How states can use meaningful data to enhance childcare

As the world stabilizes from the COVID-19 pandemic, states must build a system of childcare centers that aid families in the workforce.

In brief

• The federal government is releasing billions of dollars to states to bolster childcare.
• States are struggling with access to actionable data to make the best funding choices.
• States must use data effectively to avoid creating a childcare bubble.

Iserved as the Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Human Services when the COVID-19 pandemic hit our nation. Keeping people safe was my primary concern, immediately followed by trying to ensure all families had access to essential services — including childcare.

As the hectic and confusing first weeks of lockdowns, school closings and mask mandates began to smooth into something like normalcy, it became clear that childcare would need special focus.

Initially, centers closed, unsure of how to continue safe operations, predict the number of employees who were able to be present and hypothesize as to whether there were enough children needing in-person care. But there was a set of employees, “essential workers,” who never left the workforce and who needed access to safe and reliable childcare options. States across the country, including Tennessee, declared childcare centers as essential workplaces that could remain open during lockdown, and began offering childcare payment assistance to essential workers and providing grant opportunities for childcare providers, funded by both the state and the federal government.

As Commissioner, I needed to understand where and how best to allocate funds and anticipate where there might be significant childcare needs going unfilled — and to track outcomes. State government is rich with information: data to tell me how many applications were received and approved, as well as data informing the department on the number of childcare center closures and temporary sites was available. But despite a constant stream of these individualized data points, we lacked the ability to make real-time informed decisions.

Today, childcare remains a struggle for most states. While many states are still creatively finding ways to strengthen current childcare operations, many are realizing that now is the time to transform these systems to better serve families. As states struggle with access to actionable data, this need has become even more apparent as the federal government has released billions of dollars in funding for childcare to be distributed by states to families and childcare providers. To underscore the urgency, these dollars must be spent quickly, with solutions to distribute the dollars in place by the end of the federal fiscal year.

The childcare conundrum

In the face of new guidelines, including social distancing, constant sanitation and fewer enrollments, many childcare providers decided that it was too difficult and not lucrative enough to be in the childcare business. But that leaves us with a conundrum: as businesses begin to open up, without childcare, parents cannot go back to work. It’s a vicious cycle that began before the pandemic, but one which has certainly been exacerbated over the last year.

The funding provided by Congress through the 2020 Economic Recovery Act and the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), funneled billions of dollars through states that was earmarked for childcare providers to keep their doors open. Another huge focus was to ensure that parents were able to access affordable childcare during this time.

Many states have gone into overdrive, sending money to providers as fast as possible — but without time for a thoughtful disbursement strategy. States are now at risk of creating a childcare bubble, where some centers are reliant on government funding and may not be sustainable without it. Some areas are seeing a glut of new, temporary centers open, while others — usually poor and underserved already — are still struggling to find open spots for children who need it.

Access to affordable childcare is a must for citizens. Without it, parents are forced to drop out of the workforce or leave their children in unsafe conditions. Funding is necessary and welcome. But how can states be sure they are sending the money to the areas that need it most, ensuring everyone has access to childcare? And how can states track outcomes to know if it’s actually helping?

Better data analysis on childcare needed 

The answer to these issues lies in a robust data-driven strategy. While states continue collecting and updating reams of data, such as the number of child care centers and number of children, the disconnect lies in the ability to quickly and easily synthesize, analyze and cross-reference the data to help make meaningful funding decisions — and more importantly, track the result of those decisions to see if they are working.

For example, when I was Commissioner, if I asked for data, I was given a binder full of statistics. Further analysis could take weeks or months, when we needed it in real time. Unfortunately, most of the information we were able to analyze was often too outdated to be useful in building a strategy. We were unable to pinpoint where essential workers lived so we could target the providers in those areas. I could not easily see which parts of the state were lacking childcare spots and which had an over-supply. We could not use data to predict where childcare needs were likely to grow as more children were born and where they were shrinking as children aged out of care.

Most importantly, we could not track the outcomes of the funding we were giving to centers. We couldn’t spot areas where centers were closing despite funding or if demand for slots continued to outpace supply in areas of the state.

Without this information, and with the time pressure they are under, states are essentially using a hope-for-the-best approach to funding childcare centers.

Weaving the fabric of available data and coupling that information with up-to-date data tracing and analysis tools, states can begin to do more than comply with regulations, they can begin to see the art of the possible. Had I had this information at hand, I would have made different decisions.

Build an effective strategy for sustainable childcare

Now is the time for states to build an effective strategy for disbursing childcare funds and enhancing the future vision of childcare service delivery, and they need to do it quickly. Employing a modern data analysis program can help to answer these vital questions:

• Are there enough spots for children who need childcare, including those that are eligible for subsidized care?
• Is there adequate availability in all communities?
• Is the distribution of funds equitable?
• Based on the data, can you predict trends of children that are expected to need childcare and those that will age out?
   

States must take this information to inform the future. Without a data-driven strategy, states will fall into compliance when the opportunity screams transformation.