Supporting Improvements in Physical
Environments of Early Education and
Care Programs Serving Infants and
Toddlers
Board of Early Education and Care
January 12, 2010
Overview of Proposal
Of the $23.9M available through CCDF ARRA funds, $1.2M
must be spent on quality improvements for infant and
toddlers.
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This proposal is to use up to $500,000 of those
quality funds to train providers, that serve infants and
toddlers, on physical environment enhancements that
make quality improvements to their program and then
to award small grants, thru an intermediary vendor, to
make an improvement in their physical space.
Priorities for Initiative
Alignment with ARRA funding
 These funds would be invested in ways that do not result in
unsustainable continuing commitments after the funding expires, will
be closely monitored, and funding will be prioritized toward programs
serving subsidized children.
Focus on Improving Programs that Serve Infants and Toddlers
 The Birth to School Age Task Force recommended using funds to
support the improvement of early education and care environments
where infants and toddlers are served.
 Equipment purchases will focuses on health and safety and curriculum
improvements for infants and toddlers.
Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS)
 Programs that receive grant funding would be required to participate
in the QRIS pilot to be rated (grants will not be based on QRIS level
received).
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Benefits of Enhancing the Quality of Physical
Environments in Early Education and Care Programs
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“The quality of a physical environment can either contribute to
children's development and support staff and parent goals or create a
permanent impediment to the operation of a high quality program.
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The design and layout of the physical environment, which includes the
building, interior finishes, outdoor spaces, selection of equipment and
room arrangement has a profound impact on children's learning and
behavior and on teachers' abilities to efficiently do their jobs[1].
1As reported by Stoeckilin and White (Designing Quality Child Care Facilities): Greenman, Jim, "So You Want to Build a Building? Dancing with
Architects and Other Developmental Experiences--Part 3: Designing the Building", Living in the Real World, Child Care Information Exchange
1/92, Vol. 83, Pages 47-50; and Greenman, Jim, "Why Did It Turn Out This Way? How Buildings Go Wrong", Living in the Real World, Child
Care Information Exchange, 3/92, Vol. 84, Pages 49-51.
Benefits of Enhancing the Quality of Physical
Environments in Early Education and Care Programs
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A growing body of research on the impact of the environment on children’s
learning and on staff commitment and productivity. Studies have also shown
that quality environments lead to:
 Children exhibiting more exploratory behavior, more positive social
interactions and more cooperation in classrooms with well-defined
activity areas;
 A positive relationship on children’s later cognitive development when
space is available for children to retreat from the larger group for a
portion of the day;
 Reduced conflict and anxiety as space is designed to support children’s
development; toddlers need low partitions that allow them to see
playmates or teachers. Rooms in which partitions restricted younger
children’s view of other children or teachers showed reduced time in
positive interactions and increased conflict and anxiety;
 Better staff engagement with children and more effective interactions
and teaching;
 Reduced teacher fatigue, more patience, better morale and commitment;
 Longer tenure in the field and more successful recruitment of qualified
teachers.
Opportunity for Improvement in Quality of Physical
Environments in MA Early Education and Care Programs
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The 2007 Cornerstones report on early childhood settings (by the
Schott Fellowship, now CAYL, and the Bessie Tartt Wilson Children’s
Foundation) highlighted concerns about hygiene and sanitation. It
found that:
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51% of infant-toddler programs lacked appropriate furnishings or
made use of furnishings that were in poor repair.
39% of preschool sites had too little indoor space, poor
ventilation, poor lighting, or inadequate activity spaces.
Fewer than half the programs had space and materials for active
physical play – a key strategy for reducing childhood obesity, and
key to EEC requirements for 60 minutes of physical activity each
day.
Proposed Model for Implementation
Two pronged approach:
I.
Training
II. Provide grants and technical assistance (to trained
programs to implement a quality enhancement in
their program’s physical environment)
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EEC would seek a vendor, through a competitive bid
process, with expertise in infant toddler environment
focused training and providing program-level grants to
early education and care programs to implement this
two-pronged approach.
Training
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Two trainings available would provided in each of EEC’s five regions (April June, 2010);
 To include an on-line training component that can be accessed by all
early education and care providers to leverage knowledge base.
 Will be available in multiple languages.
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Trainings will include information related to infant-toddlers such as:
 How environments supports children’s healthy development/learning.
 Adapting environments to support children with special needs.
 Ensuring health and safety for children and adults using the space.
 “Green”/sustainable considerations such as indoor air quality etc.
 Lay out of space for both function and convenience.
 Strategies for incorporating family and staff culture in the environment.
 Purchasing equipment that will impact the quality of the program’s
physical environment.
 A module on Financial Management Training (focusing on
planning for future capital spending, depreciation, capital reserves etc.)
Grants and Technical Assistance for Programs to
Make Quality Enhancements
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Funds would be proportionately distributed on the basis of EEC’s licensed
capacity per program type:
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Family Child Care Programs serve ~60,000 children (~116 providers
would receive grant up to $1,000 each)
Center Based Programs serve ~170,000 children (~21 programs would
receive grants up to $10,000 each)
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Funds can be used to purchase equipment focused on equipment to:
 improve the program’s health and safety for infants and toddlers;
and/or
 improve the program’s curriculum for infants and toddlers.
