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 Lead Agency’s Quality Progress Report and expenditure reports will be made available on the Lead Agency’s website at the following link: https://jobs.utah.gov/occ/plans.html. 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 funds a comprehensive professional development system to support the development of the child care workforce that encompasses information specifically for children birth-12. The Care About Childcare Agencies are responsible for disseminating information developed by the Lead Agency in a training system that spans the state. Other programs such as Early EdU, online annual training subscriptions, scholarships for various professional development opportunities and a comprehensive Career Ladder System are all made available to child care providers by the Lead Agency with CCDF funds. More detailed information is available in section six of this plan. ii. Developing, maintaining, or implementing early learning and developmental guidelines. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. Utah Core State Standards for Early Learning for Ages 3 to 5: These standards provide a foundation for ensuring learning within Utah’s diverse pre-kindergarten classrooms. The Utah State Board of Education (USBE) regularly updates the standards, while parents, teachers, and local school boards control the curriculum choices that reflect local values. The Utah Core Standards are aligned to scientifically-based content standards, and are published in both English and Spanish. Diverse committees of subject matter experts are formed each year to advise USBE in updating each content area, and those changes must be approved by the State Board. Utah Core State Standards for Early Learning for Birth - 3: These standards aim to enhance understanding of child development for families and professionals, assist in designing tailored activities for children and establish a common language for discussing children's growth. All early learning and developmental guidelines are used within the Lead Agency’s quality improvement system through coaching, grants and professional development. In certain endorsement courses, the Early Learning Guidelines and Core State Standards are embedded in the curriculum; for example, providers use the information within the guidelines to participate in class activities. The statewide Care About Childcare agencies also distribute information on where to access the Early Learning Guidelines and Core State Standards to providers during resource nights. Both the Early Learning Guidelines and the Core State Standards are used to inform providers about developmental stages and to help providers incorporate best practices for each age group into their programs. The standards are available publicly online and are available in hard copy at community events, through training platforms and at the six Care About Child Care Agencies. 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. The Child Care Quality System (CCQS) is available to licensed center-based and family child care programs. The Lead Agency in conjunction with partners at the Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Licensing, regional CCR&R's called Care About Childcare agencies, and Utah Afterschool Network administers CCQS statewide. The Child Care Quality System is mandatory for licensed family and center-based programs serving children receiving subsidy or accepting any other CCDF funding in the form of grants or other awards. Participation for center-based programs includes either receiving a default Foundation of Quality rating or receiving a certified quality rating for one of four ratings: Foundation of Quality, Building Quality, High Quality and High Quality Plus. Center-based and family child care programs that receive certified quality ratings of either High Quality or High Quality Plus are eligible to receive a monthly Enhanced Subsidy Grant, to be paid each month of their 12-month certified rating period. The Enhanced Subsidy Grant amount is based on the monthly average number of children whose care was paid for through subsidy during the 12-month documentation period used to calculate the program's certified quality rating. Licensed centers and licensed family child care programs each have a CCQS framework that is specific to the type of care provided. While the components are the same, each is adapted to the type of care offered. For example, the observation tools used in center based programs are the ITERS, ECERS and SAPQA. For the family child care programs, the FCCERS tool is used. Programs that do not receive a High Quality designation may be eligible to apply for a CCQS Intensive Coaching Grant through the Lead Agency. Each program that receives a grant develops a quality improvement plan with the support of a coach and sets goals to complete the plan. The program receives a contract from the Lead Agency and receives funding to support the program in their efforts to reach a High Quality status. Programs make their own decisions about where they want to focus their efforts and funding is based on their goals. Other supports are in place to help programs prepare for a rating through each CAC Agency. Programs may participate in specialized courses about specific best practices, how to apply for a rating, what each component of the framework encompasses, and Peer Learning Communities (PLC) which are conducted virtually with a consistent group of participants, facilitated by a coach. Each PLC lasts five months and an incentive is available for those that complete the work at the end. 