LAWS OF DELAWARE
VOLUME 84
CHAPTER 464
152nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY
FORMERLY
SENATE BILL NO. 305
AS AMENDED BY
SENATE AMENDMENT NO. 1
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend § 3001, Title 14 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows and by redesignating Delaware Code provisions accordingly:
§ 3001. State Early Childhood Education Program.
(a) For purposes of this section:
(1) “Department” means the Department of Education.
(2) “Preschool-age child” means a child who is not yet attending kindergarten or a higher grade.
(a) (b) The Department of Education shall be is authorized to provide early childhood educational services to eligible children, which shall include preschool age children who live in poverty, as defined by the Department, using such funds as are appropriated by the General Assembly for that purpose.
(c) Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Department shall provide free early childhood educational services for preschool-age children who satisfy the eligibility requirements developed by the Department.
(d) The early childhood educational services under subsection (c) of this section must be high quality and align with the quality standards developed under paragraph (g)(1) of this section in all the following categories:
(1) Learning environment and curriculum.
(2) Qualifications and professional development.
(3) Family and community partnerships.
(4) Management and administration.
(b) (e) (1) The Department of Education shall provide the early childhood educational services by contracting with public and private providers, including, but not limited to, including providers administering federal Head Start programs within the State; provided however, that state this State.
(2) The Department may identify priorities when awarding contracts, including programs offering at least 6 hours per day of early childhood educational services.
(3) State funds paid to such the contracting providers shall not may not be used to supplant state and/or federally State- or federally funded programs or to make a federal Head Start provider ineligible for a Head Start expansion grant.
(4) All contracts may be in place for a period not to exceed 3 years; provided that A contract under this paragraph may be in place for up to 5 years, including renewals, if there is sufficient funding contained within the annual appropriations act and the contractor adheres to the required Head Start performance standards, which include parental involvement and receipt of acceptable monitoring results which will be completed at least once during the contract period. program standards, as defined by the Department.
(5) A contract under this paragraph must comply with State procurement requirements under Chapter 69 of Title 29.
(c) (f) Each contracting provider will be required to shall establish written agreements within the provider’s respective service area with their the provider’s local Head Start and/or other Start, other Early Childhood Initiative Initiative contracting provider, or both, as well as the local school district, to address issues including, but not limited to, including service areas, recruitment, transition of children and families families, and sharing resources and information.
(d) (g) The Department of Education shall establish Delaware Stars for Early Success, a quality rating and improvement system. Such rating The quality improvement system shall must measure the level of quality of service provided by an early care and education program to safeguard and ensure the growth, development, and learning of the children. The rating and quality improvement system shall: must do all of the following:
(1) Establish quality standards that build upon the child care licensing regulations and include quality standards in the categories of learning environment and curriculum, qualifications and professional development, family and community partnerships, and management and administration. The Department of Education shall ensure that Delaware Stars for Early Success the quality improvement system standards are consistent with the regulations of the Office of Child Care Licensing.
(7) Establish public-private partnerships to implement and sustain the quality rating and improvement system including state agencies, higher education, adult education programs, early childhood organizations organizations, and community community-based agencies.
(8) Evaluate Delaware Stars for Early Success the quality improvement system to ensure continuous improvement of the system.
(e) (h) The Interagency Resource Management Committee (IRMC) shall have has administrative responsibility for all appropriations made to the Department of Education pursuant to under this section. Such This administrative responsibility shall include, but not be limited to: includes all of the following:
(1) Determining unserved and underserved areas within the State, to be addressed in any given year. Such These identified areas will be specified within the Request for Proposal (RFP) issued to prospective providers; providers.
(2) Reviewing, recommending and disbursing grant awards for contracts to qualifying providers to deliver early childhood educational services to preschool-age children who live in poverty; poverty.
(3) Reallocating unobligated or unspent appropriations made to the Department of Education pursuant to this section; and under this section.
(4) Verifying that the contracting providers use state State funds paid to them for the purposes specified in their contracts.
(f) (i) All public and private providers contracting with the Department of Education pursuant to this section under this section shall ensure that each and every employee receives a minimum of 1 hour of training every year in the detection and reporting of child abuse. Such training, and all materials used in such training, shall be prepared by the Division of Family Services. The Division of Family Services shall prepare this training, and all materials used in the training.
Section 2. Amend § 3004, Title 14 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
§ 3004. Meetings; organizational structure.
The Delaware Early Childhood Council (ECC) shall convene regularly-scheduled meetings at least 6 times annually. The ECC may form an executive committee from its members and other subcommittees. The ECC may form standing subcommittees including, but not limited to: including professional development, quality rating and improvement system, data, and higher education. The ECC shall fulfill all the responsibilities designated under the above-referenced federal legislation the federal Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007 [P.L. 110-134] et seq., for the State’s Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care.
Approved September 30, 2024