Childtrends continues to champion for early care educators and parents with the following brief in hopes of developing a shared understanding among state level policymakers and educators.

Federal, state and local initiatives promoting access to early care and education are supported by research demonstrating that participation in high-quality early care and education (ECE) can improve children’s developmental outcomes and their readiness for school, particularly for children from economically disadvantaged families. Yet, historically, access has had a variety of meanings making it difficult for states to gauge the reach and effectiveness of their policy initiatives aimed at expanding ECE access.

The Access Guidebook offers the field a common working definition of ECE access, and a set of common indicators for measuring access.

This brief is authored by: Sarah Friese, Van-Kim Bui Lin, Nicole Forry, Kathryn Tout

Published on March 16, 2017