Early Learning Resource Center Region 17 Health & Safety ...

In partnership with Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services

Serving Montgomery County

PO Box 311 | 1430 DeKalb St | Norristown PA 19404 | (610) 278-3707 | montcopaorgelrc

Early Learning Resource Center

Region 17

Health amp Safety Regional Task ForceSeptember 22 2021

Health amp Safety Regional Task Force

1





What is the Health amp Safety Regional Task Force

ELRC Region 17 acts as a connection among support systems and between support systems We have

created a Health and Safety Regional Task Force which brings together professionals in a regional

collaborative effort The Task Force provides coordinated consistent health and safety related supports to

ECE providers We work together to identify needs maximize resources and leverage local and statewide

strengths to address needs and improve services

The Health and Safety Regional Task Force is comprised of ELRC Quality Coaches Program Quality

Assessors Preschool Program Specialists EIEITA Consultants Certification Representatives and Infant

and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) Consultants ELRC 17 has created a Task Force informed by

an assessment of the needs of providers in the region The individual expertise and strengths of each task

force member guides the work and the allocation of effort Now more than ever we need to work together

to ensure that health and safety is at the forefront of early childhood education

2





Health amp Safety Regional Task Force Objectives

bull Meet regularly to discuss activities requests findings challenges and needs

bull Identify areas of expertise and create a phonecontact list

bull Determine regional needs approaches to meeting the needs and the system

to support programs within the region

bull Set up systems for communication

bull Create resource connections for programs without duplicating services

bull Share findings with their ELRC Local Leadership Councils on a regular basis

bull Report recent work and developments to the Pennsylvania Key Senior Health

Manager as requested

3





Health amp Safety Regional Task Force Commitments

bull Our work is relationship-based with the goal of supporting cross-sector

partnerships and collaborative responsiveness to health and safety concerns

bull We acknowledge that conversations and information shared are to be

privileged and confidential

bull We work collaboratively to support regional dialogue sharing resources and

supporting the implementation of best practices around health amp safety in

ECE environments

4






bull Our commitment to best practice extends to engaging Certification

Representatives when any program is observed to be out of compliance or

expresses a need for additional clarification about Pennsylvania child care

regulations andor implementation of regulatory guidance

bull We will continually review Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

and government Guidance on best practice and Pennsylvania regulatory

compliance based on the evolving nature of the pandemic and emerging

evidence

5





Health amp Safety Regional Task Force Goals

ELRC agencies will ensure that their Health amp Safety Regional Task Force have

developed long term goals to guide the teamrsquos work even after the COVID-19

pandemic subsides

Examples of long-term goals for the Regional Task Force

bull Keeping the systems intact which are being created by this effort

bull Maintaining these coordinated efforts for the future

bull Creating a multidisciplinary group

bull Creating sustainable community resources to support community well-being

6





Montgomery County Office of Public Health

Elizabeth M Van Aulen COVID-19 Field Supervisor

Monica Giacomucci Communicable Field Supervisor

Updates on COVID-19 vaccine

Reportable Disease in Childcare Centers

7





Contact Office of Public Health

Phone 610-278-6211 (Call will go to voicemail)

Email MCSChoolsCovid19montcopaorg

Email MCOPHChildcaremontcopaorg

Website for additional info wwwmontcopaorgCOVID-19

Email for general questions COVID19montcopaorg

COVID Call Center (833) 875-3967 Monday ndash Saturday 800am - 800pm

8





Bureau of Certification amp Bureau of Early Intervention

Asia Sheppard

Regional Manager SE North Region OCDEL

Kya Thompson

Early Learning Program Certification Supervisor SE North Region OCDEL

Lisa Parker

Director Bureau of Early Intervention Services and Family Supports OCDEL

9





Announcement C-21-07 COVID-19 Policy Updates

The purpose of this Announcement is to communicate the release of an Order of the Acting Secretary of the

Pennsylvania Department of Health Directing Face Coverings in School Entities (Order) and expectations for

compliance by certified child care facilities as well as provide clarification of ongoing reporting requirements

related to COVID-19 The Order applies to all child care providers licensed by the Department of Human Services

This announcement replaces announcement C-21-04 Best Practices for Child Care Facilities Operating During the

Novel Coronavirus in its entirety The Acting Secretary of Healthrsquos Order will be effective Sept 7 2021 School

entities should comply with the Order on or before that date Effective Sept 7 2021 child care certification

representatives (reps) conducting inspections or complaint investigations will cite child care facilities operating out

of compliance with the Order The citations for non-compliance with the Order will be issued under 55 Pa Code

sect327014 327021 sect328014 328020 and sect329018 all pertaining to compliance with ldquopertinent laws and

regulationsrdquo and ldquogeneral health and safetyrdquo

Link Announcement-C-21-07-Certified-Child-Care-Providers-Operating-Under-DOH-Order-Aug31-FINALpdf (pakeysorg)

