit the Division of Early Learning’s website.
Payment for Services
Once providers complete the School Readiness Provider Contract process, they become recognized as an Early Learning Coalition School Readiness (SR) Network Provider. Upon receiving a request for enrollment at a recognized SR provider, children will be added to the monthly attendance roster which is then utilized to record attendance throughout the month. Updated rosters are provided in the Provider Portal by 8:00a.m. on the first business day of the month.
Providers must submit their completed rosters monthly in order to be reimbursed for care during that month. Reimbursement is based on reported attendance of eligible children, parent fees assessed and the established reimbursement rate. All provider attendance reporting is completed by providers in the ELC’s Provider Portal. Information submitted on the attendance rosters is then internally processed for payment verification and an invoice is submitted to the Division of Early Learning (DEL).
Upon receipt of funds from DEL, Coalition staff initiates electronic funds transfer (EFT) payment for each provider’s individual bank accounts. The ELC then posts the transfer date on the home page of the ELC Provider Portal. Once payments are transferred, ELC staff upload a copy of the EFT, Final Provider Reimbursement Report and any other pertinent documentation to the provider’s Reimbursement Payment Detail folder in the Provider Portal.
For questions about or assistance with the reimbursement process, please contact your reimbursement case manager.
