Resources for Early Care and Education Providers
COVID-19 Vaccines
The COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective for adults and is one of the best strategies to keep our community safe from the COVID-19 virus. For general questions about COVID-19 or the vaccine, visit the Alameda County Public Health Department website, call (510) 268-2101, or email ncov@acgov.org. Your actions continue to save lives, and we appreciate all that you do for the children and families you serve.
Child Care Is Open
Child care is an essential service subject to state and local orders and guidance. Child care providers serving families during COVID-19 should employ heightened cleaning and distancing requirements. Babysitters may also come to the house to care for minors of parents. Alameda County’s Early Care and Education (ECE) Program has a website to support providers who are open or reopening: Growing Back Stronger: Resources for Reopening Your Alameda County Child Care Program.
If you are open or planning to re-open, please contact your local child care resource and referral agency to get connected with supports.
Health Heroes Program with Samuel Merritt University
Would you like help promoting health and wellness for the children in your child care center or family child care home?Health Heroes is a partnership between Samuel Merritt University (SMU) School of Nursing and the Alameda County Emergency Child Care Response Team. Health Heroes are nursing students who team up with child care sites to answer questions, identify needs, and provide instruction and guidance for health and safety during the pandemic.
Health Heroes is recruiting sites for its next three cohorts, July to November 2021. Please note that all SMU Student Nurses have been vaccinated and services are available in many languages. For more information and to register, please see the flyer in English, Spanish, Chinese.
Watch and learn! Click here to learn more about Health Heroes!
General Guidance
- Alameda County Guidance
- Get Tested for COVID-19. Make an appointment to get tested. Results are returned generally within 48-72 hrs.
- Confirmed Positive COVID-19 Process for Schools, Childcare Programs and Extracurricular Programs (8/7/2020)
- Workplace Guidance for Reopening and Recovery, includes guidance for child care, schools, and colleges
- Other Resources:
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AQI and Ventilation guidance for:
- Webinars for Alameda County Early Care and Education Providers
- For recordings, FAQs, and translated materials, see our webinars page.
- State of California Guidance
- Manage Stress for Health (8/14/2020)
- COVID-19 Updated Guidance: Child Care Programs and Providers (7/17/2020)
- California Early Childhood Online (CECO). The California Early Learning and Development System provides an integrated set of resources based on state-of-the-art information for early learning and development and best practices in early education. Access comprehensive resources and modules, including a COVID-19 Health and Safety module, on the CECO website.
- Child Care Licensing. The California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing has issued several Public Information Notices (PINs) for child care providers related to COVID-19. Child care providers open for essential workers should review.
- California Department of Education, Early Learning and Care Division (ELCD). ELCD has created Management Bulletins to provide guidance and directives to early learning and care contractors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Review here.
- For additional state resources:
- Federal Guidance. For Head Starts and other programs funded by the federal government, please refer to the below.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS):
- General Disaster Recovery Flexibilities. HHS/Head Start
- Flexibility in Spending CCDF Funds in Response to Federal or State Declared Emergency Situations. HHS/Office of Child Care
- Keeping your child care center safe during COVID-19.
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- Reminders for Using Disinfectants at Schools and Child Cares (3/2020). Under the Healthy Schools Act, DPR provides online training on how to use disinfectants.
- Safe and Effective Cleaning, Sanitizing and Disinfecting. UCSF/California Childcare Health Program
- Safety and Health Guidance: COVID-19 Infection Prevention in Childcare Programs. Cal/OSHA, California Department of Industrial Relations
- COVID-19: Protect Yourself and Loved Ones. California Department of Public Health
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Financial Assistance for Child Care Providers
Resources for small businesses and individuals who have lost their job or had their hours reduced are available to child care providers. The latest information is available on the State’s Employee Development Department (EDD) website.
COVID-19 Testing Sites in Alameda County
For the most up-to-date information about testing, visit the ACPHD website. Additional information is available from the State of California here.
Other General Information for Child Care Providers
- Child Care Aware of America
- Multilingual resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Resources for Families You Serve
- AlamedaKids.org
- Alameda County Office of Education’s Food Resources (includes school lunch and food bank information)
- First 5 California COVID-19 Resources
- ACPHD Food, Housing, and Financial Help
- Free Comcast Internet for Two Months for Low-Income Families
- Alameda County Public Health Department COVID-19 Tip Sheet for Families Returning to Childcare and Camps
- Stay Play Grow, free app is a one-stop source of quality, trusted resources curated to help families with children 0-5 make the most of their time together. In both English & Spanish.
- PSA partnership on back-to-school safety with Sesame Workshop and the Department of Social Services featuring Elmo and his dad Louie can be found in English here and in Spanish here.