2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 26.5 - EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS AND SERVICES (§§ 26.5-1-101 — 26.5-6-103) › Article 3 - FAMILY AND CHILD HEALTH AND WELL-BEING (§§ 26.5-3-101 — 26.5-3-904) › Part 8 - EMERGENCY RELIEF GRANT PROGRAMS (§§ 26.5-3-801 — 26.5-3-808) › Section 26.5-3-805 - Early care and education recruitment and retention grant and scholarship program - created - criteria and eligibility - grant and scholarship awards - reports - funding - rules - definitions - repeal

(1)
As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a)
"Early childhood educator" means an individual who holds an early childhood professional credential or qualification.
(b)
"Eligible entity" is any entity described in subsection (3) of this section.
(c)
"Program" means the early care and education recruitment and retention grant and scholarship program created in subsection (2) of this section.
(2)
There is created in the department the early care and education recruitment and retention grant and scholarship program. The department shall administer, directly or by contract, the program. The purposes of the program are to:
(a)
Increase the number of individuals throughout the state who are qualified to serve as early childhood educators, including qualified multilingual and culturally competent educators, in programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5 that serve children five years of age or younger; and
(b)
Retain early childhood educators who are working in programs licensed by the department that serve children five years of age or younger.
(3)
The department shall establish a process for eligible entities to apply for a grant that aligns with the purposes of the program. Entities that are eligible to apply for a grant from the program include, but are not limited to:
(a)
Nonprofit entities that administer or plan to administer scholarship programs that are aligned with the purposes of the program;
(b)
Early child care and education programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5 and that are serving children five years of age or younger; and
(c)
Institutions of higher education that administer scholarship programs that are aligned with the purposes of the program.
(4)
The executive director may promulgate rules regarding criteria, timelines, and the administration of the program pursuant to the requirements outlined in this section.
(5)
The department shall seek and accept applications from eligible entities to award program grant money for eligible purposes. The department shall coordinate with the department of higher education to ensure effective administration of program grant money awarded to state public institutions of higher education. Eligible expenditures of grant or scholarship money by recipients include:
(a)
Administration by a nonprofit entity of a scholarship program up to a fixed dollar amount or percentage of grant proceeds, as determined and published by the department;
(b)
Payment of tuition, fees, and materials, including books and any other materials as determined by the department, for courses that lead to a degree or credential or for other formal training, any of which results in a recipient who was not qualified to become qualified as an early childhood educator in a child care program licensed pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5 that serves children five years of age or younger;
(c)
Payment of tuition, fees, and materials, including books and any other materials as determined by the department, for a recipient who is already credentialed as an early childhood educator for courses that lead to a degree or a higher level credential or for other formal training, any of which results in the recipient being eligible for a higher level credential in the department's professional development information system or a higher degree or qualification that results in longer retention of the recipient in a child care program licensed pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5 that serves children five years of age or younger;
(d)
Payment for costs associated with a credentialed early childhood educator earning a coaching, formal trainer, mentorship, or professional development certification that allows the early childhood educator to serve as a trainer or mentor of other current or potential early childhood educators pursuing programming that leads to a credential;
(e)
Payments to licensed providers to cover paid release time for individuals, substitutes, and program costs to allow eligible individuals to pursue programs, course work, credentials, degrees, and other formal training that increases the number of qualified early childhood educators or retains current early childhood educators in child care programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5;
(f)
Payments to licensed providers, schools, community colleges, institutions of higher education, early childhood councils, or other local nonprofit entities to cover the costs of "grow-your-own" programs that support current parents, staff, or local community members to meet qualifications to serve as an early childhood educator to complete appropriate programs, certifications, or training that results in participants being able to serve as qualified early childhood educators in child care programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5;
(g)
Payments to licensed providers to cover the costs of promoting teachers to coaching and mentorship roles with the intent of increasing access to coaching and professional learning communities and to provide flexibility in scheduling for early childhood educators;
(h)
Raises, bonuses, and other financial incentives, including loan forgiveness provided by licensed early childhood educator programs or through scholarship programs, for current or potential early childhood educators to reward progress toward qualifications that allow the individual to serve as an early childhood educator in an early child care and education program licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5, or to improve retention of early childhood educators in early child care and education programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5; and
(i)
Payments for registered apprenticeships for work-based learning opportunities for individuals interested in entering the field of early child care and education, serving children five years of age or younger, so that they can receive on-the-job training, classroom instruction, and financial rewards for gains in skills and earn credentials, credits, or higher education degrees. Any such apprenticeship program must create pathways into the early child care and education profession. The department, in consultation with the department of labor and employment, the department of higher education, and the department of education, shall:
(I)
Define and establish eligibility criteria for eligible entities to receive money to implement apprenticeships;
(II)
Establish program standards for formally recognized early childhood apprenticeship programs. These standards must address expectations for employer involvement; on-the-job training, credit, and credential attainment; ensuring the availability of relevant training and classroom instruction; rewards for skills gains; and support for local implementation; and
(III)
Add monetary awards for the following uses of early childhood apprenticeships, as appropriate:
(A)
Supporting existing apprenticeship programs or the creation of new apprenticeship programs by making money available to eligible entities;
(B)
Supporting existing apprenticeship programs by expanding their reach to serve more apprentices;
(C)
Technical assistance relating to establishing the partnerships necessary to create apprenticeships;
(D)
Money for the recruitment of mentor teachers;
(E)
Incentives for program participants;
(F)
Financial rewards for skills gained in the apprenticeship program;
(G)
Incentives for department-licensed providers to participate in apprenticeships;
(H)
Money to cover the costs of classroom training and instruction;
(I)
Money to cover the costs of earning a credential; and
(J)
Money to support on-the-job training.
(6)
(a)
As part of participating in the program, the department shall require each eligible entity, as described in subsection (3) of this section, that receives grant program money to report program outcomes to the department, as applicable, including, but not limited to, the increase, as a result of the program, in the number of individuals credentialed to teach or who receive a higher level credential to teach at early child care and education programs licensed by the department pursuant to part 3 of article
5
of this title 26.5 that serve children five years of age or younger, as well as information relating to retention of early childhood educators as a result of the program.
(b)
So long as the department is awarding grant and scholarship money pursuant to this part 8, the department shall summarize and post, at least every two years, the information described in subsection (6)(a) of this section on the portion of the department's website relating to early childhood education.
(7)
(a)
For the 2022-23 state fiscal year, the general assembly shall appropriate fifteen million dollars from the economic recovery and relief cash fund created in section
24-75-228
to the department for the purposes of implementing the program. The money appropriated pursuant to this subsection (7) is not subject to the requirements of the "Procurement Code", articles
101
to
112
of title
24
. Five million dollars must be dedicated for home visiting workforce, early childhood mental health consultants, and early intervention providers.
(b)
The use of money appropriated pursuant to this subsection (7) must conform with the allowable purposes set forth in the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021", Pub.L. 117-2, as amended. The department shall spend or obligate such appropriation in accordance with section 24-75-226 (4)(d).
(c)
The department shall comply with the compliance, reporting, record-keeping, and program evaluation requirements established by the office of state planning and budgeting and the state controller in accordance with section
24-75-226 (5)
.
(d)
This subsection (7) is repealed, effective September 1, 2027.
Amended by 2024 Ch. 429,§ 34, eff. 6/5/2024.
Amended by 2023 Ch. 434,§ 6, eff. 6/9/2023.
Amended by 2022 Ch. 345, §5, eff. 7/1/2022.
Renumbered from C.R.S. §
26-6-805
and amended by 2022 Ch. 123, §3, eff. 7/1/2022.