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Must have an impact on all infant and toddler classrooms in a program
(centers). Fund use will be very prescribed to align with ARRA
requirements.
Focus on Increasing Compliance with Health and Safety
Licensing Citations
The top health and safety citations from the past 15 months include:
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Keep all equipment/materials etc. clean and in a safe, workable condition.
Keep toxic substances/hazardous objects in a secured place and out of the
reach of children.
Keep outdoor play area free from hazards
Floors of rooms used by children shall be clean and free of safety hazards.
Only use equipment/materials etc. which are appropriate to the needs and
developmental level of the child.
Ceilings and walls shall be maintained in good repairs and shall be clean and
free from sharp or protruding objects and other safety hazards.
The licensee shall monitor the environment daily to immediately remove or
repair any hazard which may cause injury.
The ground area and fall zones under swings, slides, and climbing structures
shall be covered with adequate depth of impact absorbing equipment.
All electrical outlets, within the reach of children, shall be made inaccessible
by use of a safety device (adequate size to prevent a choking hazard).
Grant Fund Use
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Grant fund use will be clearly delineated for programs and will include
developmentally-appropriate items that will improve health and safety
and/or curriculum in programs; such as:
 Curriculum area materials (e.g. dramatic play)
 Equipment to increase indoor air quality (air exchange system)
 Furnishings (non- off gassing varnishes)
 Rug (non-off gassing)
 Materials from the QRIS checklist (non-consumables only)
 Chairs (e.g. for toddlers, without head entrapment potential)
 Fall zone materials (loose fill)
 Lighting
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No CCDF ARRA funding, shall be expended:
 For the purchase of land
 For the improvement of land
 For purchase, construction or permanent improvement of any
building or facility
Grant Fund Use Restrictions
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No CCDF ARRA funding, shall be expended:
 For the purchase of land
 For the improvement of land
 For purchase, construction or permanent improvement of any
building or facility
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Grant funds cannot be used for items such as (not an exhaustive list):
 Facilities Improvement
 Construction
 Labor
 Refinancing projects
 Travel expenses
 Debt incurred prior to the date of project approval
 Political or religious purposes
 Organizations without proper licensing
 Consumables
Vendor Selection
Vendors selection may be based on:
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The existence of an established process for training and funding programs
within the mixed delivery system statewide.
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Expertise regarding child care facility improvement project management
(e.g. aware of the costs of projects, equipment etc, have access to
experienced advisors as needed).
 Ability to implement a model that realizes efficiencies and additional
impact in training (Train the Trainers, etc.).
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Ability to negotiate bulk purchasing discounts with approved vendors
where possible.
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Ability to leverage funds (e.g. private investment in training development
and resources for connecting programs to other resources, utility
company subsidizing models, or loans to programs statewide to extend
the impact of the EEC ARRA grant funding).
Early Education and Care Program Eligibility
Program eligibility to include:
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Must be serving at least one subsidized infant or toddler when applying for
funding (date to be provided).
Must be an existing program in business for 3 years as of January 2010.
Programs that receive grant funding would be required to participate in the QRIS
pilot to be rated (grants will not be based on QRIS level received).
Must be serving over 50% subsidized children in their program, defined as:
a Children accessing care through EEC contracts or vouchers;
b Children funded with Head Start dollars;
c Privately subsidized children from families meeting EEC income eligibility
criteria (i.e., total household income at or below 85% of the state median
income) with supporting documentation from program; and
d Children attending preschool programs operated by public schools that:
 Have a high proportion of children qualifying for free/reduced lunch; are at
risk of or have been determined to be under-performing; and/or have been
placed in the accountability status of identified for improvement, corrective
action, or restructuring pursuant to ESE school regulations.
Able to demonstrate they meet the needs of working parents.
Preliminary Budget Outline
Training
3 hour environments trainings x 10 (two in each of the 5 regions); Includes: staffing,
materials (translation of materials into 3 languages), 1 translator per training – with
on-line component.
$80,000
Half-day financial training x 5 (one in each region); Includes: development, staffing,
materials, translation
$14,000
Total Training
$94,000
Grants and Technical Assistance
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Implementation of grants and technical assistance; staffing (to ~137 programs)
$80,000
~116 Family Child Care Programs ($1,000 each) $116,000
$116,000
~21
 Center Based Programs (up to $10,000 each) $210,000
$210,000
Total
 Grants and Technical Assistance
$406,000
Total Funding
$500,000
Estimated Timeline
Timeline
Activity
April – June 2010
June 2010- September 2010
Physical Environment Improvement
Training, Including Fiscal Training
Component
June 2010- September 2010
Programs Apply for Grants
Technical Assistance Provided
October 2010
Grants Distributed to Programs
Technical Assistance Provided
October 2010 – August 2011
(All ARRA funds must be spent by
September 2011)
Programs Implement Improvements
Technical Assistance Provided
On-going monitoring and evaluation as required.
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Proposal
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Use of up to $500,000 of ARRA quality funds to train
providers that serve infants and toddlers on physical
environment enhancements that make quality
improvements to their program and then to award small
grants, thru an intermediary vendor, to make an
improvement in their physical space.