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2008-2009 PFA Orientation
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Fort Mason Conference Center
All New and Renewing PFA Sites for 2008/09 MUST have a Program Director, Site Supervisor, or other key Site Staff attend the orientation. You will receive important information about PFA Program updates, guidelines, reports, resources, and of course lots of yummy food to share with everyone!
Please confirm by calling or emailing Sandra Leung at (415) 554-9129 or sandra@first5sf.org by Friday, June 6, with the names of the staff attending.
Staff from sites NEW to PFA for 2008-09 should arrive by 4:00pm for their orientation session. Staff from renewing PFA sites should arrive by 5:00pm for the updates session.
2008-2009 PFA Participation
To participate in Preschool For All in 2008/09, providers that are not already approved PFA sites must submit an Application. Please use the links below to download FAQs and the Application package. (All documents are MS Word files) Provider Applications for funding in 2008/09 are due to First 5 San Francisco by 5pm on Friday, December 14, 2007.
You may also call (415) 934-4808 to receive an application or to ask any questions you may have.
PFA Funding Renewal for Current PFA Sites
Providers that are approved PFA sites in the current Program Year (2007-2008) will complete the new Re-certification Process to renew funding for next year (2008-2009).
CURRENT PFA PROVIDERS SHOULD NOT COMPLETE THE 2008-2009 PFA PROVIDER APPLICATION.
Please use the link below to download the Re-certification Process Overview for 2008/09. Current providers will receive Re-certification documents by 10/8/07, and are encouraged to attend the Administrators’ Roundtable Meeting on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 at 11:00 a.m. See the Overview document for more information.
PFA Now Available for ALL 4-year-olds in San Francisco
First 5 San Francisco is pleased to announce an important expansion of child eligibility within the PFA program, effective with the current Program Year.
In 2007/08, PFA will fund ALL SAN FRANCISCO 4-YEAR-OLDS
participating at a PFA site, regardless of ZIP Code.
This change eliminates PFA’s ZIP code roll-out. This means any child who is 4-years-old and a San Francisco resident enrolled at a participating PFA site is eligible for PFA.
What does this change mean for my program?
You may have additional PFA-eligible children, and eligible for increased funding from First 5 SF. Also, you should notify newly-eligible families of their PFA-eligibility.
How do I know if there are any children at my site who are affected by this change?
If you left any 4-year-olds off of your initial PFA Enrollment Form because they reside in what were considered ineligible San Francisco ZIP Codes, then those children are now PFA-eligible from the beginning of this Program Year (2007/08). The FORMERLY ineligible ZIP Codes are: 94114, 94116, 94122, 94123, 94127, 94129, 94131, and 94132. Remember children must be 4-years-old on or before 12/2/07.
What should I do? And by when?
You should review your site(s) enrollment and make sure ALL San Francisco residents age 4 on or before 12/2/07 are listed on your PFA-eligible enrollments. If you find additional PFA-eligible children, you should list them on your Enrollment Form update for the month of September.
I’m still unclear – who should I contact?
Your PFA Specialist at Wu Yee Children’s Services can answer any questions you have and help you ensure accurate identification of eligible families.
Step Right Up
Both new and established preschool programs are invited to apply to our program.
Here's how it works:
Step 1 | Orientation — We begin with an orientation session, where we'll answer your questions and explain the details of our program.
Step 2 | Application — You can return your application form by mail or in person, but please don't miss the deadline!
Step 3 | Notification — We'll let you know whether you've qualified for Preschool for All several months before the program year begins.
Step 4 | Site Visits — If you're approved as a partner preschool, we'll visit your location to collect all needed documentation.
Step 5 | Funding — Finally, we'll sign a Memoranda of Understanding that outlines all aspects of the program. You'll be funded through our Provider and Enrollment Agency. Funding agreements are for one year, renewable upon satisfactory performance.
What We Need From You
You must meet our Baseline Criteria (Word) to participate.
This means that you must comply with California Community Care Licensing and all state and federal employment laws, you must demonstrate financial responsibility and you must carry liability insurance.
Your Program Director, Site Director, teachers and assistants must meet our minimum education requirements. You must employ at least one teacher for every eight children and limit class size to a maximum of 24 children. And your curriculum must be age and developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically sensitive, and include literacy, arts and science activities.
We also expect you to regularly involve families in their children's education, and to welcome students of all cultural and linguistic backgrounds, lifestyles, abilities and needs.
What You Get From Us
We'll give you a per-child reimbursement to enhance teachers' salaries, support their professional growth, and enrich your curriculum with literacy, arts and science activities, so you can attract and retain excellent people.
We also connect our Preschool for All providers with our separately funded Early Care and Education programs. This access to resources and consulting agencies will help you optimize what your preschool can offer.
As a partner preschool, you'll also be included in our Gateway to Quality program. Through this project, assessors evaluate your facility to make sure that young children are receiving the best education and care possible. They'll work with you to identify and apply any needed changes. Your participation also makes you eligible for funds to make your programs more helpful to young children.
Join us in making a high-quality preschool education possible for all children in San Francisco.
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