Real-Time Child Care Data in Iowa: A Digital Service Network Spotlight

Background

Government child care subsidies play a key role in ensuring access to high-quality, affordable child care for families across the U.S. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) cites that only 2 million children currently receive child care subsidies out of the 12.5 million that are federally eligible. This is due to a number of factors, including insufficient funding, difficulties finding affordable care in appropriate locations, lack of crucial information leaving families unaware about their eligibility in existing programs, and high-friction application processes. Further, the fragmented and outdated digital systems used by states, providers, and families to administer and navigate the child care system contribute to frustration and unmet care needs. 

In response to these persistent challenges, Iowa’s Department of Health and Human Services through a contract with Iowa State University and an external vendor, developed Iowa Child Care Connect (C3). C3 is a first-of-its-kind comprehensive digital suite designed to streamline child care access for providers and families, and help those in government strengthen the child care market. At the heart of the C3 platform are three tools that reshape the way families find child care, providers manage resources, and state agencies and communities identify child care needs: the Child Care Search, the Vacancy Dashboard, and the Supply and Demand Dashboard.

To learn more, the Digital Service Network (DSN) spoke with Child Care Connect Project Lead Tami Foley and Director of Child Care Ryan Page. DSN also spoke with Paige Smothers, owner of Sprouts Early Learning Academy in Carlisle, Iowa. 

Leveraging legacy systems for a new childcare vision

C3 began with a clear vision: leverage existing state data infrastructure to create a seamless child care search experience. In outlining the specific requirements for C3, stakeholders recognized the state’s ability to leverage existing software and data sharing agreements to make C3 a reality. 

Rather than building a new tech stack from scratch, legacy systems and programs such as the KinderTrack subsidy database and Iowa’s Integrated Data for Decision Making (I2D2) became the foundational systems of C3. KinderTrack is used to monitor and track services offered through the Child Care Assistance program, managing data for both child care providers and subsidy payments. It also houses key information about child care providers, like license number and location. I2D2 is a collaborative, cross-agency initiative, hosted and managed by Iowa State University, that brings together data on the health, education, work status, and more of families across Iowa. It is backed by state protocols to enable privacy and anonymity of families’ data.

Building on the experience of establishing I2D2’s data infrastructure and legal frameworks like data-sharing agreements, security and safety protocols, and more, Iowa was well-equipped to develop the data infrastructures necessary to enable the C3 system. By maintaining KinderTrack, agencies were reassured by and familiar with the data sources and formats that C3 would rely on; this helped avoid the frictions that often come with onboarding large government agencies onto new software and data systems.

Diving into the Iowa Child Care Connect suite

The C3 platform consists of three tools designed to transform how families and providers navigate child care: (1) Child Care Search, (2) Vacancy Dashboard, and (3) Supply and Demand Dashboard. Importantly, the platform is flexible and adaptable, built so new databases, tools, dashboards, functionalities, and more can be integrated as needs shift.

Child Care Search

The Child Care Search enables families to search and filter for available child care by geographic locale or along a designated route. Route-based child care searches are particularly beneficial for rural communities who tend to have longer commutes and need care that is situated conveniently relative to their daily travel routes. Smothers highlighted the significance of the route-based feature in particular: “It’s huge. We have some families that are commuting 30, 45 minutes each way for child care and need all the time back they can get.” 

[The route-based search feature is] huge. We have some families that are commuting 30, 45 minutes each way for child care and need all the time back they can get.”

Paige Smothers, Owner of Sprouts Early Learning Academy

A standout feature of the Child Care Search is the ability to filter results based on families’ priorities, for example programs that accept state Child Care Assistance, have received an Iowa Quality for Kids (IQ4K®) rating, or cater to specific age groups. Advanced search features include the ability to account for families with more than one child, only showing providers with availability for each child in need of care. The multi-child feature was implemented in response to direct user research and usability testing of the Child Care Search and illustrates the team’s focus on “practical solutions for busy families”.

Vacancy Dashboard

The Vacancy Dashboard provides near real-time data on current child care openings by program type, age, geography, and quality. Offering real-time availability data was a priority in developing C3 to help providers, policymakers, and state agencies understand where there are child care vacancies. The county map page on the Vacancy Dashboard provides a county-level heat map of the current child care openings.

Supply and Demand Dashboard

The Supply and Demand Dashboard offers interactive insights into the estimated demand for child care and the regulated and known (operational) supply of child care by program type, age, geography, and quality. This feature benefits not only families but also providers, employer and economic development leaders, state agencies, and policymakers by illuminating patterns in child care supply and demand, for example the distribution of demand by child’s age. C3 calculates the estimated demand based on state birth record data, using the county of residence at the time of birth. There is a filter to set the demand level based on three different percentages: 100% of all Iowa births,  76% estimate which considers work status, and 67% estimate which considers work status and family choices.  

