On many hot summer days, my Uncle Preston would drive down from Alexandria, VA to White Oak, VA in my Aunt Margret’s silver T-Top to pick me up for one of our many adventures. Summertime was always a great time of the year only if I didn’t have to go to summer school. He would drive me back to the Huntington Metro in Alexandria, and we would jump on the train and go past the DCA airport, watching planes take off, as we ventured into DC to visit the Smithsonian Museums and my favorite, the Air and Space Museum. Walking through the front doors, you see airplanes and spaceships all around you and can sit in pilot seats, imagining flying a plane or blasting off to space. It was incredible. These experiences are just a bit of what I was introduced to as a child, but I wonder, how many children have had these same experiences?

One of Child Care Resource and Referral agencies (CCR&Rs) most important roles is to collect and help make sense of important data on child care needs and trends in their communities. Families, child care providers and stakeholders want to know the price of child care in their area as they explore options for their children, their program or their community. Individuals or stakeholders hoping to start a child care business often reach out to their local CCR&R to determine what the geographical area or community needs are before they move forward in opening a child care business. As CCR&Rs keep current on local, state and federal grants and opportunities in the field of early childhood, they are often sought out for information on underserved populations and child care deserts. CCR&Rs use the data to inform decision-making regarding child care needs and support the community in their efforts to address issues and capitalize on opportunities.

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program is a state and federal partnership used to provide assistance to low-income families to access child care, as well as build supply and improve program quality. Since 2016, states, territories and tribes have been required to outline how they will use this dedicated federal funding over a three-year period. Plans cover a multitude of areas, including how states will promote family engagement and consumer outreach, ensure equal program access, establish health and safety standards, recruit and retain a qualified workforce and support continuous quality improvement.

Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic, child care resource and referral (CCR&R) agencies stepped up and supported child care providers within their service areas in assisting with supplies, personal protective equipment and many other needs of child care programs. One of the most common themes or needs identified by child care professionals was support for the social-emotional needs of children.

As shared in the previous blog entitled “Virtual Coaching: Lessons Learned During the Pandemic,” transitioning to virtual coaching required professional development providers to anticipate and prepare for the changes and adaptations needed to make the shift from in-person to virtual coaching. Issues such as new technologies, equipment, training, recruiting providers, and virtual platforms need to be considered to implement virtual coaching successfully. 

Child Care Resource and Referral agencies (CCR&Rs) have an extensive history of successfully partnering with outside organizations and businesses to respond effectively to the needs of the child care community. This history places CCR&Rs in a unique position to leverage these relationships to develop the capacity of their organizations to build, grow and assist in the implementation of Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships (EHS-CCP) in their communities.