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. Start-up grants are used as a strategy to increase child care supply overall, but do flow down to infant and toddler care. Family Child Care Specialists are available in all counties to provide technical assistance and support to family child care providers to help them work effectively with mixed age groups, especially incorporating the needs of infants and toddlers. Early Childhood Specialists are available in all counties to provide technical assistance and support to center-based child care programs. Funds are available for equipment, materials and supplies for programs that care for infants and toddlers that are participating in our Child Care Quality System. Both center-based and family child care programs that apply for and receive a rating of Certified Foundation or Building Quality may receive funding to increase the quality of their environments for children age birth to 36 months. Center-based and licensed family child care programs participating in CCQS are also offered technical assistance in their infant and toddler rooms or working with mixed age groups that include infants and toddlers after an observation has been conducted. Detailed feedback is provided to the program that includes strengths of the environment and caregivers in the classrooms observed. Quality improvement staff help the program identify areas of improvement and provide resources to the program in the areas requested. Peer Learning Communities (PLC) to interested programs through the Care About Child Care Agencies specific to provision of care in infant and toddler rooms. Each PLC is structured with a facilitator with an expertise in infant/toddler care that leads a consistent group of providers through three professional development opportunities related to this age group. There is opportunity for program staff to network with each other and share ideas and challenges. Goal settings with check- ins with the coach are an additional component. Each PLC lasts five months and providers that complete the PLC receive an incentive. Intensive, specialized coaching is available to programs participating in the CCQS system if they have not yet reached High Quality Status. Specialists in infant/toddler care work with staff and administrators to embed best practices into day to day caregiving for infants and toddlers. The Lead Agency has created a comprehensive, 40-hour infant and toddler endorsement within its training system that supports best practices. This suite of classes is available to providers at a very low cost to help them understand the specific needs of children this age and aid them in their efforts to provide higher quality care. 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 funds a statewide CCR&R network. It contracts with six child care resource and referral agencies, referred to collectively as Care About Childcare(CAC). The CAC agencies operate with a common and coordinated scope of work. The agencies provide consumer education for parents; training classes for providers to align with Utah's Career Ladder and CCL training requirements; provide extensive resources to parents and providers regarding the importance of high-quality child care; and assist providers to become licensed. CAC agencies ensure that all providers have access to consistent information related to training, Child Care Quality System (CCQS), and child care referral information. vi. Facilitating compliance with Lead Agency child care licensing, monitoring, inspection and health and safety standards. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x]Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. The Lead Agency contracts with the Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Licensing (CCL) to inspect and monitor all providers and license-exempt programs receiving CCDF to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements. The Lead Agency also funds several strategies to facilitate provider's compliance with standards for quality child care. These strategies include the following: (1) Start-up grants for family providers to support them in becoming licensed; (2) Technical assistance through CCL to ensure programs comply with licensing; (3) Technical assistance and grants to refugee child care providers to become either Family, Friend and Neighbor providers or licensed providers; Additionally, the Lead Agency’s partners provide some training and technical assistance that address state standards in child care. These include the following: (1) Child Care Licensing Training for all providers; and (2) Technical assistance to address standards when providers contact the Care About Childcare agencies vii. Evaluating and assessing the quality and effectiveness of child care services within the State/Territory. [ ] No plans to spend in this category of activities at this time. [x] Yes. If yes, describe current and future investments. The Lead Agency uses third-party evaluators and evidence-based assessment tools in many of its grant programs. First, the Lead Agency contracts with the Utah Afterschool Network to evaluate Out-of-School Time (OST) programs using a nationally-recognized quality assessment tool to determine quality of programs for school-age children. The Lead Agency and the OST Specialists use the School Age Program Quality Assessment (SAPQA) to measure quality improvement efforts, as well as develop a plan for improvement, mentoring, coaching and training. To prove effectiveness of school-age programs, all grant-funded OST programs work under the Lead Agency’s Department framework of Results-Based Accountability to answer three questions: ￿How Much?