10





Face Coverings in School Entities

From PA Department of Health Order of the Acting Secretary of the

Pennsylvania Department of Health Directing Face Coverings in School Entities

httpswwwhealthpagovtopicsDocumentsDiseases20and20Conditions

Order20of20the20Acting20Secretary20Directing20Face20Coveri

ngs20in20Schoolspdf

11





Announcement C-21-08 (91521)

Compliance with Acting Secretary of Healthrsquos Face Covering Order

Compliance with the Order is not optional Any child care facility simply permitting a

parentrsquoscaretakerrsquos sign-off without medical documentation that the child has a medical

or mental health condition or disability that precludes the wearing of a face covering is not

in compliance with the Order Under the Order child care facilities must require all

individuals two years of age and older to wear face coverings unless the individual has

an exception Additionally in accordance with Section 3 of the Order before an individual

is exempt from the face covering requirements all alternatives to a face covering

including a face shield are to be exhausted

12





Announcement C-21-08


While there are exceptions to the Order a parentrsquoscaretakerrsquos opposition to the Order is not one of them

ParentsCaretakers indicating their child is exempted from the Order due to a medical condition must have

individualized documentation from the childrsquos physician Form letters and parentalcaretaker notes are not

sufficient for documentation of compliance Child care providers are expected to enforce the Order as they

do other state laws and school rules and policies When able to do so providers should provide a mask or

alternative face covering

Parentscaretakers indicating their child or children meet a medical exemption under Section 3 of the

Order if not already noted in a childrsquos health report will have until Tuesday Sept 21 2021 to submit

appropriate documentation signed by a medical professional of the medical exemption to the child care

provider

Link Announcement-C-21-08-Compliance-with-Acting-Secretary-of-Healths-Face-Covering-Orderpdf (pakeysorg)

13





Working collaboratively with Direct Service Providers

bull Per the ECE Recap from March 29 2021 As a reminder no one can be required to be

vaccinated ECE programs should not ask for proof of COVID-19 vaccination as a safety

precaution It is not a requirement of the CDC DOH DHS or OCDEL Vaccination records are

protected health information that are not required to be disclosed Concerns regarding ECE

programs requesting proof of vaccination should be emailed to ra-dpwocdnetpagovldquo

bull Providers should not ask Direct Service Providers to disclose whether or not they are vaccinated

bull We need to work collaboratively to ensure that the needs of each child are met It is critical that

children receive the services that they need

bull Be creative ndash Meet in an outdoor location if suitable and the weather is appropriate

bull Be mindful - There are legal statutes about non discrimination in services that are cited in both PA

Code and ADA law

14





OCDEL Bureau of Certification

Announcements policies and updates

Questions

15





Updated COVID-19 Guidance for Operating Early Childhood

Education Programs

The Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Office of Child Development and Early Learning

(OCDEL) strongly recommend and encourage all early childhood education (ECE) providers

follow the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidance at all times The updated COVID-19

guidance outlines strategies for ECE programs to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and maintain

safe operations httpswwwcdcgovcoronavirus2019-ncovcommunityschools-childcarechild-

care-guidancehtml

bull Vaccination is currently the leading public health prevention strategy to end the COVID-19

pandemic Promoting vaccination among eligible individuals can help Early Care and

Education (ECE) programs protect staff and children in their care as well as their families

16






Education Programs

bull Most ECE programs serve children under the age of 12 who are not yet eligible for

vaccination at this time Therefore this guidance emphasizes implementing layered

COVID-19 prevention strategies (eg using multiple prevention strategies together) to

protect children and adults who are not fully vaccinated

bull COVID-19 prevention strategies remain critical to protect people including children

and staff who are not fully vaccinated especially in areas of moderate-to-high

community transmission levels

17






Education Programs

bull Masks should be worn indoors by all individuals (ages 2 and older) who are not fully

vaccinated ECE settings may implement universal mask use in some situations such

as if they have increasing substantial or high COVID-19 transmission in their ECE

program or community and while they serve a population not yet eligible for

vaccination

bull Localities should monitor community transmission vaccination coverage the

occurrence of outbreaks and local policies and regulations to guide decisions on the

use of layered prevention strategies

18





CDC Updates COVID-19 Guidance for Operating Early Care

and Education Child Care Programs

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated the COVID-19 Guidance

for Operating Early Care and EducationChild Care Programs as of Aug 25 2021 Updated

information includes

bull Updated the guidance for mask use and physical distancing for fully vaccinated people

bull Clarified that CDCrsquos order requiring the wearing of masks by people on public transportation

applies to ECE vehicles

bull Corrected the recommendations for cleaning surfaces between groups of children brushing

teeth to specify sanitizing instead of disinfecting

For complete information and the most up to date information please visit the CDC website

