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:
Use for funds may vary between different coalitions, but funds can be used for child-care training, accreditation services, and technical assistance.

Other quality activities:
Data not available.

• Provider Reimbursement Rates

Tiered Reimbursement Rate System:
The tiered reimbursement system provides a 20% increase in the rate to those providers who have achieved Florida "Gold Seal" quality status through accreditation.

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 Children’s Forum: School-Age Services. This agency offers a multitude of services for school-age professionals including: workshops, seminars & conferences, customized staff development programs and technical assistance, research and consultation, resource development, and advocacy efforts. The School-Age Services Division seeks to improve the safety, availability, quality and affordability of all school-age programs throughout Florida.

  For more information, visit www.thechildrensforum.com/schoolage.htm

• Florida After School Alliance (FASA). The Florida After School Alliance promotes quality programs for children and youth during out-of-school hours and the professional development of after school program practitioners. To accomplish its mission, FASA provides training and networking opportunities for afterschool professionals throughout Florida. Additionally, FASA hosts regional and annual conference, and leads advocacy initiatives that promote quality and financial support for after school programs. FASA is an affiliate of the National AfterSchool Association, the professional development and membership organization for afterschool program practitioners.

  For more information, see http://www.FloridaAfterSchool.org

• Florida AfterSchool Network (FAN). The Florida After School Network provides unified leadership to advocate for the development, enhancement and sustainability of innovative, high-quality afterschool programs and policies statewide. FAN’s three primary goals include: creating a statewide infrastructure to establish collaborative public and private partnerships which connect local, state and national resources supporting afterschool programs that are school-based or school-linked; developing quality afterschool standards that are endorsed and promoted by statewide stakeholders; and promoting public awareness and policy that expands funding, quality improvement initiatives, and accessibility of afterschool programs.

  For more information, contact JaxFreeland@aol.com

• Florida Children’s Services Councils (CSCs). Legislation in Florida allows counties to hold local referendums in which voters determine if they are willing to levy an additional tax for children’s services. Referendums have been passed in Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, and Hillsborough counties. In developing a service strategy that best supports children and their families, many of these counties have chosen to make afterschool programs a primary component of their efforts. Many of the local CSCs have focused on establishing programs that meet national standards for high quality and demonstrate positive outcomes for youth, such as the Beacons Initiative and teen pregnancy prevention programs.

  For more information, see http://www.childrensboard.org/flchildren service.html

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Notable Local Initiatives

• Fort Lauderdale Teen Initiative Program. This citywide afterschool program offers intramural recreation, arts programs, and service opportunities to over 3,000 area youth. The city operates and maintains the program through partnerships with the local schools, the police department, and private and nonprofit organizations. Since the initiative was implemented, data indicates that burglaries committed by teens during afterschool hours have decreased and performance in school has improved.

• Kissimmee Fit for Life. This program encourages fitness among children in the community by providing opportunities for youths to exercise in afterschool programs at recreation centers. The program combines the resources of the city with those of service providers and local agencies, including the school district and the health department. Youth are encouraged to challenge themselves to make progress by exercising every day. The centers also offer programs and activities that highlight the importance of fitness, nutrition, and healthy lifestyle choices.

• Prime Time Palm Beach County, Inc. This program is a non-profit, intermediary organization dedicated to quality school-age afterschool programs. Prime Time offers training, technical assistance and professional development for program staff, a broad and diverse range of program activity enhancements, a set of quality standards and a system for reaching quality standards through assessment, program improvement plans and resource allocation. Prime Time receives funding from the Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and The Picower Foundation.

• Palm Beach County Champs Program. The Champs Program is an afterschool education model that partners with existing programs to provide academic enrichment to students in kindergarten through grade five at 40 sites. Champs is a project of Kids in New Directions, Inc., and is funded by the Toppel Family Foundation, the Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County, the Picower Foundation, and a consortium of public and private funders and foundations. Curriculum for the program is provided by Foundations, Inc., a national organization dedicated to providing high-quality afterschool education. Staff of participating Champs programs is trained to implement the academic curriculum and are provided with a stipend in addition to their salary. A certified teacher at each program site coaches and oversees the staff implementing the curriculum.

• Sarasota Gold Seal Project. Operated by the Sarasota YMCA, Gold Seal provides technical assistance, training, mentoring, and financial assistance to child care programs working toward national accreditation. With funding from county grants-in-aid and local private foundations, afterschool programs are paired with a Gold Seal mentor who guides providers through the quality improvement process, leads field trips to quality sites, and pays for staff to receive training specific to school-age care. The project also provides financial incentives for equipment, training, and accreditation materials.

• R’Club (Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties) R’Club utilizes the Earth Force curriculum in four middle school afterschool programs. Earth Force combines environmental education, citizenship development, and community problem-solving for young people in grades six through eight. R’Club also incorporates Project Alert, a school-based drug prevention program, in its middle school afterschool programs. The program equips students with skills needed to be drug-free. It is aligned with schools’ science and health curriculum. During the 2005-2006 school year, R’Club was asked by Pinellas County Schools to implement a federal grant piloting an academic support program for students using PLATO Learning materials. The program was implemented in twelve elementary and two middle schools and expanded R’Club’s tutoring program which provides support in reading and math to students identified by school personnel.

• After School @ your Library Program. This program, instigated in at least 11 local libraries in Florida and quickly spreading, focuses on giving school-age children help with their homework and a reinforcement of their daily lessons. In addition, it provides physical and cultural development, through guest speakers and a Reading and Running program.

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Statewide Organizations

National AfterSchool Association Affiliate:

Florida After School Alliance (FASA)
P.O. Box 20425
St. Petersburg, FL 33742
Phone: 727-568-0778
Email: scarie@FloridaAfterSchool.org

Statewide Training Source:

The Children’s Forum: School-Age Services
Phone: (239) 489-4386
Email: jfaber@thechildrensforum.com
Web: www.thechildrensforum.com/schoolage.htm

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

Agency for Workforce Innovation – Office of Early Learning
107 E. Madison Street, MSC 140
Tallahassee, FL 32309
Phone: 1-866-357-3239
Fax: 850-921-3188
Web: www.floridajobs.org/earlylearning

Statewide Afterschool Network:

Florida AfterSchool Network
216 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, Fl. 32301
Phone: 850-224-1340
E-mail: lpintacudaa@floridacsc.org

Florida Children's Services Council
216 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, Fl. 32301
Phone: 850-402-5437
E-mail: valarcon@floridacsc.org

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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.