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 can support training for school-age providers. They may also support the development and use of the "Rated License Manual for School-age Care," an in-service training module to help unregulated and regulated school-age programs achieve a higher licensure level.

Other quality activities:
The Division of Child Development exceeds the school-age quality targeted funds and funds the state 4-H School-Age Care Program to help improve the availability, quality, and sustainability of afterschool programs across the state.

• Provider Reimbursement Rates

Tiered Reimbursement Rate System:
North Carolina employs a monthly rate structure with a special rate for school-age children. The maximum rate for a one-star (the lowest of a five-star licensure system) provider is $446 per child per month for daily care; the five-star center rate is $640 per child per month for daily care.

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

• North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs. In 2002, the Mott Foundation awarded funds to the Public School Forum of North Carolina to oversee the continued development of a statewide network for afterschool programs that connects all state partners and local program leaders. The North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs is also supported by the Department of Public Instruction, the Division of Child Development of the Department of Human Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation. The Center aims to expand and sustain access to afterschool programs in North Carolina by:

  • Developing common standards for high-quality school-based and school-linked afterschool programs;
  • Aligning systems of assessment and evaluation of federal- or state-supported afterschool programs;
  • Building the capacity of afterschool providers through coordinated training and technical assistance;
  • Building local and state support for expanding and sustaining high quality school-based and school-linked afterschool opportunities.
  
  

• Governor’s ELO Summit. In 2003, the governor 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 2004 statewide summit on extra learning opportunities. The Center worked closely with the governor’s office to plan and implement the summit, which convened a range of state and local partners to devise a shared agenda for improving the quantity and quality of afterschool programs.

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

• CCDF and School-Age Activities. In SFY 04-05, the NC Division of Child Development designated approximately 8 percent of the state’s Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) quality dollars for school-age programs throughout the state. Through various activities, the Division aims to: 1) improve the quality of school-age care programs across the state; 2) increase the availability of school-age care programs; and 3) enhance collaboration at the local and state levels.

• School-Age Training and Technical Assistance. The NC 4-H School-Age Care Program created School-Age Care Partners Across Carolina (SACPAC), a statewide listserv, to ensure ongoing and active communication between afterschool providers and other important stakeholders. North Carolina State University’s Cooperative Extension System representatives in every county ensure that no program or state region is overlooked, keeping state 4-H officials aware of ongoing developments and program needs. The North Carolina 4-H also provides training and technical assistance for the Support Our Students (SOS) program, funded by the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (DJJDP). The Division of Child Development and DJJDP also coordinate efforts with the Department of Public Instruction around federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers program dollars and regulations for school-based programs.

• Support Our Students. This program, started in 1994, provides grants to neighborhood and community-based organizations to support the comprehensive, collaborative delivery of out-of-school time services to middle school students. Support Our Students is a public-private partnership, and the NC Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention administers funds. The program serves over 20,000 students. The mission of the program is to help prevent juvenile crime by rallying communities around their young people, helping to steer them away from trouble and into positive, constructive activities.

  For more information, see http://www.juvjus.state.nc.us/interprev_ services/programs/sos.htm.

• Young Scholars Program. Beginning in 1999, the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation implemented the Young Scholars Program, an initiative targeting children and youth in high-poverty schools. Each of 19 sites receives $70,000 per year with the flexibility to design school-based programs that are academically enriching, while incorporating a range of activities. Evaluations after the first three years have been positive, showing significant gains in grades and state assessments, parental involvement, and school attendance.

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

• Tiered Licensing. The Division of Child Development has implemented a school-age licensure program as part of its five-star rated licensing system. The Division uses CCDF quality dollars to provide training and funds to help unlicensed programs receive licensure and to help licensed programs achieve a higher rating standard. Ratings are based on how well programs score in three areas: program standards, staff education, and compliance history. Programs with a five-star rating receive the maximum CCDF reimbursement rate for subsidy-eligible children.

  For more information, see http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dcd

• Basic School-Age Care (BSAC) Training Program. This program, implemented in 1999, is supported by North Carolina’s CCDF quality funds. It uses a "train the trainer" model to deliver seven hours of BSAC training required by licensing to school-age providers.

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Notable Local Initiatives

• Partners in Out-of-School Time (POST) is a local intermediary in Mecklenburg County that is dedicated to building the capacity of individuals and organizations that provide for and support school-age youth in a number of ways: advocating for the needs of school-age youth and their families; coaching program leaders serving youth; and acting as a clearinghouse for information on quality, funding, policy, and professional development. Funding for this effort comes from public and private partners including the city and local foundations.

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Statewide Organizations

National AfterSchool Association Affiliate:

North Carolina School-Age Coalition
Durham Public Schools
PO Box 1967
Durham, NC 27702
Phone: 919-560-3816
Email: mondora.griggs@dpsnc.net

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

North Carolina CCR&R Network
P.O. Box 2515
Chapel Hill, NC 27515
Phone: 919-933-5090
http://www.ncchildcarenetwork.org

Statewide Afterschool Network:

North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs
c/o Public School Forum of North Carolina
3739 National Drive, Suite 210
Raleigh, NC 27612
Phone: 919-781-6833
Web: http://www.nccap.net

4-H School-Age Care Project
Department of 4-H Youth Development
North Carolina Cooperative Extension
Box 7638, North Carolina State University
Raleigh, NC 27695
Phone: 919-515-6387
http://www.nc4h.org/sacc

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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.