Pennsylvania Head Start Partners in State Government
The Office of Child Development and Early Learning
The Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) was created in December of 2006 as a joint office between the Department of Public Welfare and the Department of Education. OCDEL is a unique collaboration that creates a direct link between the two state agencies (DPW and PDE) that have jurisdiction over key programs utilized by children and families, fostering collaboration and assuring that best practices are adopted uniformly and quickly throughout the commonwealth. Ultimately, OCDEL provides Pennsylvania's children with a comprehensive, integrated early childhood education strategy that combines family and support services with education programming to increase school readiness.
The PA Keys to Quality Early Learning (PA Key) is located within OCDEL and supports the office's exstensive work to improve the quantity of services for young children in Pennsylvania. Click here to visit the PA Key's website. Along with the PA Key, there are six Regional Keys geographically placed throughout the state to support the work of the PA Key. For more information on the responsibilities and locations of the the Regional Keys, click here.
The Head Start State Collaboration Office (HSSCO) is located in the PA Key and works with PHSA to ensure that there is Head Start representation on many committees and advisory boards working on Early Care and Education issues in the state. Click here for a list of committees and their Head Start representation. For more informaiton on the HSSCO, click here.
Pennsylvania Build
The Build Initiative is designed to help states build a coordinated system of programs, policies and services that: respond to the needs of families; carefully use public and private resources; and effectively prepare young children for a successful future. The PA Build list serve is an excellent source of information about what is happening in the Early Care and Education community. Click here for more information on the Build Inititative in PA. Click here to join the Build list serve.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) website has many ECE reports and links, as well as useful information about state funding of Head Start in Pennsylvania. Click here to visit the PDE website.