19





Supporting Families to Navigate Well-Child Visits and

Vaccinations during COVID-19

Well-child visits and recommended vaccinations are essential ensuring children stay healthy and

are protected from preventable diseases and illnesses such as measles whooping cough and

seasonal flu But as the COVID-19 pandemic persists data shows that fewer childhood

vaccinations have been given and many children have fallen behind on their scheduled

appointments

According to a 2021 modeling study published in the Lancet Report approximately 17 million

children missed their vaccines during 2020 In response continued coordinated efforts between

healthcare providers and public health officials at the local state and federal levels will be key to

achieving rapid catch-up vaccination

20







The article from the National Institute for Childrens Health Quality (NICHQ) shares information on

ways to encourage and support families to get their children caught up on missed appointments

and recommended vaccinations

Navigating Well-Child Visits and Vaccinations during COVID-19 (nichqorg)

1 Let families know what precautions are in place for safe delivery of in-person services

2 Provide telehealth options to families when possible

3 Focus on closing equity gaps in access to service and care

4 Ensure parents understand the importance of vaccines in preventing disease

21





Conscious Disciplinereg

Conscious Disciplinereg is a comprehensive classroom management program and a

social-emotional curriculum It identifies the seven powers needed for conscious adults

to regulate their own emotions enough to see conflict differently and the seven basic

skills of discipline that will empower adults to respond to conflict and upset in a way that

instills life skills

22






ELRC Region 17 hosted two successful Conscious Disciplinereg sessions

August 26th and 27th in the Norristown area

September 20th and 21st in the Pottstown area

Participants are now trained in the Conscious Disciplinereg method and will be able

to implement it in their programs

Participants received FREE Conscious Disciplinereg materials including Conscious

Discipline Building Resilient Classrooms Book Easy to Love Difficult to Discipline

Book Safe Place Poster Set and 20 Safe Space Bags for children in their

programs

23





National Preparedness Month

National Preparedness Month is an observance each September to raise awareness

about the importance of preparing for disasters and emergencies that could happen at

any time The 2021 theme is ldquoPrepare to Protect Preparing for disasters is protecting

everyone you loverdquo Each week the campaign will focus on a different aspect of

preparedness for individuals families and communities Child Care Aware of Americas

Emergency Preparedness resources such as the emergency kit and emergency plans

can be helpful as families and early childhood education programs assess readiness

throughout the month

Emergency kit Emergency Supply Kits - Child Care Awarereg of America

Emergency plan Child Care Emergency Preparedness - Child Care Awarereg of America

24





Pennsylvania Farm to Child Nutrition Summit Call for

Presenters

On February 23 2022 (snow date March 2 2022) the Pennsylvania Farm to Child Nutrition

Summit will be held at the Farm Show complex in Harrisburg This summit is being coordinated

by the Pennsylvania Department of Education Division of Food and Nutrition and Project PA

(Penn State University) with the support of the Pennsylvania Farm to School Network Funding is

provided by a USDA Farm to School grant

Target audiences for this summit include Child Nutrition Program (CNP) operators educators

producers distributors and other farm to school stakeholder groups The purpose of the summit

is to facilitate peer-to-peer learning and networking among CNP operators establish connections

between CNP operators and producers and showcase farm to child nutrition ldquobest practicesrdquo

25






Presenters

We are looking for engaging speakers who have a farm to child nutrition experience to share or

who want to engage the audience in discussion around a farm to child nutrition topic We are

interested in advancing racial and social equity and are interested in presentations that address

these issues More information can be found on this National Farm to School Network website

A limited number of speaker stipends (approximately $200) will be made available through a

selection process Presentations should not include any overt solicitation on behalf of any

individual vendor product organization or any commercial activity

Deadline for submission of a presentation proposal September 30 2021

Final notification of proposal status October 15 2021

26






Presenters

They are looking for presentations in the categories listed below but will consider others

bull Connecting Child Nutrition Programs with FarmersProducers

bull Student Engagement in Farm to School or Farm to Early Care and Education

bull Funding Farm to Child Nutrition Initiatives

bull Overcoming Barriers to Local Purchasing

bull Implementation of Pennsylvania Harvest of the Month

bull School GardensGardening in Early Care and Education Setting

httpswwwprojectpaorgindexphpoption=com_contentampview=articleampid=295ampcatid=103

