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Child Care State Capacity Building Center

The Child Care State Capacity Building Center (SCBC) works with State and Territory leaders and their partners to create innovative early childhood systems and programs that improve results for children and families. SCBC focuses on enhancing the effectiveness of programs implemented under the Child Care and Development Fund, improving the quality and supply of infant-toddler services, and advancing the development of early childhood systems. Guiding principles include the following:

  • Effective State-level technical assistance establishes credibility and expertise, builds partnerships, and develops systemic capacity from Child Care and Development Fund Administrators to child care providers.
  • Context matters. Effective capacity building requires understanding and respecting each organization's history, values, and vision.

Services are available through the SCBC's Infant/Toddler Specialist Network, Intensive Capacity Building Network, and State Systems Specialist Network.

Contact Us

Send your questions and requests to:
Highlighted Tools and Resources: 

Template for Displaying Serious Injuries, Deaths, and Instances of Substantiated Child Abuse in Child Care describes the requirements for posting aggregate data and provides an example of how states and territories can display the aggregate number of serious injuries, deaths, and instances of substantiated abuse in child care on their consumer education websites to meet CCDF regulations.

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Designing Websites That Are Accessible For All Families  guide offers best practices, strategies, and examples for state and territory staff to consider as they work to ensure their consumer education websites are accessible to people with disabilities.

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Best Practices for Consumer Education Websites: Translation guide offers best practices, strategies, and examples for states and territories to consider as they work to provide translated materials on their consumer education websites.

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Systems Building Resource Guide

The OCC Systems Building Resource Guide is designed to provide an overview of key system-building issues to support Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) State Administrators (SAs) in pursuing system-building initiatives.

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The Infant/Toddler Resource Guide offers a host of materials to support the development and implementation of policies and practices for high-quality care for infants and toddlers.

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Building a Comprehensive State Policy Strategy to Prevent Expulsion from Early Learning Settings

Building a Comprehensive State Policy Strategy to Prevent Expulsion from Early Learning Settings provides a review of expulsion research, discusses dimensions of expulsion, and provides the Expulsion Policy Strategy Tool—a practical tool designed to support states and territories in designing and implementing a multifaceted policy approach to developing a continuum of supports for programs, families, and children.

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Emergency Preparedness

Emergency Preparedness plans help ensure child care programs and staff are prepared to react in a manner that protects the safety of children and staff when an emergency occurs. Emergency plans also establish mechanisms to help programs during the recovery phase and get businesses “up and running” as soon as possible, which promotes continuity of care and reduces the risks of clientele and income loss.

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Office of Child Care Announcement:
  • Consumer Education Hot Topic Webinar Series and “Ask Me Anything” Webinars
    The Child Care State Capacity Building Center (SCBC) is pleased to announce a series of webinars designed to help states and territories improve their consumer education websites. SCBC will partner with experts from our Website Development and User Experience Team, along with experts from the National Center on Afterschool and Summer Enrichment, National Center on Child Care Data and Reporting, National Center on Early Childhood Quality Assurance, and National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement, to offer these webinars. Full session and registration information is available by clicking the link above.
Success Stories: 

Michigan Establishes a Statewide Infant/Toddler Consultant Network

In 2014, Michigan recognized a need for an infant/toddler consultant network. In order to best meet the need, the state surveyed its infant/toddler providers to gather their thoughts on what supports would be the most valuable. As a result, in 2016, the statewide system of resource centers established an infant/toddler consultant network that included all 10 of the resource centers. Synergistically, the State Capacity Building Center (SCBC) Infant/Toddler Specialist Network (ITSN) was ready to pilot the Six Essential Practices of Relationship-Based Care training for trainers (TFT) in the fall of that same year. Michigan’s Infant/Toddler Consultants received this training and began to strategize how to incorporate it into their work.