￿, ￿How Well?￿ and ￿Is Anyone Better Off?￿ to create program goals based upon the purpose of the grant funding. Through the utilization of these questions, programs are able to set goals based upon their population needs and provide yearly metrics that are evaluated to determine the growth progress of each program. In addition to the program evaluations, the Lead Agency uses assessment tools in the Child Care Quality System (CCQS). Specifically, the Lead Agency utilizes the Infant and Toddler Environment Rating Scales-3 (ITERS-3), the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scales-3 (ECERS-3), and the Family Child Care Environment Rating Scale (FCCERS-3) to assess program quality. These assessments are conducted in order to assign a rating to a program. These assessments contribute to the assignment of a certified quality rating to a program in CCQS. The School Age Program Quality Assessment (SAPQA) is utilized to measure quality in school age rooms in private centers within the CCQS system. 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 engages in additional activities to improve the quality of child care services in the areas of preschool and afterschool. For afterschool programs, the Lead Agency has grant opportunities centered on the Results-Based Accountability framework. This framework allows the Lead Agency to assess the quality of programs through three questions: (1) ￿How Much￿ allows programs to demonstrate service to high risk students, (2) ￿How Well￿ allows for the review of program data through S.M.A.R.T. goals and program quality assessments, and (3) ￿Is Anyone Better Off￿ shows how programs meet particular outcomes of their grant and meet the goal of ensuring a safe and quality program for all populations. The Lead Agency contracts with the Utah Afterschool Network to ensure quality resources are available to all afterschool programs, including those not receiving grant support from the Lead Agency. Other quality measures are verified through the establishment of safe spaces for school-age children by ensuring all programs are following child care licensing safety guidelines either in a licensed or licensed- exempt capacity. Programs are evaluated annually on quality through internal and external assessments. Internal assessments are self evaluations that measure program safety and connectedness and inform the creation of individualized action plans to improve identified areas of concern. External assessments are conducted using the Program Quality Assessment tool to allow for unbiased evaluation of the program to prove that quality standards enacted through Utah Code are met. External assessments allow the Lead Agency to evaluate the level of quality in afterschool programs from the beginning to end of a program year and allow for the establishment of benchmarks to encourage distinct quality standards and expectations of growth. The activities in preschool quality improvement and kindergarten preparedness are conducted by the Lead Agency in collaboration with the Utah State Board of Education (USBE). The Lead Agency administers the legislatively-directed School Readiness Initiative, which includes the following components: (1) Grants to existing preschool programs to increase the quality of the program, and (2) Funding to support the expansion of preschool availability for 3, 4, and 5 year olds who are not eligible for Kindergarten to participate in high quality preschool programs. These two grant opportunities are funded with a mix of state General Funds as well as CCDF. The Lead Agency tracks the following each year: (1) The number of programs applying for funds under each grant opportunity and their quality level; (2) The number of programs receiving funds under each grant opportunity; and (3) The number of eligible children served under each grant opportunity. These indicators highlight the number of programs statewide seeking to engage in quality building activities to improve their preschool offering. In Utah’s mixed-delivery preschool system, limited funding is maximized through these grants to serve as many eligible students as possible each contract year. As part of the Lead Agency’s statutory responsibility, the School Readiness team establishes a quality assessment tool with quality score thresholds and the Board will establish the student performance assessment and benchmarks of growth, which are incorporated into the grant application process. The observation tool must be evidence-based and utilized by trained and reliable observers. Quality is central to the grant agreements with expected outcomes and activities centered on best practices, alignment with preschool standards, and the elements of a high quality school readiness program as defined in the School Readiness Code. Currently, all funded school readiness grantees are required to conduct a Preschool Entry and Exit Profile (PEEP) assessment for students in their program. In collaboration with the USBE, the Lead Agency has established a target of 20% of children attending programs funded at least in part with School Readiness grants that increase their PEEP assessment score from the beginning (Entry) to end (Exit) of their preschool year. During the 2024 Utah legislative session, a bill was introduced that updated the SR code language. This new language stipulates that the USBE will create a new assessment to measure progress for kindergarten readiness which will replace the PEEP and KEEP assessments. Progress measures will be adjusted from PEEP/KEEP upon the new assessment being released. 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.