Friday, 14 January 2005 - 10:00 AM

This presentation is part of: Evaluating a Large-Scale Community Initiative on Early Childhood

Special needs child care: Improving care by supporting providers

Purpose: This study reports on the Early Childhood Initiative’s (ECI) efforts to improve child care for children with special needs, defined as those children who require additional support to be maintained in a child care setting. Community agencies provided technical assistance (TA), training, and child care placement assistance to child care providers and families in the County. The evaluation was designed to examine child care providers’ use of services, parents’ access to special needs child care and supports, and the effect of services on special needs child care capacity and placement stability.

Methods: Three sources of data serve as the basis for this evaluation. An administrative database maintained by the coordinating agency documented the special needs child care services that occurred over a 2.5 year period. A supervisor survey captured the perspective of child care center administrators and a parent survey examined the views of parents of children for whom TA was provided.

Results: Services reached parents, children, and child care providers throughout the County. Services were provided on behalf of nearly 1,100 children with special needs. The receipt of services was associated with a greater willingness to care for children with special needs. A greater willingness to care for this population of children was also associated with having better paid and better educated child care providers. Parents reported that finding and maintaining child care for children with special needs can be difficult, but found TA to be very helpful in lessening the challenges.

Implications: In general, these data indicate that the services provided through the Special Needs Child Care Component are helping families in Cuyahoga County locate and maintain successful child care placements. TA and training are also assisting child care providers to acquire the attitudes, skills, and confidence needed to care for this population of children.

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