7.2 Use of Quality Set-Aside Funds

Lead Agencies must use a portion of their CCDF expenditures for activities designed to improve the quality of child care services and to increase parental options for and access to high-quality child care. They must use the quality set-aside funds on at least one of 10 activities described in CCDF and the quality activities must be aligned with a Statewide or Territory-wide assessment of the State's or Territory’s need to carry out such services and care. 7.2.1 Quality improvement activities a. Describe how the Lead Agency will make its Quality Progress Report (ACF – 218) and expenditure reports, available to the public. Provide a link if available. The Quality Progress Report is publicly available on the Lead Agency’s website. They can be found on the main Child Care page (https://hhs.iowa.gov/programs/programs-and-services/child- care) under the section entitled Child Care and Development Block Grant. b. Identify Lead Agency plans, if any, to spend CCDF funds for each of the following quality improvement activities. If an activity is checked “yes”, describe the Lead Agency’s current and/or future plans for this activity. i. Supporting the training and professional development of the child care workforce, including birth to five and school-age providers. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. The Lead Agency supports a variety of training and professional development supports. In the Lead Agency’s CCR&R contract provider services include, training, coaching and consultation services available to child care providers at no cost. The Lead Agency also funds multiple training series through Iowa State University, including but not limited to Universal Precautions, Medication Administration, Environmental Rating Scale training, and center employee orientation training (Passport). The Lead Agency, supports T.E.A.C.H. scholarships statewide for individuals that want to pursue higher education courses. The Lead Agency also funds maintenance of Iowa’s Early Childhood and School Age Professional Workforce Registry, know as i- PoWeR which allows individuals to easily search and enroll for trainings as well as keep information related to their qualifications and professional development all in one place. ii. Developing, maintaining, or implementing early learning and developmental guidelines. [x] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [ ] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. iii. Developing, implementing, or enhancing a quality improvement system. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. IQ4K is Iowa’s Quality Rating and Improvement System. Our intent is to fund IQ4K and continue to evaluate the system. Current investments in our Quality Rating and Improvement System include a range of supports including: maintaining the online system used for IQ4K applications; achievement bonuses for all ratings achieved and funding training that is required in IQ4K. We also fund 10 IQ4K Specialists throughout the state in our contracts with Child Care Resource and Referral to support programs in achieving a quality rating. Child Care Nurse Consultants also provide health and safety supports and Environment Rating Scale assessment supports are also funded. 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. The Lead Agency currently funds a number of professional development opportunities (training and consultation) specifically for individuals that work with infants/toddlers such as the Program for Infant Toddler Care (PITC), Infant/Toddler Pyramid Model Modules and training on the Infant Toddler Environment Rating Scale(ITERS). The Lead Agency will use Child Care Connect (C3) dashboards launched in June 2024 to analyze gaps between demand estimates and supply of child care slots for infants/toddlers. Based on the data analysis, the Lead Agency may develop additional strategies to improve the supply of child care services for infants and toddlers. 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 recently re-procured contracts for CCR&R services statewide. The contracts offer provider services, family services and community services. Provider services include but are not limited to consultation, coaching and training. Family services include child care referrals and consumer education. Community services include educational presentations, public education regarding quality child care and current child care issues and supporting communities to address local child care concerns. vi. Facilitating compliance with Lead Agency child care licensing, monitoring, inspection and health and safety standards. [x] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [ ]Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. vii. Evaluating and assessing the quality and effectiveness of child care services within the State/Territory. [x] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [ ] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. viii. Accreditation support. [x] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [ ] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. ix. Supporting State/Territory or local efforts to develop high-quality program standards relating to health, mental health, nutrition, physical activity, and physical development. [x] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [ ] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. x. Other activities determined by the Lead Agency to improve the quality of child care services and the measurement of outcomes related to improved provider preparedness, child safety, child well-being, or kindergarten entry. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. The Lead Agency also funds: maintenance and upgrades to IT systems, a shared services project, WAGE$ stipends and community solutions grants. Current IT systems that the Lead Agency maintains and upgrades are KinderTrack(payment system), CRIS (regulatory system), IQ4K (QRIS system) and i-PoWeR (workforce registry system). The Lead Agency also supports a shared services project that provides tools and resources for more informed decision making. The Shared Services project includes, Financial Management Coaches (FMCs) that teach child care providers how to effectively use Child Care Management Systems (CCMSs) to reduce administrative burden and have more precise data to inform business decisions. Additionally the Shared Services project has built and operational data store system called Child Care Connect (C3) that integrates multiple sources of data to power dashboard visualization that can be used to make informed decisions at all levels including state-level, regional-level, community-level and individual business level. 8 Lead Agency Coordination and Partnerships to Support Service Delivery Coordination and partnerships help ensure that the Lead Agency’s efforts accomplish CCDF goals effectively, leverage other resources, and avoid duplication of effort. Such coordination and partnerships can help families better access child care, can assist in providing consumer education to parents, and can be used to improve child care quality and the stability of child care providers. Such coordination can also be particularly helpful in the aftermath of disasters when the provision of emergency child care services and the rebuilding and restoring of child care infrastructure are an essential part of ensuring the well-being of children and families in recovering communities. This section identifies who the Lead Agency collaborates with to implement services, how match and maintenance-of-effort (MOE) funds are used, coordination with child care resource and referral (CCR&R) systems, and efforts for disaster preparedness and response plans to support continuity of operations in response to emergencies.