1.3 Consultation in the Development of the CCDF Plan

The Lead Agency is responsible for developing the CCDF Plan, and consultation with and meaningful input and feedback from a wide range of representatives is critical for CCDF programs to continually adapt to the changing needs of families, child care programs, and the workforce. Consultation involves meeting with or otherwise obtaining input from an appropriate agency in the development of the State or Territory CCDF Plan. As part of the Plan development process, Lead Agencies must consult with the following: (1) Appropriate representatives of general-purpose local government. General purpose local governments are defined by the U.S. Census at https://www2.census.gov/govs/cog/g12_org.pdf. (2) The State Advisory Council (SAC) on Early Childhood Education and Care (pursuant to 642B(b)(I)(A)(i) of the Head Start Act) or similar coordinating body pursuant to 98.14(a)(1)(vii). (3) Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s) within the State. This consultation should be done in a timely manner and at the option of the Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s). 1.3.1 Consultation efforts in CCDF Plan development Describe the Lead Agency’s consultation efforts in the development of the CCDF Plan, including how and how often the consultation occurred. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with appropriate representatives of general- purpose local government: Arkansas is poised for transformative changes in early childhood care and education as initiated in the LEARNS Act of 2023. LEARNS established the Office of Early Childhood within the Arkansas Department of Education. The Office of Early Childhood is responsible for all programs funded through state or federal resources that provide early childhood care or educational services in Arkansas as well as licensing all providers not receiving state or federal funds. The Office of Early Childhood is the lead agency for the Child Care Development Block Grant. This represents a significant change in governance and signals a high priority for a unified system of early childhood care and education that coordinates seamlessly with kindergarten through Grade 12 education in Arkansas. Priorities outlined in LEARNS include a call for Arkansas to leverage resources such as the Child Care Development Block Grant to maximize impact on early childhood care and programs. This is the largest source of federal funding for early childhood education and encompasses the programmatic administration of the entire system of care from start to finish including: Certifying families as eligible for subsidy; Payments to providers for subsidized care; Licensing of child care and afterschool care facilities; Background checks for the early childhood workforce; Supporting ongoing professional development; The administration of a quality improvement system; and All necessary data systems, payment systems, and parent and provider facing portals for the administration of these functions. As such, the Child Care Development Block Grant and Arkansas’s plan for 2025 through 2027 presents a strategic opportunity to revise current programs to the extent practicable in the short term-- while signaling strategic plans to ultimately align with the priorities outlined in the LEARNS legislation. Fortuitously, the LEARNS priorities for early childhood are congruent with the new rules released for state Child Care Development Fund plans which call for states to: Reduce costs for families so families pay no more than 7% of their household income; Improve payments to providers to ensure Lead Agencies are making on-time payments to child care providers; Expand choices for families to make it easier for families to find child care that meets their needs; and, Cut red tape to allow more families to start child care assistance right away and encourage lead agencies to streamline enrollment processes to make it easier for families to apply for and receive child care assistance. Priority areas for alignment with LEARNS are access, quality, workforce, and systems. Each of these areas are addressed in the Child Care Development Fund plan with some specifics reflecting revision from prior plans and other specifics requiring an action plan and more time to operationalize. CCDF Revisions Reflecting Changes Aligned to LEARNS and OCC priorities: Access. Arkansas is revising the number of hours a parent/ guardian must work or go to school to qualify for eligibility (changing from thirty (30) to twenty (20)). It is anticipated this will enable more families to certify as eligible. Systems. Through the Governor’s Executive order an initial kindergarten-readiness analysis was conducted for Arkansas and called for (1) a count of children age birth to five being served, (2) a review of how quality is defined, (3) an analysis of the gaps between what is currently offered and what families seek. As a result of this analysis, the LEARNS act calls for the department to select and work with Local Leads in communities to support access to programs, identify gaps in service, foster partnerships, create alignment between public and private providers and community agencies, and establish locally supported plans to address the need for more affordable access, conduct an unduplicated count of children served, establish a local governing structure for shared decision making, identify shared resources to support access and quality of providers and leverage those resources, coordinate enrollment processes for families, and determine how future financial support should be used to expand access and improve quality. The first cohort of local leads has been established and another cohort is in process of application and selection with a third cohort to follow to ensure local representation across the state. Strategic Planning for Further Alignment to LEARNS and OCC priorities: LEARNS catalyzed a vision for a unified system for early childhood care and education programs. The aforementioned analysis identified initial gaps between the current state of the system and the desired vision that will require strategic planning to move toward closer alignment. Access and Systems. Arkansas is seeking to move toward a system that enables paying of providers based on enrollment. When this is accomplished, the long-term goal would be to pay providers prospectively. However, to accomplish this the technical systems for payment must be replaced with a system that is designed for the new purposes. The new system will enable Arkansas to update presumptive eligibility language; clarifying copay caps at 7% of family’s gross income as applying per family regardless of the number of children participating in CCDF. The new system will continue to leverage eligibility from other public assistance programs and seek to include additional systems such as Head Start, Early Head Start, etc. particularly for vulnerable populations. This work will be done within the next year but not before the October 1, 2024, implementation plan. In addition to changes in payments to providers, the Office of Early Childhood will engage in intentional supply-building by establishing strategic pilot programs designed to provide greater access while informing leadership of lessons learned from local implementation. Addressing provider shortages by utilizing new funding mechanisms and technology solutions to support the opening and expansion of quality care facilities statewide will also be included in strategic planning. Quality, Workforce, and Systems. Arkansas’s plan leverages new community-based local