Child Care Aware of America

Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) advances a child care system that effectively and equitably serves all children and families.

CCAoA works with a national network of Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) agencies and other national, state and local partners to promote and inform state and federal policies that improve the quality and affordability of child care and support the early childhood education profession. Our field-leading research, data and analysis shape critical changes in policy and practice.

State allies can call on CCAoA to:

Deepen their strategic outreach, education and communications capacity to mobilize advocates and advance state policies that support high-quality, affordable and accessible child care for all.

CCAoA can help allies strengthen coalitions, elevate the experiences of families and providers and build information-sharing relationships with key state leaders. We can develop policy recommendations that incorporate community voices, including around the need to secure additional state investments for child care, how to implement or continue successful policies initially funded with federal relief dollars, and ways to meet requirements under the 2024 CCDF Rule.

Expand effective practice models and utilize their success to advocate for state policy solutions for child care.

These practices and associated policies can help to increase the supply of child care, improve the quality of child care service delivery, strengthen the child care workforce and support child and provider health and mental health in their states.

Leverage their data and technology systems towards meaningful policy action.

CCAoA’s coaching, consultation, data collection and analysis, story mapping and innovative technology platforms can help allies identify, track and tell a data-backed story that is compelling to policymakers, advocates and other decision-makers on key issues including equity, quality, supply and demand. Additionally, CCAoA’s state policy dashboard is a comprehensive, interactive tool for state allies to learn about how states are building more equitable, accessible and affordable child care systems. The dashboard contains a profile for each state that includes policy highlights such as federal relief funding usage and significant state legislation from 2020 to the present. Users can filter by category to learn about specific policies, funding allocations and state ballot measures.

On the Ground:

Ahead of a legislative hearing in Montana, CCAoA provided advocates with state-by-state data and talking points on increasing subsidy eligibility to inform testimonies.
CCAoA created an interactive child care access map in West Virginia in collaboration with TEAM for West Virginia Children to drive advocacy efforts around state policy actions and funding decision-making for long-term, sustainable child care funding.
In Nebraska, with partner First Five Nebraska, CCAoA created an interactive map of child care availability in proximity to public transit in metropolitan areas of Nebraska. Our findings and a co-authored op-ed are informing state and local advocacy on the accessibility of child care in these communities.