A DUAL GENERATION APPROACH: EXAMINING THE IMPACT OF CCDBG POLICIES ON CHILD CARE ACCESS, CONTINUITY, AND PARENTAL EMPLOYMENT FOR FAMILIES RECEIVING WISCONSIN SHARES

Wisconsin State Department Of Children And Families, Madison WI

Investigators

Abstract

Each year, the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF), the lead agency for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), serves approximately 45,000 families through the Wisconsin Shares Child Care Subsidy Program. The changes required by the 2014 reauthorization of the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) may affect both the ability of child care programs to provide high-quality care and the ability of low-income families to access child care subsidies. In order to best serve Wisconsin families, DCF needs to know how its implementation of CCDBG has impacted access to high-quality care, continuity and stability of care, and parental employment of those participating in the program. In line with the priorities of DCF, our research plan uses a dual generation approach to examine how the subsidy changes are associated with differences in patterns of child care use and parental employment. In 2017, DCF was one of several states in Cohort 2 to be awarded a Phase I CCDBG Implementation Research and Evaluation Planning Grant through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE). The purpose of this Phase II proposal is to carry out the research and evaluation project developed during Phase I. The Phase II project will result in two long-term outcomes. First, we will improve CCDBG policies and programs to better meet the needs of families in Wisconsin Shares by evaluating the impact of key CCDBG policies through rigorous research and by developing an integrated data system with an accessible data universe and visualizations for ongoing data- driven decision making. Second, we will build capacity for conducting research and using data to inform policy by strengthening and leveraging our partnership with a university research affiliate and by engaging in activities to facilitate collaboration among researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders. We are well-positioned to examine the impact of CCDBG implementation in Wisconsin. In Phase I we built a strong foundation for Phase II by collaborating with the Institute for Research on Poverty to develop a rigorous research plan, collaborating with our internal information technology team to develop a detailed technical solution, and building collaborations between researchers and policy staff.The Phase II project will result in ongoing benefits for Wisconsin. The insights we gain from our research and collaborative groups will help us improve CCDBG policies and programs to better meet the needs of families in Wisconsin Shares. The integrated technical solution, visual dashboards, and partnerships we develop will allow internal researchers and policymakers to compare administrative data from a variety of internal applications and use that data to make better decisions as we implement future programs and policies to improve parent and child outcomes for families receiving Wisconsin Shares.