In 2017, the resource centers, in partnership with the Michigan Department of Education, Office of Great Start and Early Childhood Investment Corporation, began to pilot regional learning communities with programs and providers who served infants and toddlers. Building on participation in the state’s quality rating and improvement system, Great Start to Quality, this included:

  • Offering monthly group sessions
  • Mentoring onsite
  • Coaching and consultation on quality improvement
  • Providing professional development at focused meetings
  • Infusing all of their work with the Six Essential Practices of Relationship-Based Care

Over the following two years, the SCBC Infant/Toddler Specialists provided enhanced professional development opportunities and technical assistance to the Michigan Infant/Toddler Consultants, during which time their capacity to deliver this training, build reflective learning communities, and support responsive caregiving has excelled. Their commitment to continuous quality improvement is obvious in their scaffolded support structure of providers that is tailored to meet the needs of each learning community. In a parallel process, the consultants are part of their own learning community in which they have the opportunity to integrate reflective practice.

In 2018, a detailed transition plan was put into place for the first group of learning communities. Providers were given the opportunity to determine the supports they needed to become self-sustaining and form a support network, enhancing care for infant and toddlers in other programs as well. These providers’ star ratings moved from 1–2 stars to 3–4–5 stars, offering developmentally appropriate experiences and materials to the children in their care, as well as demonstrating relationship-based care practices and decreasing the amount of challenging behaviors. The Michigan Infant/Toddler Consultants continue to move this work forward with recruitment of their second group of regional infant/toddler learning communities and ongoing relationships with the first group. In February 2019, their work was highlighted at the Opening Minds Conference, a national conference for early childhood providers in Chicago, Illinois

Resource Search: 
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Resource Guide: Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Resources for Child Care Programs

Natural disasters and emergencies can be emotionally devastating and cause property damage that can be costly to repair. Child care programs should plan and prepare for any events (minor as well as catastrophic) that may disrupt the day-to-day operations of their child care businesses. Emergency...

Leveraging Higher Education Systems to Support Access to Infant/Toddler Credentials

This final webinar in the 2018 Hot Topic series explores state examples of partnerships between child care and higher education in the development of Infant/Toddler credentials that represent an entry point to further education and a successful and accessible journey along career and education...

SCBC Infant/Toddler Specialist Network Hot Topic Webinars 2018

The Child Care State Capacity Building Center (SCBC) Infant/Toddler Specialist Network hosted a series of 1-hour Hot Topic Webinars on the 3rd Wednesday of each month beginning on March 21 and running through September 19, 2018....

Capacity Building Self-Assessment Tool

This tool aims to highlight capacities within and surrounding your organization, system, or any project or initiative you are launching to improve your early childhood system. The self-assessment tool allows any group or organization to identify strengths and...

Supporting the Social-Emotional Health of Infants, Toddlers, and Adults During Natural Disasters and Emergencies

The sixth in the State Capacity Building Center Infant/Toddler Specialist Network's 2018 Hot Topic series, this webinar features resources and practices to support infants, toddlers, families, and teachers during times of national disasters.

 

Using the Infant/Toddler Resource Guide To Support Your Work

The fifth in the State Capacity Building Center Infant/Toddler Specialist Network's 2018 Hot Topic series, this webinar provides an opportunity to learn about the Infant/Toddler Resource Guide and explore how to access and use resources to support policy development, training, coaching...

Building a Comprehensive State Policy Strategy to Prevent Expulsion from Early Learning Settings

The Expulsion Policy Strategy Tool lays out a rubric for a range of policy options to promote young children’s social-emotional development and reduce the likelihood of expulsion and suspension in early learning settings. The tool is closely aligned with the 2014 Child Care and Development Block...

Supporting FCC Providers Who Serve Mixed-Age Groups With Infants and Toddlers

The fourth in the State Capacity Building Center Infant/Toddler Specialist Network's 2018 Hot Topic series, this webinar provides information and resources to assist technical assistance and professional development practitioners who support FCC providers as they care for mixed-age...

CCDF Consumer Education Website Requirements Fillable Checklist

This checklist indicates the 12 consumer education components that states and territories are required to offer on their consumer education websites, and provides a fillable work area to assist states and territories with planning and tracking their progress.

CCDF Consumer Education Website Requirements Infographic

This infographic depicts the 12 consumer education components that states and territories are required to offer on their consumer education websites, and makes recommendations on other state- or territory-level information that may be considered for inclusion.

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