4.5 Supply Building

Building a supply of high-quality child care that meets the needs and preferences of parents participating in CCDF is necessary to meet CCDF’s core purposes. Lead Agencies must support parent choice by providing some portion of direct services via grants or contracts, including at a minimum for children in underserved geographic areas, infants and toddlers, and children with disabilities. 4.5.1 Child care services available through grants or contracts Does the Lead Agency provide direct child care services through grants or contracts for child care slots? [x] Yes, statewide. Describe how the Lead Agency ensures that parents who enroll with a provider who has a grant or contract have choices when selecting a provider: Families enrolled in contracted slots will also have the option to select a different provider as needed. [ ] Yes, in some jurisdictions, but not statewide. Describe how many jurisdictions use grants or contracts for child care slots and how the Lead Agency ensures that parents who enroll with a provider who has a grant or contract have choices when selecting a provider: [ ] No. If no, describe any Lead Agency plans to provide direct child care services through grants and contracts for child care slots: If no, skip to question 4.5.2. i. If yes, identify the populations of children served through grants or contracts for child care slots (check all that apply). For each population selected, identify the number of slots allocated through grants or contracts for direct service of children receiving CCDF. [x] Children with disabilities. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: OEC will seek to serve approximately 5 children. [x] Infants and toddlers. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: OEC will seek to serve approximately 50 children. [x] Children in underserved geographic areas. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: OEC will seek to serve approximately 50 children. [ ] Children needing non-traditional hour care. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] School-age children. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children experiencing homelessness. Number of slots allocated through grants or contracts: [ ] Children in urban areas. Percent of CCDF children served in an average month: [ ] Children in rural areas. Percent of CCDF children served in an average month: [ ] Other populations. If checked, describe: ii. If yes, how are rates for slots funded by grants and contracts determined by the Lead Agency? Contracted slots will be reimbursed according to the QRIS rate of the child care provider. 4.5.2 Care in the child’s home (in-home care) The Lead Agency must allow for in-home care (i.e., care provided in the child’s own home) but may limit its use. Will the Lead Agency limit the use of in-home care in any way? [ ] Yes. [x] No. If yes, what limits will the Lead Agency set on the use of in-home care? Check all that apply. i. [ ] Restricted based on the minimum number of children in the care of the in- home provider to meet the Fair Labor Standards Act (minimum wage) requirements. Describe: ii. [ ] Restricted based on the in-home provider meeting a minimum age requirement. Describe: iii. [ ] Restricted based on the hours of care (i.e., certain number of hours, non- traditional work hours). Describe: iv. [ ] Restricted to care by relatives. (A relative provider must be at least 18 years of age based on the definition of eligible child care provider.) Describe: v. [ ] Restricted to care for children with special needs or a medical condition. Describe: vi. [ ] Restricted to in-home providers that meet additional health and safety requirements beyond those required by CCDF. Describe: vii. [ ] Other. Describe: 4.5.3 Shortages in the supply of child care Lead Agencies must identify shortages in the supply of child care providers that meet parents’ needs and preferences. What child care shortages has the Lead Agency identified in the State or Territory, and what is the plan to address the child care shortages? a. In infant and toddler programs: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. ii. Method of tracking progress: The Enterprise Licensing System has reporting capabilities that allow staff to monitor progress. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant and CCDF funding to increase the number of high-quality infant, toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. Arkansas funds the Family Child Care Network (FCCN) a staffed organization focused on building the capacity in Arkansas of licensed family child care homes. FCCN encourages unlicensed providers to begin the licensure process. FCCN offers one-on-one training and technical assistance to family child care providers on a variety of topics including business practices and program quality. The goals of the FCCN are to: (1) Increase the number of licensed and registered homes, (2) Increase the number of infant and toddler slots available, and (3) Elevate the level of quality in Arkansas for the children and families served. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant to increase the number of high-quality infant and toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. b. In different regions of the State or Territory: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff in addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. ii. Method of tracking progress: The Enterprise Licensing System has reporting capabilities that allow staff to monitor progress. iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant and CCDF funding to increase the number of high-quality infant, toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. Arkansas funds the Family Child Care Network (FCCN) a staffed organization focused on building unlicensed providers to begin the licensure process. FCCN offers one-on-one training and technical assistance to family child care providers on a variety of topics including business practices and program quality. The goals of the FCCN are to: (1) Increase the number of licensed and registered homes, (2) Increase the number of infant and toddler slots available, and (3) Elevate the level of quality in Arkansas for the children and families served. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant to increase the number of high-quality infant and toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. c. In care for special populations: i. Data sources used to identify shortages: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. ii. Method of tracking progress: The Enterprise Licensing System has reporting capabilities that allow staff to monitor iii. