CCDF PLANNING CYCLE 2025-2027: ENSURING HIGH QUALITY ACCESS FOR SCHOOL-AGE YOUTH
Between January and July 1st 2024, states will be updating their Child Care Development Fund plans for the 2025-2027 cycle.
Plans go into effect October 1, 2024. Stakeholder feedback is a required part of the process.
CCDF Quick Background:
- States have a total of about $12 billion in federal funds through CCDF ($8.75B in discretionary and $3.5B in mandatory). The funds are designed to support working and learning adults with connecting their dependent children age 0-13 with high quality, accessible, affordable, and developmentally appropriate care settings.
- Working parents have great needs for school-age child care to maintain their full time employment. This includes care before school, afterschool, over the summer and also during school vacations and other non-traditional hours. Voters are even willing to tax themselves for these types of supports.
- 45% of those served nationally with CCDF funds are school-aged.
Below we offer some tools:
- For state level administrators to help engage the school-age community and ensure the youth they are serving with school-age funds are accessing the highest quality care possible.
- For school-age providers to identify areas where their input, experience and voice might be particularly impactful in supporting states to understand the specific needs of the school-age field.
- The overall goal is meaningful alignment between early care and school-age systems that support providers, families and youth as they transition and develop along the continuum from ages 0-13 and beyond.