Connecting Families to Family Child Care for Over 30 Years
Frequently Asked Questions (Educators)
How will I be paid?
Every week you will submit your children's attendance. At the end of the month, CFC submit it to EEC. After CFC, Inc. has billed EEC, you will receive payment for half of the previous month on the 15th and the other half on the 30th. You can receive your payments via check or by direct deposit.
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Please note: Your first month, you may wait up to 6 weeks for payment. This is because you must complete a billing cycle (one month) before billing, then wait 15 days for payment.
Can I be paid for days off?
Yes. the MA Dept. of Early Education and Care will pay for 5 personal days off per fiscal year (July 1- June 31). Days begin to accrue after your first billing month, and you are eligible to use your earned paid time off after your third billing month.
How can CFC, Inc. guarantee payment?
So long as all EEC procedures were followed, CFC, Inc. will pay for services rendered as well as children's absences, holidays, eligible paid time off, and insufficient terminations.
Can I charge my private rate? What if there is a difference between the subsidy rate and my rate?
Subsidy rates are determined by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care. If a child is referred through CFC (or any other subsidy management agency) you may NOT charge the parent any additional money, regardless of your published rate. You may also not charge private-rates that are less than the subsidy rate.
Can I charge subsidy families for meals? Field trips? Materials?
The MA Dept. of EEC does not allow any subsidy child care provider to charge program costs to subsidy families, including meals, field trips, or materials.
Can I charge families for late pickup?
Yes, as long as the policy is in your handbook.
How many hours of training are required every year? Am I paid for training?
The MA Dept. of EEC requires 25 hours of approved professional development training. CFC, Inc. helps to facilitate this training on paid professional development days. As long as you participate in the training, you will be paid for these days at the regular daily rate.
Will I have to pay for materials? Training? Advertising?
CFC, Inc. pays for all required trainings. As a business owner, you will have to pay for all program materials, including furniture, improvements required for licensure, food, toys, extra diapers and wipes, etc. CFC, Inc. may have access to grants, donations, and discounts to help with some costs, and periodically distributes free books, toys and materials. Additionally, there are programs and resources you can access yourself to help with these costs. Your Support Specialist can help you find/access available programs.
Is there a cost or fee to join CFC, Inc?
No! Joining our network is free and will give you access to referrals, program resources, and a dedicated Support Specialist to provide support and guidance.
How does CFC, Inc. decide who to refer clients to?
CFC, Inc. considers the needs of the family and educators when making referrals. Whenever possible, we try to give families a choice of multiple educators. We first ask what the family needs: transportation, hours of operation, distance from home/work, language, etc. We look at Educators' hours, location, license capacity and preferences (age of children for referrals, etc.) and match as many educators as possible. We then give the information of the matches to the families, who may visit each program to ask questions and see the program. The family then makes the decision of which educator to choose.
Will CFC transport children to my home?
CFC, Inc. makes every effort to transport every child in need of transportation. Some reasons we may not be able to transport include: the family is ineligible for transportation, the family or educator is outside the transportation provider's service area, the van is currently full, or the family or educator has violated the transportation contract.
What if I am experiencing challenges with a CFC-referred child and/or family?
Your Support Specialist can assist with problems that arise with children or families. They can offer advice, speak to a family on your behalf, and connect you with other resources. If the problem persists, you have the right to terminate any family with a written 2 week notice.
Am I required to keep openings for CFC families?
No, but we do ask that you keep 2 slots available for CFC referrals. We can usually fill openings quickly. If you do fill your slots with private=paying families or no longer need CFC's referral services, we may schedule a meeting with the director to evaluate your relationship with CFC.
Is my program required to be open certain hours?
EEC Requires that you be open 10 hours per day.* Which 10 hours is up to you. We also recommend that you tailor your hours to meet the needs of working parents. (This will also help you receive more referrals!)
*COVID-19 exceptions apply