C.H.I.L.D.R.E.N. of Northcentral Arkansas

Description

A rash of child care facility closings in Independence County, Arkansas, led local employers to come together to develop child care solutions. The result was CHILDREN (Child Care Hub for Information, Learning, Development, Resource, Education, and Networking) of Northcentral Arkansas, a resource and referral partnership formed after extensive consultation and planning by local employers, the Batesville Chamber of Commerce, child care providers, and policy-makers. The project's goal is to meet working parents' needs for quality child care by increasing child care capacity in the area and providing information to parents about child care options.

CHILDREN of Northcentral Arkansas includes a number of public- and private-sector partners:

• Arkansas Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education
  
• Local Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) Coalitions (entities responsible for implementing welfare reform policies)
  
• Area banks and financial institutions
  
• Arkansas Eastman
  
• Con Agra Frozen Foods
  
• White River Medical Center
  
• GenCorp Automotive
  
• White Rogers
  
• United Way of Independence County
  
• Townsends of Arkansas
  
• Northcentral Arkansas Development Council
  

In 1995, business leaders approached the Batesville Chamber of Commerce to discuss a somewhat unorthodox topic for those parties: child care. Four family child care providers and the only major child care center in the county had recently closed, leaving many of their employees without child care.

In response, the Chamber of Commerce created a Child Care Task Force, which included concerned business owners from throughout the community. The Task Force hired a consultant to assess child care resources and needs in the county and make recommendations for action. After meeting with local business leaders, industry representatives, and parents over the course of six months, the consultant recommended establishing a regional resource and referral (R&R) service that would foster the growth and stability of quality child care providers in the community and connect parents to child care resources.

In order to implement the recommendation, the Task Force created a Child Care Subcommittee that spent a year fundraising and establishing a start-up plan. They relied on guidance from existing Resource & Referral programs in northwestern Arkansas and northeast Tennessee, as well as information on best practices from throughout the country. Important results of the Child Care Subcommittee's planning process included:

• the creation of a vision and mission for the new organization;
  
  
• establishment of a governance structure, including the selection of White River Planning and Development District (a private non-profit) to house the initiative, and the selection of an Advisory Council including social service providers, industry representatives, public officials, consumer parents, and others;
  
  
• securing funding for the first year of operations; and
  
  
• recruiting and hiring a Director for the initiative.
  

1. Helping parents to locate quality child care. CHILDREN created and maintains a comprehensive database of child care providers that they use to assist parents in locating quality child care. CHILDREN gives parents referrals for convenient child care, as well as information on how to choose a quality program. A follow-up questionnaire also helps identify areas of concern to parents, such as problems with transportation, the lack of openings for infants, and finding care during non-traditional hours.
   
   
2. Building child care capacity in the region. CHILDREN recruits new providers and offers training and technical assistance to help all providers in the region to provide quality care and effectively manage their facilities. CHILDREN's staff have received intensive training and certification as National Association of Family Child Care (NAFCC) validators/observers for quality accreditation in family child care settings. Staff observe and rate family child care programs applying for accreditation, and provide assistance to help programs meet the required quality standards.

CHILDREN also makes an effort to provide networking opportunities among providers. They have established and help to facilitate the activities of two associations-one for center providers and another for family providers. They also sponsor an annual conference that provides an opportunity for providers from throughout the region to network, receive training, and share their ideas for building and improving the child care field.

In carrying out these activities, CHILDREN developed a rich data source that it can use to advocate for increased investments in child care. CHILDREN collects statistics from referral calls, building a database of useful information not available elsewhere. Examples of information tracked include the employers of parents using the service, the geographic location of callers, and the type of care that they are requesting. This information is useful in maintaining the involvement of existing partners and engaging new partners. Business partners or potential partners can see how many of their employees are benefiting from the service. In addition, the statistics help to pinpoint areas of greatest need and can be used to advocate for and guide public investments. For example, information that CHILDREN has compiled on the low supply of child care in the region has helped providers to access funding for child care facilities construction from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

From the beginning, CHILDREN has received significant cash and in-kind support from private sources. In 1997, CHILDREN had a budget of $60,000, 75 percent of which was private funds. CHILDREN used that initial private funding to leverage public monies. The annual budget is currently close to $100,000, and the share of public funding has increased to 50 percent.