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using family child care homes? Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant and CCDF funding to increase the number of high-quality infant, toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. Arkansas funds the Family Child Care Network (FCCN) a staffed organization focused on building the capacity in Arkansas of licensed family child care homes. FCCN encourages unlicensed providers to begin the licensure process. FCCN offers one-on-one training and technical assistance to family child care providers on a variety of topics including business practices and program quality. The goals of the FCCN are to: (1) Increase the number of licensed and registered homes, (2) Increase the number of infant and toddler slots available, and (3) Elevate the level of quality in Arkansas for the children and families served. iv. What is the plan to address the child care shortages using child care centers? Arkansas will utilize the Preschool Development Grant to increase the number of high-quality infant and toddler slots through subgrants to the community. The subgrants will be available to open new or expand existing child care centers and family child care homes statewide. The state will seek input from the local leads prior to awarding funds. 4.5.4 Strategies to increase the supply of and improve quality of child care Lead Agencies must develop and implement strategies to increase the supply of and improve the quality of child care services. These strategies must address child care in underserved geographic areas; infants and toddlers; children with disabilities, as defined by the Lead Agency; and children who receive care during non-traditional hours. How does the Lead Agency identify any gaps in the supply and quality of child care services and what strategies are used to address those gaps for: a. Underserved geographic areas. Describe: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. The state in collaboration with the local leads will develop a plan to address the gaps in child care in underserved areas. b. Infants and toddlers. Describe: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. The state in collaboration with the local leads will develop a plan to address the supply of child care services for infants and toddlers c. Children with disabilities. Describe: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high-quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. The state in collaboration with the local leads will develop a plan to address the supply of child care services for children with disabilities. d. Children who receive care during non-traditional hours. Describe: The Lead Agency uses the Enterprise Licensing System to identify and evaluate potential shortages of high- quality child care providers across the state. This data is continuously reviewed and tracked by agency staff and is used to drive conversations with providers for increased quality levels within their programs. In addition, the Arkansas Department of Education established a local early childhood lead organization (local leads) model in which organizations serve as formal state-local implementation partners to execute the state’s early childhood plan. As part of their work, the local leads collect community data and report it to the state. The state in collaboration with the local leads will develop a plan to address the supply of non-traditional hours care. e. Other. Specify what population is being focused on to increase supply or improve quality. Describe: 4.5.5 Prioritization of investments in areas of concentrated poverty and unemployment Lead Agencies must prioritize investments for increasing access to high-quality child care and development services for children of families in areas that have significant concentrations of poverty and unemployment and do not currently have sufficient numbers of such programs. Describe how the Lead Agency prioritizes increasing access to high-quality child care and development services for children of families in areas that have significant concentrations of poverty and unemployment and that do not have access to high-quality programs. OEC partners with contractors across the state to conduct training and technical assistance for child care providers with the goal of increasing quality. OEC will utilize contracts to target priority areas of the state. 5 Health and Safety of Child Care Settings Child care health and safety standards and enforcement practices are essential to protect the health and safety of children while out of their parents’ care. CCDF provides a minimum threshold for child care health and safety policies and practices but leaves authority to Lead Agencies to design standards that appropriately protect children’s safety and promote nurturing environments that support their healthy growth and development. Lead Agencies should set standards for ratios, group size limits, and provider qualifications that help ensure that the child care environment is conducive to safety and learning and enable caregivers to promote all domains of children’s development. CCDF health and safety standards help set clear expectations for CCDF providers, form the foundation for health and safety training for child care workers, and establish the baseline for monitoring to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements. These health and safety requirements apply to all providers serving children receiving CCDF services – whether the providers are licensed or license-exempt, must be appropriate to the provider setting and age of the children served, must include specific topics and training on those topics, and are subject to monitoring and enforcement procedures by the Lead Agency. CCDF-required annual monitoring and enforcement actions help ensure that CCDF providers are adopting and implementing health and safety requirements. Through child care licensing, Lead Agencies set minimum requirements, including health and safety requirements, that child care providers must meet to legally operate in that State or Territory. In some cases, CCDF health and safety requirements may be integrated within the licensing system for licensed providers and may be separate for CCDF providers who are license- exempt. This section addresses CCDF health and safety requirements, Lead Agency licensing requirements and exemptions, and comprehensive background checks. When responding to questions in this section, OCC recognizes that each Lead Agency identifies and defines its own categories of care. OCC does not expect Lead Agencies to change their definitions to fit the CCDF-defined categories of care. For these questions, provide responses that best match the CCDF categories of care.