The Afterschool Investments project has developed profiles for each state to provide a snapshot of the "state of afterschool," as well as an opportunity to compare afterschool activities across the country. This profile provides key data and descriptions of the afterschool landscape, which includes a range of out-of-school time programming that can occur before and after school, on weekends, and during summer months. It is designed to serve as a resource for policymakers, administrators, and providers.

• Quick Facts
• Statewide Initiatives
• Notable Local Initiatives
• Statewide Organizations
• Additional Resources
• Notes and Sources

Quick Facts

Demographics

For more demographic information, visit http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/statepro/index.html

Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)

• CCDF Administrative Overview

• Settings

Where CCDF-Subsidy school age-children are served:

• Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool

"Resource and referral and school-age" targeted funds:
Funds may be used by the Resource and Referral network to plan and participate in advocacy activities that focus public attention on child care. Funds may also be used to plan a statewide conference on school-age care. The Kansas Enrichment Network – Making Connections For Out-Of-School Time works to expand and stabilize existing programs, and the SRS works to provide subsidies for eligible children in the 21st Century Programs.

Other quality activities:
These funds may support the Accreditation Project, which provides accreditation technical assistance to
centers seeking national accreditation.

• Provider Reimbursement Rates

Tiered Reimbursement Rate System:
Kansas is implementing electronic balance transfer (EBT) as the payment method for child care subsidies.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

Program Licensing and Accreditation Policies

21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC)

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Statewide Initiatives

• The Kansas Enrichment Network (KEN). In 2002, The University of Kansas Institute for Educational Research and Public Service received funding from the C.S. Mott Foundation with matching funds coming from the Kansas Health Foundation, the Ewing Marion Kaufman Foundation, the Sunflower Foundation, the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, and with support from the Kansas State Department of Education and the University of Kansas School of Education to create a state-wide afterschool network. The Kansas Enrichment Network is a collaborative partnership committed to the children of Kansas through a coordinated service program. KEN is building and expanding school-based, faith-based, and community based programs to enhance afterschool programs and provide technical assistance to new and established programs. The network focuses its efforts on these major issue areas: quality, sustainability, partnership building, evaluation, research, and public awareness and policy development. In 2004, KEN’s work in collaboration with the Kansas Children’s Campaign and Kansas Action for Children produced and disseminated a report, A Call for Quality Afterschool Programs in Kansas. This report identified local, state, and national goals including professional standards, state systems coordination, a flexible funding source, and integration with workforce and economic development. The development of the Kansas Continuous Improvement Process Rubric for Afterschool was the result of the focus on improving afterschool program quality and sustainability. The CIP Rubric is now available to all afterschool programs. The focus on quality also produced a partnership with the Missouri Afterschool Network to develop a set of credentials for afterschool directors and core competencies for afterschool professionals. In 2005, the C.S. Mott Foundation and current foundations provided matching funding to continue financial support for KEN’s current work. The new funding for innovations will focus work on an afterschool sustainability model for local communities. KEN’s technical assistance services will be refined and formalized. Research will be conducted to identify "best-practices" in programs state-wide. KEN will implement an action plan for policy to help establish state funding for afterschool programs with the guidance of state advocate leader, Kansas Action for Children.

  For more information, see http://www.kansasenrichment.net

• In 2003, the governor of Kansas received an award from the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, with funds from the C.S. Mott Foundation and the Wallace Foundation, to hold a statewide summit on extra learning opportunities (ELOs). The Kansas Enrichment Network worked closely with the governor’s office to plan and implement the summit, which convened and engaged a range of state and local partners to devise a shared agenda for improving the quantity and quality of afterschool programs. The summit was held in conjunction with the Kansas workforce summit and focused on increasing partnerships between businesses and ELOs.

• Kansas Endowment for Youth (KEY) Fund. All funds Kansas receives from the Master Tobacco Settlement are deposited into the KEY Fund, which is designed to provide preventative services by enhancing or expanding children’s programs. The payment amount depends on how many tobacco products are sold nationally each year, and funds are distributed by the state legislature based on recommendations of the Kansas Children’s Cabinet. In 2003, over $46 million was transferred from the KEY fund to the Children’s Initiatives Fund and state agencies for public health, juvenile justice, and education programs. Approximately $1.4 million was allocated directly to child care services, with afterschool programs potentially able to access these funds as well as those earmarked for activities such as violence prevention or smoking cessation. The KEY Fund is managed as an investment account by the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System with the goal of sustaining children’s programs after tobacco settlement payments end.