27




Our next meeting date is TBD

Announcements from other organizations

Questions Comments Concerns

We welcome your feedback

Thank you for your participation


28



PO Box 311 | 1430 DeKalb St | Norristown PA 19404 | (610) 278-3707 | montcopaorgelrc 29

Additional Resources shared at meeting




Early Intervention Technical Assistance ndash Resources

EITA has a New Podcast

The 1st episode in the new leadership podcast series Leading from the Floor An Early Intervention Podcast focuses on self-

care staff morale and supporting children and families through transition Find it today on Spotify Apple Podcasts or Stitcher

Check out the new Podcast page of the EITA Portal to listen to Leading from the Floor and other podcasts that are available

including topics related to leadership mindfulness and even a podcast specific for families

EITA Podcasts - Early Intervention Technical Assistance Online Learning Portal (eita-paorg)

Service Delivery module on the Portal (The Bureau of Early Intervention Services and Family Supports expects all Early

Intervention personnel to complete the online EI Service Delivery module during the 2021 ndash 2022 fiscal year)

Access the new Service Delivery Module on the EITA Portal by going to the professional development tab located at the top of

the home page and in the search box entering ldquoEarly Intervention Service Deliveryrdquo This will take you to an online module that

will last approx 45 min to 1 hour

httpwwweita-paorgprofessional-development






EITA Mobile httpwwweita-paorgeita-mobile

New on Mobile- Link to the Professional Development page on the EITA Portal (New menu button on landing page)

Also if you go to the Tools and Resources and select Coaching Across Settings you will find Principals of EI that is referenced

in the Service Delivery Announcement

If you go to Family Focused Tools you will find Facts for Families that helps families learn more about EI coaching supports

EITA Mobile most popular resources

1 Medical Assistance Talking Points

2 ECO Decision Tree

3 Support for Communication

4 Print materials across classroom centers

5 In the moment social emotional support





COVID Best Practices Webpage from The PA Key httpswwwpakeysorgcovid-19

Masking Resources

ECELS httpecels-healthychildcarepaorgpublicationshealth-capsulesitem908-masking-resourceshtmlhighlight=WyJtYXNraW5nIiwicmVzb3VyY2VzIiwibWFza2luZyByZXNvdXJjZXMiXQ==

Clear mask resource httpspaautismorgresourcedesensitization-mask-communication

How to Plan for Emergencies amp Disasters httpscchpucsfedusitesgfilestkssra181fStep-by-Step-Guide-Emergency-Disasterpdf






What is the Health amp Safety Regional Task Force

ELRC Region 17 acts as a connection among support systems and between support systems We have

created a Health and Safety Regional Task Force which brings together professionals in a regional

collaborative effort The Task Force provides coordinated consistent health and safety related supports to

ECE providers We work together to identify needs maximize resources and leverage local and statewide

strengths to address needs and improve services

The Health and Safety Regional Task Force is comprised of ELRC Quality Coaches Program Quality

Assessors Preschool Program Specialists EIEITA Consultants Certification Representatives and Infant

and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) Consultants ELRC 17 has created a Task Force informed by

an assessment of the needs of providers in the region The individual expertise and strengths of each task

force member guides the work and the allocation of effort Now more than ever we need to work together

to ensure that health and safety is at the forefront of early childhood education

2















3












ECE environments

4













evidence

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pandemic subsides






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Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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Education Programs






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Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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Code and ADA law

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Code and ADA law

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vaccination




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2 ECO Decision Tree









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7












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Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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8






Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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provider


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





20















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Presenters









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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2 ECO Decision Tree









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Asia Sheppard


Kya Thompson


Lisa Parker


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provider


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources






















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ngs20in20Schoolspdf

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provider


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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ngs20in20Schoolspdf

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Code and ADA law

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Education Programs






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Education Programs








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vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources



















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provider


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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






care-guidancehtml




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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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13
















Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






care-guidancehtml




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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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Code and ADA law

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Questions

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Education Programs






care-guidancehtml




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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources











Questions

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Education Programs






care-guidancehtml




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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources










Education Programs






care-guidancehtml




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Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





20















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programs

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24






Presenters










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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources










Education Programs








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Education Programs





vaccination




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appointments





20















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programs

23
















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Presenters










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Presenters










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Presenters









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28

































2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources










Education Programs





vaccination




18
















19











appointments





20















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programs

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Presenters










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Presenters









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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources




















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appointments





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programs

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Presenters










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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources















appointments





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programs

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Presenters










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2 ECO Decision Tree









Masking Resources



















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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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programs

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2 ECO Decision Tree









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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Presenters









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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2 ECO Decision Tree









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Masking Resources





Early Learning Resource Center Region 17 Health & Safety ...

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Transcript of Early Learning Resource Center Region 17 Health & Safety ...