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First, please review the handbook and application instructions, often they answer most quetsions.

Handbook in English

Handbook in Spanish

A$CEND Application Instructions English

A$CEND Application Instructions Spanish

Login to A$CEND

Email - thriveby5@thechildrenstrust.org

• Use email subject line A$CEND Inquiry - Your Name
• Application status: login to your A$CEND account

Visit Forum

Call - 888.352.4453

or Email - portalhelp@thechildrenstrust.com

• Use email subject line A$CEND - Your Name
• Contact PDR for assistance with:
  • Error messages or "No Registry Account Found"
  • Portal support or Account creation
  • Education verification
  • Employment verification
  • Site roster

Call - 786.735.0200

Or Email - support@welsfoundation.org

• Contact A$CEND SUPPORT for assistance with:
  • How to troubleshoot mobile app
  • A$CEND application error messages

Email - classinfo@elcmdm.org

• Use email subject line A$CEND - Your Name

Eligible participants must have at least ONE of the following:

• Received an INCENTIVE$ check between March 2022 and September 2022
• Currently employed at a Thrive by 5 QIS program site (2022-2023 contract year)

Additionally, eligible participants MUST:

• Be employed for at least 6 months at a qualifying ECE program
• Earn less than $17.50 per hour
• Work at least 20 hours a week in the classroom
• Have earned a high school diploma or GED (regionally accredited)
• Have completed the DCF required Child Care Training as appropriate (40+5 hours on the DCF Transcript)
• Have a record in the PDR (portal account and record)
• Use the SAME email address for both A$CEND application and CF Portal

This depends on several factors and varies from person to person. Tips for a quick application:

• Make sure the documents/photographs you submit are clear. We cannot accept blurry photos.
• Make sure your application information, such as name, is the same as what you put on your W-9

Click Here

Educators who participated in the INCENTIVE$ program and received an award between March 2022 and September 2022 but are not employed in a Thrive by 5 early learning program are eligible for two award periods in the A$CEND program. The two periods must be consecutive and initiated within the first contract cycle, October 2022-September 2023.

• You must be an active member in the Thrive by 5 (Children’s Forum) Professional Development Registry, because the A$CEND salary supplement program relies on information contained in the Registry.
• Go to https://login.thechildrensforum.com/login/create to create your account.

A$CEND applications must be linked to a CF Portal account using the SAME email address for both accounts. The following qualifying information and documentation must be present in the CF Portal for successful A$CEND application submissions:

• Verify that a CF Portal account exists (using same email address for both accounts)
• Proof of high school diploma or GED
• Account Agreement submitted within the last year
• DCF Transcript submitted within the last year
• Completed employment tab with verified active employment at a Thrive by 5 site and
• employment dates

You are required to update your record in the Registry with any changes to your information (this includes name, address, phone number, email address, employment information, and professional development activities such as transcripts, credentials, and certificates).

Once updated, your information is sent into the A$CEND application. This could take a couple of days, please be patient.

DO NOT SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION UNTIL YOUR RECORD IS COMPLETE AND REFLECTED IN YOUR A$CEND PROFILE.

If you already have an account in the Registry, please double check that you are using the same email to sign up in the A$CEND application.

If you can confirm that you are using the same email as your Registry account to sign up, the issue may be that you do not meet one of the other eligibility requirements for A$CEND. Please refer to “Who is eligible to receive an award”

Professional Development Registry (PDR)

Visit Website - Click Here

Call - 888.352.4453

Or Email - portalhelp@thechildrensforum.com

• Use email subject line A$CEND - Your Name

Any updates to your employment, credentials, or Professional Development must be done in the (Children’s Forum Portal) Professional Development Registry. You will need to sign in to your Registry account to make updates.

To learn how to update your personal and professional development information, visit the PDR website at https://login.thechildrensforum.com/

If you have additional questions for the PDF team or about information contained in your Registry Record, contact the Children’s Forum at (888)352-4453 or email portalhelp@thechildrensforum.com or visit www.flchild.com

If you have had an assessment previously and the score is missing from the application, you must request an assessment. This does not mean that you will be assessed again. Our assessment team will contact you to identify if you have had an assessment in the past and/or schedule an assessment. Do not submit your application until you see your CLASS score reflected.

Submit your paystub as is. If you are a salaried employee, we use the federal guidelines for full-time salary employees. The amount of your salary will be multiplied by the type of payroll (bi-weekly, bi-monthly, monthly) to identify your annual salary. Your annual salary amount will be divided by 2080 hours (40 hours per week x 52 weeks per year).

Your information needs to be approved before you enter your payment information, including your W-9 and voided check. Once you have been approved, you will be able to upload your W-9 so you can be approved as a vendor. When you have received vendor status, you will then be able to upload the voided check.

You can download a PDF of the W-9 form from the IRS’s website here: Download Here

Your award payment will be the amount you see at the time of submission. If your CLASS score and/or transcripts are added after the application is submitted, you may see a new amount in the application. However, your payment will not change. It is important to verify all your information (education, CLASS score) is complete within the application prior to submitting it to ensure you are getting the highest possible award amount.

If all your information has been uploaded and approved (including your paystub, W-9, and voided check), and your status is in payment requested, your payment will be processed in approximately one month or longer. Please refer to the timeline.

Educators must reapply to receive funding again, the process is not automatic. Your second application, and those after will be easier as your information will already be in the system.

Once an award is received, you must wait at least six months to apply again (the eligible time period is considered six months from the previous approval date).