Real-time data for real-time problems

Historically, data sharing between government agencies involved in administering child care programs and supporting the child care system has been hindered by fragmented state-level administration, inconsistent data standards, and privacy concerns. Without robust data-sharing mechanisms, families struggle to access accurate information about child care availability, and policymakers lack the insights needed to promote efficiency and accessibility across the child care system. Prior to C3’s implementation, these challenges were particularly pronounced in rural areas of Iowa, where child care resources tend to be scarce and difficult to locate using the existing tools. “We were stuck with outdated tools and outdated information,” Foley said.

C3 was developed with a vision to offer near real-time vacancy information and supply and demand data, tailored to meet the needs of both urban and rural communities in Iowa. The platform’s success in offering such responsive data has been pivotal for Iowa, reshaping the landscape of possibility for how child care data is used and managed by families, providers, and administrators. C3’s data integration is robust and dynamic. For example, daily data exchanges between C3 and Child Care Resource & Referral’s (CCR&R) National Data System (NDS) ensure near real-time updates on child care openings and various provider details. Monthly data collection forms completed by providers supplement this by capturing self-reported vacancies and enrollment trends, alongside other provider data like participation in Iowa’s quality improvement initiative, promoting greater accuracy. 

By integrating multiple data sources, C3 helps narrow an information gap in the child care system that plagues states across the U.S. For example, these data can enable providers with flexibility to adjust classroom sizes in order to better align with child care demand, promoting more effective allocation of resources to meet community needs. Smothers recalled a low number of two year olds on the waiting list for Sprouts Early Learning Academy in one particular year, prompting her to wonder whether this was a local or more generalized trend across the state. The C3 platform confirmed that this was a statewide pattern, showing a low number of two year olds on waiting lists across Iowa. In response, Smothers repurposed empty classrooms initially designated for two year olds into infant spaces, addressing the change in demand. 

“With access to data beyond licensed capacity, the platform enables a clearer understanding of the true availability of child care slots.”

Tami Foley, Child Care Connect Project Lead

The data are also a key resource for policymakers and program managers as they look to intervene in the child care market to spur supply to meet families’ needs. Foley shared the experience of a “Category C” home provider—a status which allows for a maximum of 16 children. However, as Foley explained, “These providers can technically enroll 16 children, but they are required to have an assistant in order to fill all 16 slots.” In this case, the provider did not have an assistant, and only had eight children enrolled—50 percent of their licensed capacity, and the limit given the state’s child-to-teacher ratio laws. While Foley noted that such a scenario wasn’t uncommon, poor data integration using only licensed capacity could lead to an artificially inflated number of estimated child care slots. “With access to data beyond licensed capacity, the platform enables a clearer understanding of the true availability of child care slots.” Foley said. 

Family-centric, accessible design

A cornerstone of C3’s development is the team’s commitment to family-centric design and accessibility. The team’s goal is to offer C3 as a reliable and accessible tool that integrates smoothly into families’ child care search processes. 

C3’s usability testing involved input from CCR&R Parent Team specialists, families, child care providers, and data experts. Additionally, their outreach and demonstration efforts spanned statewide across community groups, child care programs, and state agencies. 

Foley highlighted their efforts to simplify the user experience for families: “The goal was to really visually represent the data to make it easier for families to start their child care search and narrow down their high-level needs without overwhelming them.” She further emphasized visual features that make vacancy and quality data easier for families to navigate. “The Child Care Search tool is built on the Google Maps platform, so families can use features like Street View to explore a provider’s location visually, making it more intuitive and engaging.” ” 

The platform is constantly evolving, with the team adding new digital and non-digital features—including a phone line that families can call to talk directly with a CCR&R specialist with the Parent Services Team about their child care needs—to create a fully supported end-to-end service experience.

As the child care system is a vast network of actors who all play important roles in ensuring a strong supply of high-quality care, the team knew that C3 could offer value to stakeholders beyond just families and child care providers. Demonstrations to data specialists, parent service teams, child care nurse consultants, and more ensured that C3 was also navigable not just to families, but to those who support them.

Lessons learned

Design, test, and design again—with all your stakeholders. The development of C3 highlighted the importance of user-centric design and iterative testing and underscores the value of seeking expansive, real-world feedback from a diverse stakeholder base. Incorporating feedback from families—as well as the people and organizations involved in supporting families—was crucial to maximizing usability and functionality for all. 

Cross-agency collaboration is key to real-time child care data. Iowa’s success in building a robust system of data governance for C3 was rooted in strong cross-agency collaboration. Such collaboration is essential for developing effective data sharing protocol, policy alignment, and ongoing technical enhancements.

A “plug-and-play” system architecture helps future proof digital tools. C3 was designed with flexibility in mind, enabling future enhancements and the integration of additional data sources. The system’s “plug-and-play” architecture allows for the easy addition of new databases as demand for more granular data arises, as well as the integration of new tools or functionalities. Forward-thinking platform architecture ensures digital tools remain adaptable and responsive to evolving needs and policy requirements.