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Urban Institute to engage in a comprehensive review of Quality Rated. Extensive data-gathering activities occurred during 2023 with data analysis and stakeholder convenings planned for 2024, leading to proposed revisions to the entire QR system in the future. Current investment costs also include developing a new IT application that will be fully integrated with other Lead Agency programs in the ongoing upgrade of DECAL’s Child Care Solution. To improve customer service and response time, the Lead Agency has contracted with IT partners to enhance the functionality of the Quality Rated HelpDesk into a fully functional ticketing Call Contact Center with automated response and AI generated knowledge base. iv. Improving the supply and quality of child care services for infants and toddlers. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. To help improve the quality of child care services for infants and toddlers, Quality Rated has revised the on-site assessment component of the rating to specify that all centers offering infant and toddler care will automatically have at least one infant and one toddler room assessed rather than following the author’s guidelines of assessing 1/3 of each ITERS (infant/toddler environment rating scale) age group. This change will allow providers to receive feedback on the quality of their environment for infants and toddlers instead of having just one ITERS assessment conducted on the randomly selected infant or toddler classroom. As described in section 4.5.4 b, the Lead Agency provides coaching and training to infant and toddler teachers, administrators, and family child care learning home providers serving infants and toddlers on topics including responsive caregiving, early literacy, developmentally appropriate practices, developmental milestones and monitoring, and family engagement. Through our partnership with the child care resource and referral agencies, infant and toddler teachers will continue to receive coaching from Infant Toddler Specialists across the next three years. The Lead Agency plans to continue to provide professional development for early learning professionals caring for infants and toddlers through our LITTLE grant by funding three new child care learning center cohorts of 15 programs each and three new family child care learning home provider cohorts of 10 providers for the LITTLE grant over the next three years. The agency plans to continue the Infant and Toddler Activity Training Series to 150 teachers a year for the next three years. The agency provides mental health training and technical assistance to increase the quality of care, early identification of, and response to infants and toddlers who have experienced trauma through the Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health pilot. v. Establishing or expanding a statewide system of CCR&R services. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. The Lead Agency currently has a CCR&R network composed of six regional CCR&Rs across the state. During the next state plan period, the CCR&Rs will continue their work of supporting providers to meet quality standards. Additionally, the Lead Agency will explore avenues for leveraging CCR&Rs as regional hubs to support key focus areas, including workforce development, credential attainment, and increasing the supply of high-quality care for target audiences, such as infants and toddlers or