early childhood lead organizations to coordinate with local governments and community organizations to broaden the reach and impact of services. These organizations serve as community-based planning and feedback systems to determine how future financial support can be used to expand and improve the quality of infant, toddler, and pre- kindergarten classrooms and the workforce that serves in these classrooms. These local early childhood lead organizations can inform the Office of Early Childhood and the State Board of Education on ideas, pilot programs, and lessons learned to increase access, improve and sustain quality programs, provide feedback on systems that support these priorities and enable development of the early childhood workforce. The local leads will be enlisted in co-developing strategic plans for longer term changes in Early Childhood programs that will support alignment with LEARNS priority areas. Additionally, future plans will include intensifying efforts to support higher-quality standards across all provider settings and further developing our workforce through targeted professional development opportunities and concurrent credit programs in high-schools in partnership with local higher education institutions. Finally, strategic planning for development of a robust data system to track and analyze child outcomes, provider quality, and program efficiency will ensure systematic feedback and align with accountability measures proposed in LEARNS. Consultation is regular and on-going. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with the State Advisory Council or similar coordinating body: OEC worked in conjunction with the early childhood sub-committee of the Arkansas Department of Education in the development of this plan. The sub- committee provided input and vital feedback to ensure continual growth and access to early learning in quality settings. The guidance from the sub-committee is instrumental to the growth and expansion of child care for Arkansas families. In addition, other groups that provide input include The Early Childhood Commission, various state and local education partners, mental health care professionals, early education providers, community leaders, legislators, parents, and Head Start. b. Describe, if applicable, how the Lead Agency consulted with Indian Tribes(s) or Tribal organizations(s) within the State: N/A c. Identify other entities, agencies, or organizations consulted on the development of the CCDF Plan (e.g., representatives from the child care workforce, or statewide afterschool networks) and describe those consultation efforts: OEC shared a draft copy of this plan with the Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS), Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, the Head Start Collaboration Office, and the Arkansas Local Leads Agencies. 1.3.2 Public hearing process Lead Agencies must hold at least one public hearing in the State or Territory, with sufficient Statewide or Territory-wide distribution of notice prior to such a hearing to enable the public to comment on the provision of child care services under the CCDF Plan. Describe the Statewide or Territory-wide public hearing process held to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on the provision of child care services under this Plan. i. Date of the public hearing: 4/30/2024 Reminder: Must be no earlier than January 1, 2024. If more than one public hearing was held, enter one date (e.g., the date of the first hearing, the most recent hearing date, or any hearing date that demonstrates this requirement). ii. Date of notice of public hearing: 3/4/2024 iii. Was the notice of public hearing posted publicly at least 20 calendar days prior to the date of the public hearing? [x] Yes. [ ] No. If no, describe: iv. Describe how the public was notified about the public hearing, including outreach in other languages, information on interpretation services being available, etc. Include specific website links if used to provide noticeIt was posted on OEC’s website and information was sent to early childhood communities. v. Describe how the approach to the public hearing was inclusive of all geographic regions of the State or Territory: Public hearing was held in a central region of the state. vi. Describe how the content of the Plan was made available to the public in advance of the public hearing (e.g., the Plan was made available in other languages, in multiple formats, etc.): A draft copy of the CCDF State Plan was posted to OEC’s website. vii. Describe how the information provided by the public was taken into consideration regarding the provision of child care services under this Plan: OCE reviews and considers all public comments for plan modification. 1.3.3 Public availability of final Plan, amendments, and waivers Lead Agencies must make the submitted and approved final Plan, any approved Plan amendments, and any approved requests for temporary waivers publicly available on a website. a. Provide the website link to where the Plan, any Plan amendments, and waivers (if applicable) are available. Note: A Plan amendment is required if the website address where the Plan is posted changes. https://dese.ade.arkansas.gov/Offices/office-of-early- childhood/forms--documents b. Describe any other strategies that the Lead Agency uses to make submitted and approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendments available to the public. Check all that apply and describe the strategies below, including any relevant website links as examples. i. [x] Working with advisory committees. Describe: CCDF Plan and all plan amendments are reviewed and approved by Arkansas State Board of Education ii. [x] Working with child care resource and referral agencies. Describe: A draft copy of the CCDF Plan was sent to all early childhood partners including child care resource and referral agencies iii. [ ] Providing translation in other languages. Describe: iv. [x] Sharing through social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, email). Describe: Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram v. [x] Providing notification to key constituents (e.g., parent and family groups, provider groups, advocacy groups, foundations, and businesses). Describe: A draft copy of the CCDF Plan was sent to all early childhood partners. vi. [ ] Working with Statewide afterschool networks or similar coordinating entities for out-of-school time. Describe: vii. [x] Direct communication with the child care workforce. Describe: A notification was sent to all CCDF Child Care Providers. viii. [ ] Other. Describe: 2 Child and Family Eligibility and Enrollment and Continuity of Care Stable and reliable child care arrangements facilitate job stability for parents and healthy development of children. CCDF eligibility and enrollment policies can contribute to these goals. Policies and procedures that create barriers to families accessing CCDF, like inaccessible subsidy applications and onerous reporting requirements, interrupt a parent’s ability to work and may deter eligible families from participating in CCDF. To address these concerns, Lead Agencies must provide children with a minimum of 12 months between eligibility determinations, limit reporting requirements during the 12-month period, and ensure eligibility determination and redetermination processes do not interrupt a parent’s work or school. In this section, Lead Agencies will identify how they define eligible children and families and how the Lead Agency’s eligibility and enrollment policies support access for eligible children and families.