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Notable Local Initiatives

• Wyandotte County Youth Opportunities Unlimited (YOU). In 1998, the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and local nonprofit Youth Opportunities Unlimited (YOU) facilitated a Juvenile Justice Strategic Plan. The plan emphasized the need for an out-of-school time system that is accountable, performance-based, and evaluated against measurable outcomes that are reviewed and acted upon on a regular basis. As a result of this plan, YOU has served as a convening and staffing organization to a community-wide initiative to systematize out-of-school time programs in Kansas City, Kansas. YOU has convened community and faith-based organizations, home-based providers, local government representatives, school district administrators, and other community stakeholders, including the United Way and the County Health Department, around the issues of documenting the available supply of programs, barriers to access, appropriate quality standards, and sustainability of a community-wide system.

• Wichita Middle School After School. The Wichita Middle School After School Program was started by a small grant from the City Manager in 1994. The grant required a collaborative program created and implemented by the city’s recreation providers. Since then, the grant has increased to $150,000, and 25 recreational organizations have formalized as the Youth Activity Advancement Alliance (Youth AAA), which meets monthly to coordinate services for the Middle School After School programs throughout the city. All agencies provide their services to the Middle School After School Program with their own funding. The goal is for this free program to be available to every middle school student in Wichita.

• Boys and Girls Club of Hutchinson/ Kids After School, Inc. In 1989, a community needs assessment in Reno County, Kansas, revealed that a large number of elementary school students were frequently home alone afterschool. In response, Kids After School, Inc. (KAS Inc.) was piloted at two elementary schools, and a five-year grant to the Reno County Extension Service from the U.S. Department of Agriculture allowed the program to expand to six sites. After five years of building community support and securing a broad funding base, initiative leaders wanted to expand further to include all school-age children in the community. KAS Inc. approached the Boys and Girls Club of America, which formed a local chapter that merged with KAS Inc. to provide afterschool programming. Together, the groups secured the donation of a municipal facility from the city of Hutchinson and transportation to this new central site from the school district. The expanded program now serves over 860 children and receives additional funding through a sliding-scale parent fee, grants from the local United Way, and local donations.

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Statewide Organizations

Kansas Enrichment Network (KEN):

1122 West Campus Road
JRP Hall, Room 623
Lawrence, KS 66025
Phone: 785-864-9665
Fax: 785-864-5212
Web: www.kansasenrichment.net

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

Kansas Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies
112 W. Iron P.O. Box 2294
Salina, KS 67402
Phone: 785-823-3343
Fax: 785-823-3385
Web: www.kaccrra.org/

Kansas Community Education Association (KSCEA):

1616 Wilshire Road
Hutchinson, KS 67501
Phone: 620-662-4573
Web: http://www.ksceaonline.com/

Kansas Action for Children:

720 SW Jackson
Suite 201
Topeka, KS 66603
Phone: 785-232-0550
Fax: 785-232-0699

Statewide Afterschool Network:

Institute for Educational Research and Public Service
University of Kansas
Joseph R. Pearson Hall, Room 321
1122 West Campus Road
Lawrence, KS 66045
Phone: 785-864-9714
Web: http://www.soe.ku.edu/research-services/institute/

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Additional Resources

State Child Care Administrators:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/dirs/display.cfm?title=ccdf

State TANF Contacts:
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/tanf-dir.htm

21st Century Community Learning Centers Contacts:
http://www.ed.gov/programs/21stcclc/contacts.html

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Notes and Sources

Demographics

Total population: Annual Estimates of the Population for the United States and States, and for Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006, U.S. Census Bureau.

Number of children ages 5-12: Estimates of the Resident Population by Single-Year of Age and Sex for the United States and States: July 1, 2006, U.S. Census Bureau.

Percent of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch rate: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Percent of K-12 students in Title I "schoolwide" schools: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. The federal Title I program provides funding to local school districts and schools with high percentages of poor children to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic content and student academic achievement standards. Schools enrolling at least 40 percent of students from poor families are eligible to use Title I funds for schoolwide programs that serve all children in the school.

