South Carolina’s Child Care Data Bridge Project

Building Bridges from Data to Policy to Practice

Children’s Defense Fund August 2010

Few Basics: Who Are We?

South Carolina Department of Services, Child Care Services

Leigh Bolick, Director and PI for the grant

3- year child care capacity grant, funded by ACF/OPRE

In 3rd year (ends Sept 30 2010)

Big Picture: What Did We Want to Do?

To create new or improved databases w/ the goal to link and/or integrate child care databases and where appropriate integrate with the State’s data warehouse. BUILD and expand upon the State’s existing infrastructure

Create & explore the use of web-based tools that access information from your PC (Cubes)

An integrated data infrastructure For Integration/ linking - common identifiers are the key

Build on the SC Budget & Control Board’s Office of Research & Statistics with the state’s integrated data warehouse and cubes (enhance a strategic partnership)

Build upon and/or develop new partnerships in our research community

This investment in our data infrastructure will provide better quality information and more integrated information for the development of services and policy.

South Carolina’s *Integrated Data System, goal is to enhance Child Care

* For more information on South Carolina’s Integrated Data System, contact

Budget & Control Board’sOffice of Research & StatisticsHealth and Demographics

Section Chief - David Patterson, Ph.D.(803) 898-9940david.patterson@ors.sc.gov

Sarah Crawford(803) 898-9970sarah.crawford@ors.sc.gov

South Carolina’s Partnerships (Structure for Grant)

Includes:

Child Care Services, PI

Information Technology

Research

*While Clemson and USC represent the primary research community in the Data Bridge Grant, other entities will participate as appropriate.

Other Partners:

SC Center for Child Care Career Development (CCCCD)

Other Agencies/Organizations

SC Data Bridge Advisory Group

One More Big Picture:

Understand and support the vision to link with the Dept of Education

2 important additional components to the SC Picture

The SC Department of Education participates in the SC Data Bridge Advisory Group

SC Department of Education received a Year 2 LDS grant.

SCDSS partnered on the grant’s application.

Use Project’s Research Question as Guide to our Work

What are the relationships* of Child Care Development Funds on improving the quality of care available to and utilized by low-income working parents and at-risk families to support parental outcomes and child well-being?

* With proper research design – hope to look at impacts eventually

Resources include our Child Care related databases

State-regulated centers/providers (licensing) Built internally by DSS IT staff

ABC centers/providers (quality provider system)Built by SC Budget and Control Board, ORS staff

ABC Voucher/client-child (subsidy system)Parts under development by DSS IT staff

Professional developmentTEACH & other CCDF funded higher education

Program for Infant/Toddler Care (PITC) Technical assistance (registry and reporting)

Built by CCCCD

Linking bridges across Data Systems

Needed 2 Linking Methodologies- (Provider level, Child level) At Provider Level - No existing methodology

(Childcare Licensing, ABC Quality Provider,

ABC Voucher, Other Provider databases) DSS IT developed Web-based methodology to link providers

across multiple organizations

(DSS for Licensing and ABC Voucher & ORS for ABC Quality) SC Data Bridge project tapping into existing methodology

(Linking at the Child/Person level)

Person level unique id methodology resides

w/ SC Budget and Control Board’s ORS

“Getting to Know You …”

Getting to know our data, that is …

Quick Overview of all the databases

Data dictionaries

Frequency Distributions

Crosswalk tables

A Cube is a Web-Based Desk-Top TOOLTo help explore or answer policy questions

What Is an Analytic Cube?

Secure Web-based database

A way to “slice & dice” lots of data

Define “slicers” or characteristics (fields)

Pre-aggregate the linked data

Developed a Provider Licensing Cube

Why does this matter (an ex)?

PolicyAn example: In 2005 regulatory requirement for hand

washing sinks next to diaper changing tables

PracticeAn example: agility in budgeting and targeting ARRA

funds to promote health and safety in child careSpecific: Install sinks next to diaper changing tables

to help providers meet health and safety regulations

ResultHealthy childrenEmpowered Providers

Another Policy Question of Interest

How well are we targeting our high-risk children?

Are there geographic pockets that need additional vouchers?

Developing and refining our tools to help us better ask and help answer this question

Developing/ Refining the Child Cube

• To better target children at risk• Allows DSS to crosstab children served by

ABC Vouchers with other programs such as TANF, SNAP (Food Stamps), Children who are in founded abuse and neglect cases and children in foster care

• Will allow DSS staff with proper security to “drill down” into clients in order to check on program issues (operational purposes only)

Children (Ages 0-5 years) Served in 2009

through ABC Vouchers Status in

2009ABC

VoucherTANF -

noFood

Stamps - no

7,422 23%

TANF -no

Food Stamps -

yes

24,265 74%

TANF -yes

Food Stamps -

no

1,176 4%

In analyzing data from the child cube, realized that TANF transitional services were not captured using the year slicer. A former TANF client receives up to 2 years of transitional services including the use of ABC Vouchers

Cubes continue to be updated & edited …

Cubes based on Provider DataLicensing cube has been updated with more recent infoABC Quality Reviews draft cube under review

Cube based on Child Level Data reviewing & editing With agency permissions, use the Integrated Data WarehouseBegan with ABC Voucher children, DSS TANF & Food Stamp children,

Human ServicesNeed to receive permission from SC Dept of Health & Human Services

(SC’s Medicaid agency)Eventually want to add slicers (if approved by the agency) from:

Mental Health, Disabilities, & other agenciesSC Dept of Education

Have begun exploring available outcomes data from ORS data warehouse

Through our ORS partnership, have begun exploring availability of education outcomes to children served by ABC Voucher

Begun synthesizing answers to research questions using data from the warehouse and through this project

Challenges Process of getting to know the data was time

consuming and held some surprises Required a shift in thinking for researchers,

IT, and policy/program staff Additional training required for program staff

on use of data cube technology Had to incentivize ongoing use of data cubes

for program staff to “institutionalize”

Questions?

Leigh.Bolick@dss.sc.gov

Catherine.Haselden@dss.sc.gov

Diana.Tester@dss.sc.gov