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.
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.
Highlighted Tools and Resources:
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Guide for Increasing Search Engine Optimization introduces search engine optimization (SEO) to CCDF Administrators and other child care professionals who want to ensure that their state and territory consumer education websites effectively serve their communities.
Guide for Measuring Web Traffic and Engagement introduces digital analytics to audiences with limited experience in digital strategy, including CCDF Administrators and other child care professionals who have a stake in ensuring their consumer education website effectively serves their constituency.
Improving Consumer Education Websites with User Research summarizes key methods that are widely applied in user-experience research and design. It also highlights best practices and key considerations in conducting user research to help states and territories enhance their consumer education websites.
Office of Child Care Announcement:
- 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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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 July 19 and running through December 20, 2017. Resources are available for each session.
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This final presentation in the six-part series of Hot Topics webinars explores six essential practices for high-quality infant/toddler care. Learn the basics of continuity of care, primary care, small groups, individualized care, inclusion, and cultural responsiveness. Resources for...
On October 19, 2017 the National Center on Afterschool and Summer Enrichment (NCASE) hosted a webinar facilitated by colleagues from the National Center on Child Care Subsidy Innovation and Accountability and the Child Care State Capacity Building Center. During this interactive session,...
This fourth webinar in a six-part Hot Topics series supports States and Territories in identifying multiple strategies for building a supply of quality infant and toddler care, specifically in high-need areas.
This brief, a collaboration between the National Center on Tribal Early Childhood Development and the Child Care State Capacity Building Center, addresses the causes of sudden infant deaths, the incidence of deaths in American Indian/Alaska Native communities, prevention strategies, and best...
The webinar explores what state and territory Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) administrators, partners, and stakeholders need to know to ensure that children have safe child care before, during, and after emergencies and...
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 and the 2016 Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) final rule require CCDF Lead Agencies to collaborate on the development of their CCDF Plans with specific groups. The Collaboration with Key Partners tool names these groups and...
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 requires Lead Agencies to develop state- and territory-wide child care disaster plans. These plans must demonstrate how each state and territory will address the needs of children—including the need for safe child care—...
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 requires Lead Agencies to develop state- and territory-wide child care disaster plans. These plans must demonstrate how each state and territory will address the needs of children—including the need for safe child care—...
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 requires Lead Agencies to develop statewide child care disaster plans. Each state’s plan must demonstrate how the state will address the needs of children—including the need for safe child care—before, during, and after...