Child Care and Development Fund

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is the largest federal funding source for child care. States receive a funding allocation determined by formula and have broad flexibility to design programs that provide child care subsidies for low-income children under the age of 13 and to enhance the quality of child care for all children. Federal CCDF funding consists of mandatory, matching, and discretionary funds. Federal law requires that states spend at least 4 percent of their CCDF funds as well as additional targeted funds on activities to improve the quality and availability of child care. CCDF administrative data in this and the following sections is from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Bureau, as reported by States, unless otherwise noted.

FFY06 state MOE plus match: In order to receive Federal matching funds, a state must expend Maintenance of Effort funds. Note that this does not capture actual expenditures, only the minimum required to draw down all available federal funds.

FFY06 Tribal CCDF Allocation: Federal CCDF Funds are awarded directly to Federally-recognized Indian Tribes.

FFY05 total quality expenditures: This data includes FY05 and prior year funds expended for quality from each of the CCDF funding streams (mandatory, matching, and discretionary) and expenditures under targeted funds for infant and toddler, school-age care and resource and referral. This figure provides information obtained from state financial reports submitted for FY05.

Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool: Portions of CCDF discretionary funds are targeted specifically for resource and referral and school-age child care activities as well as for quality expansion. (These funds are in addition to the required 4 percent minimum quality expenditure.)

Maximum rate for school-age category: Rate listed applies to center-based care; where rates vary by region or county, the rate for the most populated urban area is given.

Standardized monthly school-age rate: Monthly rate for a child, age 8, in care after school during the school year at a center in the most costly district for four hours per day, 20 days per month. Calculated (in the lowest tier of a tiered system) using information from the FY2006-2007. State CCDF Plan, including rate structures, as submitted to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.

Separate subsidy rates for part-time vs. full time and Tiered Reimbursement Rate Systems: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Child Care Bureau. Report of State Plans FY2006-2007.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

In addition to spending TANF funds directly on child care, a state may transfer up to 30 percent of its TANF grant to CCDF. Expenditures represent TANF funds spent in FY05 that were awarded in FY05 and prior years. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.

Program Licensing and Accreditation Policies

States with separate school-age licensing standards and states with specialized requirements for child care centers serving school-age children: National Association for Regulatory Administration, 2005 Child Care Licensing Study, available at http://www.nara.affiniscape.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=104.

Ratio of children to adults in school-age setting: Data from the National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC), available at: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov.

Number of NAA-accredited programs: Data from the National AfterSchool Association, March 2007, available at: http://www.naaweb.org.

21st Century Community Learning Centers

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 converted the 21st Century Community Learning Centers’ authority to a state formula grant. In past years, the U.S. Department of Education made competitive awards directly to school districts. Under the reauthorized law, funds flow to states based on their share of Title I, Part A funds. States use their allocations to make competitive awards to eligible entities. Data from the U.S. Department of Education 21st Century Community Learning Centers Office and the 21st CCLC Profile and Performance Information Collection System.

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The Child Care Bureau awarded a technical assistance contract to The Finance Project and their partner, the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, for the Afterschool Investments project. The goals of the Afterschool Investments project include:

• Identifying ways that state and communities are using Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) subsidy and quality dollars to support out-of-school time programs, and sharing these practices and approaches with other states;
• Identifying administrative and implementation issues related to CCDF investments in out-of-school time programs, and providing information and context (about barriers, problems, opportunities) as well as practical tools that will help CCDF administrators make decisions; and
• Identifying other major programs and sectors that are potential partners for CCDF in supporting out-of-school time programs and providing models, strategies, and tools for coordination with other programs and sectors.

Contact Us:

Email:
afterschool@financeproject.org

Web:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/afterschool/

The Finance Project
1401 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 800
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-587-1000
Web: www.financeproject.org

National Governors Association
Center for Best Practices
444 North Capitol Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202-624-5300
Web: www.nga.org

The Afterschool Investments project’s State Profiles are designed to provide a comprehensive overview of noteworthy State and local initiatives across the country. Inclusion of an initiative in the Profiles does not represent an endorsement of a particular policy or practice.