8.3 Coordination with Child Care Resource and Referral Systems

Lead Agencies may use CCDF funds to establish or support a system or network of local or regional child care resource and referral (CCR&R) organizations that is coordinated, to the extent determined by the Lead Agency, by a statewide public or private non-profit, community-based or regionally based, lead child care resource and referral organization (such as a statewide CCR&R network). If Lead Agencies use CCDF funds for local CCR&R organizations, the local or regional CCR&R organizations supported by those funds must, at the direction of the Lead Agency: • Provide parents in the State with consumer education information concerning the full range of child care options (including faith-based and community-based child care providers), analyzed by provider, including child care provided during non-traditional hours and through emergency child care centers, in their area. • To the extent practicable, work directly with families who receive assistance to offer the families support and assistance to make an informed decision about which child care providers they will use to ensure that the families are enrolling their children in the most appropriate child care setting that suits their needs and one that is of high quality (as determined by the Lead Agency). • Collect data and provide information on the coordination of services and supports, including services under Part B, Section 619 and Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. • Collect data and provide information on the supply of and demand for child care services in areas of the State and submit the information to the Lead Agency. • Work to establish partnerships with public agencies and private entities, including faith- based and community-based child care providers, to increase the supply and quality of child care services in the State and, as appropriate, coordinate their activities with the activities of the Lead Agency and local agencies that administer funds made available through CCDF. 8.3.1 Funding a system or network of CCR&R organization(s) Does the Lead Agency fund a system or network of local or regional CCR&R organization(s)? [ ] No. The Lead Agency does not fund a system or network of local or regional CCR&R organization(s) and has no plans to establish one. [ ] No, but the Lead Agency has plans to develop a system or network of local or regional CCR&R organization(s). [x] Yes. The Lead Agency funds a system or network of local or regional CCR&R organization(s) with all the responsibilities outlined above. If yes, describe the activities outlined above carried out by the CCR&R organization(s), as directed by the Lead Agency: The lead agency funds a CCR&R that is responsible for some, but not all, of the activities listed above. This is due to the size of the state and shared responsibilities between the CCR&R and other quality vendors. The lead agency’s CCR&R currently falls under the responsibility of the state’s QRIS system (BrightStars). Families looking for child care are referred to BrightStars for support in finding care. BrightStars helps families in the state to access quality child care, early learning and school-aged programs. They have resource guides online to help families determine what type of care would be the best fit for their family. The Lead Agency also outreaches BrightStars when a program is closing. The BrightStars team will then contact other local providers in that area to gauge availability and openings. Additionally, families that are struggling to find care for children with a specific need such as a special healthcare or developmental need, are referred to BrightStars who in turn outreaches providers in the families catch area. They support the family by asking about openings and the program’s ability to meet the needs of the child. This information is then shared with the family, with BrightStars offering to be a connection between the provider and family if needed. BrightStars is not solely responsible for several other activities listed above such as tracking supply and demand and facilitating partnerships with public and private entities. While they support this work, other vendors as well as the Lead Agency all collaborate in these activities. Our CCR&R also collects data and provides information on the coordination of services and supports, including services under Part B, Section 619 and Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, by partnering with The Center for Early Learning Professionals and other TA partners to collect data on rated programs’ engagement in TA and PD by tracking referrals to services and supports, and resultant increases in quality star ratings. BrightStars, CELP and DHS meet monthly in a Case Management meeting to review engagement and troubleshoot programs that are struggling to maintain licensing regulation compliance and quality. Data is captured in these meetings, and information is reported out to DHS on a quarterly basis. Quarterly reports to DHS contain information on referrals to families as well as any identified information regarding supply and demand by families. For example, need for school age care is higher at the end of the summer; infant and toddler need remains high; care for children with special needs, etc. BrightStars also attempts to capture anecdotal information when speaking with programs about waitlists and teacher vacancies and closed classrooms to evaluate the demand for care. Brightstars also works to establish partnerships with public agencies and private entities, including faith- based and community-based child care providers, to increase the supply and quality of child care services in the State and, as appropriate, coordinate their activities with the activities of the Lead Agency and local agencies that administer funds made available through CCDF. All programs are assigned a BrightStars Navigator whose role it is to support programs in achieving their highest level of quality in the rating system. Programs are strongly encouraged to participate in TA, PD and any other resources available to them (CDA training, TEACH Early Childhood Program, Registered Apprenticeship) to allow them to increase their rating, thus increasing the supply and quality of highly rated programs. BrightStars also coordinates with DHS and RIDE to identify programs that could qualify for additional funding for curriculum supports, access to funds for facilities and preparedness for participation in RI PreK.