Public funding comes from several sources. One of these is Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA), Arkansas' welfare reform program. Arkansas funds 75 county coalitions that are responsible for implementing welfare reform measures at the local level. Some of these county coalitions have partnered with CHILDREN to help clients address their child care needs. The State Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education has also provided funding, starting at $7,000 the first year and increasing funding to $30,000 by the third year.

CHILDREN receives significant in-kind support from the business and human service sectors. For example, businesses contribute the time spent by members of the Advisory Council, including CEOs and other top administrators. CHILDREN has also received substantial technical assistance from other resource and referral services, notably ones from North Carolina, Tennessee, and an existing regional service in northwestern Arkansas.

Although a relatively new program, CHILDREN has already seen significant results.

Parents have been very satisfied with the services, as demonstrated by the results of a follow-up questionnaire sent out one month after a referral. In the third quarter of 1999, 82 percent of respondents answered that the referrals were helpful or very helpful, and close to 95 percent said the phone consultation was helpful or very helpful. Approximately 60 percent of the parents who call CHILDREN find child care through the referral service, compared to a 33 percent average for resource and referral services nationwide.

Only one-eighth of respondents have reported feeling dissatisfied with their child care arrangements after the referral; approximately three-quarters were "highly satisfied." All of the respondents in the third quarter of 1999 reported that they would use the service again.

While a formal evaluation has not been attempted, the capacity-building efforts of CHILDREN show promising results. Providers are clearly taking advantage of new training and networking opportunities. Seventy-five percent of the calls to the R&R service are from providers looking for technical assistance. Attendance at the national conference rose from 275 participants at the first conference to 450 participants at the 2000 conference. In addition, the two associations for center and family-based care are increasing collaboration and professionalism among providers. As a result, an increased number of providers are beginning the process of state or national accreditation. These are especially positive signs in northcentral Arkansas, a largely rural area with a shortage of quality child care providers.

Finally, as of the third quarter of 1999, 19 new child care providers (both center and family providers) had been established in the seven counties served by CHILDREN.

CHILDREN has just finished expanding its programs to a ninth county in Arkansas. Upcoming plans include strengthening the services provided, particularly in the most recently added counties, and developing an accessible resource center and library available for providers. The organization has created a website making child care referrals available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week on-line (www.CHILDRENofNcAr.org).

As CHILDREN has expanded, so has enthusiasm from both public- and private-sector partners. Funding from the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education has more than quadrupled in three years, as the Division has seen the results of the project. The success of CHILDREN has also led to the establishment of a third regional resource and referral agency in Arkansas. Because CHILDREN is filling such an important gap in services, partnership leaders expect that public and private investment in the initiative will continue to expand.

Be strategic about engaging partners: use industry insiders to connect with businesses. Corporate champions can lend credibility when approaching businesses for support. CHILDREN benefited from having corporate champions from Eastman and ConAgra, who have supported its efforts every step of the way.

Make the business case. CHILDREN found that it was most successful to package the information with a professional look. Employers responded to a message focusing on the bottom line, stressing the business advantages of partnering.

Plan conservatively. Double the longest estimate of how long the start-up process will take. Do not try to expand too quickly, or program quality (and your own quality of life) may suffer. CHILDREN spent a year and a half in the planning stages and three years expanding the services to nine counties. In retrospect, the organization sees the expansion as too rapid.

Have diverse partners. Partners from all industries and all sectors are key to establishing long-term support. Multi-industry buy-in and partnerships with state agencies have been key to the growth and sustainability of CHILDREN.

Don't reinvent the wheel. Ideas, resources, and networks already exist. Time and energy can be saved, and quality enhanced, by accessing the existing resources and information. CHILDREN benefited from the experiences of existing R&R services in North Carolina, Tennessee, and northwestern Arkansas.

Debbie Webb
CHILDREN of Northcentral Arkansas
White River Planning and Development District
P.O. Box 2396
Batesville, AR 72503-4035
Phone: (870) 793-5233 or (800) 737-2237
Fax: (870) 793-4035
debbie@wrpdd.org