In 2022, the NYS Office of Children and Families Services (OCFS) launched the Invest in New York: Child Care Deserts Grant, which offered two grant opportunities to help providers open and expand early childhood programs in New York’s child care deserts. A child care desert is defined as an area that does not have enough child care providers to serve the number of children living there. This grant was created with funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to support the early childhood education sector of New York in a continued effort for the state to recover economically after the pandemic.

As New York State’s Quality Rating and Improvement System for early childhood programs, QUALITYstarsNY partnered with OCFS to use our model of continuous quality improvement to support the ongoing quality of these programs. Early childhood programs that received a Child Care Deserts Grant were required to participate in either QUALITYstarsNY or it’s Start with Stars initiative. This allowed grant recipients to access individualized guidance from a Quality Improvement Specialist, access resources, and create a Quality Improvement Plan based on the QUALITYstarsNY Standards for high-quality early childhood programs.

Opportunites for New and Expanding Programs

Child Care Deserts Grant for New Programs (RFA 1)

The Request for Applications (RFA) 1 grant supported providers with opening a new early childhood program in a child care desert area. They were provided with support from QUALITYstarsNY’s Start with Stars initiative to help create a foundation for success right from the start.

Child Care Deserts Grant for Existing Providers (RFA 2)

The RFA 2 grant supported existing providers seeking to expand their capacity, many of which began their participation in QUALITYstarsNY as a requirement of receiving this grant to support their growing program.

QUALITYstarsNY’S Impact on Child Care Deserts

QUALITYstarsNY has enrolled over 500 Child Care Deserts programs. These newly opened or expanded programs have been provided with the support and guidance they need to make quality improvement a focus as they work to grow their business. Since the launch of the grant, QUALITYstarsNY visited grantees more than 5,000 times and visits lasted over 75 minutes on average. These were on-site hours programs spent committing to quality improvement with the help of their Specialists. Many of these programs are now serving children in the areas of the state where access to early childhood education is limited.

At the end of 2023, QUALITYstarsNY conducted a participant satisfaction survey, receiving 153 survey responses from Child Care Desert Grant recipients participating in QUALITYstarsNY or our Start with Stars Initiative.

Among these respondents:

What Child Care Desert Grantees Say About QUALITYstarsNY

“My experience with QUALITYstarsNY has been nothing but amazing. When I initially started and met Emily, our Quality Improvement Specialist, I was honestly very nervous and wasn’t sure what to expect. Immediately after my first meeting with Emily, I felt genuinely excited about the program and all of the new things I could learn and or offer in my daycare. I feel that my daycare has improved so much since I started with QUALITYstarsNY. I’ve been introduced to so many resources and information. 

For example, learning more in depth about child behavioral developments based on age, as well as how to improve my program’s family handbook/policies. Emily has been so helpful and answers any and every question I’ve had along the way while also giving me the best advice and guidance. Overall, I’d say I’ve had a great experience with QUALITYstarsNY and am excited for what the future holds”.

Esmeralda Mejia , Family Child Care Provider at Mama Rutty’s Daycare, Inc. | Long Island

 “QUALITYstarsNY has been a wonderful support to our expanding centers as we look to enhance our early childhood programs. Our Quality Improvement Specialist, Shelley, is always openly available and has a vast number of resources and knowledge of child and professional development. With her help we have been able to focus on our family engagement, staff development and program philosophy.”

Aeryal Davison , Education Director at High Five Early Childhood Center | New York City

It has been a pleasure to be a part of this state-wide initiative to support the early childhood education workforce and increase access to high-quality education for New York’s children and their families. Partnerships with state agencies, such as OCFS, provide New York’s educators and providers with comprehensive support systems that are necessary to meet children’s growth and developmental needs. As the state’s Quality Rating and Improvement System, we look forward to continuing to partner with state agencies to ensure the quality of our early childhood education systems and offer the support and guidance many programs need to engage in Continued Quality Improvement.