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:
The Division of Child Care and Early Learning (DCCEL) may contract with the School’s Out Washington (SOWA), the Washington Regional Action Project, and the Washington Consortium to leverage public dollars to provide training and technical assistance, networking, and education opportunities to school-age programs. Funding may also be provided to local out-of-school time programs that are trying to meet or maintain their licensing requirements.

Other quality activities:
Funds may be allocated to the Washington State Training and Registry System (STARS) to provide ongoing training for child care directors, including school-age directors.

• Provider Reimbursement Rates

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

• School’s Out Washington provides services and guidance for organizations to ensure all young people have safe places to learn and grow when not in school. As a statewide leader, School’s Out is dedicated to building community systems to support quality out-of-school time programs for Washington’s 5-14 year olds through training, advocacy and leadership. School’s Out Washington has played a key leadership role and collaborated with other statewide entities including the Department of Early Learning; the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction; the Washington Afterschool Alliance; and The Collaborative to improve the quality and expand the state’s capacity to serve school-age children and youth.

  For more information, see www.schoolsoutwashington.org

• Washington Afterschool Network. In 2003, School’s Out Washington received a grant from the C.S. Mott Foundation to expand the Washington Afterschool Network. The network serves as a vehicle for bringing together policymakers, educators, childcare providers, youth development workers, program developers, advocates, parents, and others interested in improving outcomes for children and youth through school-based/ school-linked afterschool programs. The network seeks to create partnerships at all levels, secure needed resources, and ensure the high quality of afterschool programs throughout the state. WAN highlighted the importance of afterschool in statewide early learning and K-12 discussions when they participated in Washington Learns, an advisory group charged with conducting a comprehensive review of Washington's education system in 2005. The work of the WAN to raise awareness around the key role of afterschool programs in supporting children and youth helped to secure an investment of $3 million for afterschool in the 2007-09 biennial Washington state budget.

  For more information, see www.schoolsoutwashington.org

• The Washington Regional Afterschool Project (WRAP) is a collaborative partnership to increase the quality and availability of programs for school-age children and youth in Washington state. School’s Out Washington, the lead agency for this project, works with five other organizations to link communities with resources, provide professional development opportunities for program staff, and broaden involvement in planning for regional youth services and building a system of afterschool. There are six WRAP geographic regions and each is served by a WRAP specialist who supports the community’s efforts in afterschool.

• Improving Program Quality (IPQ) Project. Each WRAP region is participating in the Improving Program Quality project to support afterschool programs across the state in the process of self-evaluation and quality improvement. Through the IPQ Project, WRAP Specialists provide free ongoing on-site training to licensed or certified programs by region. Specialists assist programs in thinking about their current needs and strengths, setting goals to move them along the continuum of quality, and reaching those goals through training, resources, and connections to others in the community. WRAP Specialists are also increasing the information available to all afterschool programs in Washington about best practices, program evaluation, and accreditation through continuing community education about the importance of high-quality afterschool programs.

• The Washington State Training and Registry System (STARS) was created in 1997 through a legislative statute to improve child care through basic and on-going training for child care providers, including school-age directors. The Department of Early Learning is the regulatory authority for child care licensing requirements and administers the STARS Registry, a web-based database that tracks provider records. Washington STARS requires all licensed family child care providers and licensed child care center school-age directors, program supervisors, site coordinators, and lead teachers to complete professional development trainings each year. Providers are required to complete 20-hours of basic training within the first six months of licensure or employment as well as ten clock hours or one college credit of approved in-service training.

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

• State Demonstration Project. Launched by America’s Promise Alliance, this state project is designed to facilitate collaboration between existing public and private partnerships, increase awareness about child care, and increase funding for Alliance partners’ state affiliates. It is funded by a $20,000 grant from America’s Promise and is one of five nationwide, the others occurring in Iowa, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Washington.

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Notable Local Initiatives

• SOAR, formerly known as Project Lift-Off, is building a network of high-quality, affordable early education and afterschool programs for all children and youth in Seattle and King County. Business and community leaders, grantmakers, organizations, schools, governments, parents, and faith-based groups all have joined in this effort. The effort is now being led by the United Way. Through its partnerships, SOAR has developed a strategic plan of action for early learning and afterschool that include increasing the quality and quantity of programs and enhancing out-of-school time activities in Seattle Public Schools and other communities in King County.

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

• The Spanish Literacy Project Since March of 2007, the Spanish Literacy Project has provided literacy training to Spanish-speaking licensed home child care providers in Pasco, Washington. Thirty women meet two nights a week and two Saturdays a month to improve their literacy skills and obtain STARS hours through instruction on child care best practices. While learning how to read and write, the women also learn how to help the children that they care for with their homework, how to plan developmentally appropriate activity schedules, and how to build relationships with schools and other community agencies. The program motivates women to become better role models and better teachers for their children, to earn their GED, learn English, and eventually graduate with a college degree.

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Statewide Organizations

National AfterSchool Association Affiliate:

Washington Afterschool Association
P.O. Box 31971
Seattle, WA 98103
Phone: 206-783-0851
Web: www.washingtonafterschool.org

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

Washington State Child Care Resource & Referral Network
917 Pacific Avenue, Suite 600
Tacoma, WA 98402
Phone: 253-383-1735 or 800-446-1114

Statewide Afterschool Network:

School’s Out Washington
801 23rd Avenue, South
Seattle, Washington 98144
Phone: 206-323-2396
Web: http://www.schoolsoutwashington.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.