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Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund

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ይህንን ገጽ በአማርኛ ለማየት እዚህ ይጫኑ።

The Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund is a first-in-the-nation program aimed at achieving pay parity between early childhood educators and their K-12 counterparts. Learn more about how the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund was created and is being implemented below.

Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund: Timeline and History

  • August 2021: The Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) Budget Support Emergency Amendment Act of 2021 created the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund as a special fund of the District of Columbia Government to be administered by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) and used to increase compensation of child development facility staff. The Act also created an Early Childhood Educator Equitable Compensation Task Force (Task Force) to make recommendations for implementing the fund.
  • October 2021-April 2022: Task Force members met and engaged stakeholders to develop recommendations for implementing the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund.
  • January 2022: The Task Force published a report recommending that OSSE partner with an intermediary organization to distribute one-time pay supplements to eligible early childhood educators in FY22, while developing a longer-term system that would distribute funds to child development facilities that enter into an agreement with OSSE to pay eligible early childhood educators wages that reflect the recommendations of the Task Force.
  • February 2022: The Early Childhood Educator Equitable Compensation Task Force Temporary Amendment Act authorized OSSE to disburse pay equity funds to support pay parity for early childhood educators in accordance with the recommendations of the Task Force.
  • March 2022: The Task Force published a final report that provided additional recommendations regarding minimum compensation levels for early educators based on roles and credentials.
  • July 2022: The Task Force’s recommendations were incorporated by the DC Council in the Fiscal Year 2023 Budget Support Act of 2022, DC Act 24-470 which authorized OSSE to continue distribution of direct payments to eligible early childhood educators in FY23.
  • August 2022-September 2023: Supplemental payments distributed to eligible early childhood educators.
  • December 2023: OSSE began distributing funds to participating child development facilities on a quarterly basis to increase pay for eligible early childhood educators as part of their regular paychecks
  • February 2024: OSSE reconvened the Task Force to inform the continued implementation of the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund.
  • June 2024: The DC Council passed the FY25 Budget Support Act (BSA) which directed the Task Force to submit a report to the Mayor and DC Council with recommendations for limiting fiscal pressures on the program through FY28, including potential changes to the minimum salaries and funding formula for FY25 and future fiscal years.
  • September 2024: The Task Force issued a report with recommendations for updating the minimum salaries for FY25 and the child development facility (CDF) payroll funding formula.
  • October 2024: The DC Council passed the Early Childhood Educator Pay Scales Emergency Amendment Act of 2024, which adjusts the minimum salaries that child care employers participating in the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund are required to pay eligible early educators based on recommendations of the Task Force.

FY22 and FY23: Supplemental Payments

OSSE partnered with AidKit, a social impact company specializing in administering efficient and secure direct cash aid programs at scale, to administer the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund for FY22 and FY23. AidKit hosted the application, administered funds and provided technical support to applicants.

In FY22, eligible early childhood educators received one payment of up to $14,000 depending on their staff type (e.g., teacher, assistant teacher, home caregiver, etc.) and employment status (e.g., full time or part time). In FY23, eligible early childhood educators received up to four payments of up to $3,500 each, depending on their staff type and employment status, between October 2022 and September 2023.

In total, OSSE and AidKit distributed more than $80 million to over 4,000 educators in FY22 and FY23. Click here to learn more about the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund in FY22 and FY23.

FY24 and Beyond: Supporting Child Care Employers to Increase Pay

Starting in FY24, OSSE ceased making direct payments to early childhood educators through AidKit and began distributing funds to child development facilities through a CDF payroll funding formula. To receive funds from the CDF payroll funding formula, child development facilities must be licensed by OSSE and agree to pay eligible early childhood educators, by role and highest credential, salaries that meet or exceed the minimum salaries established by OSSE. Child development facilities are not required to participate in the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund. Click here to learn more about the current implementation of the Early Childhood Educator Pay Equity Fund.

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