Compared to programs that are not enrolled in the Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS), do QRIS program sites differ on key characteristics including geography, program type, funding, or director qualifications?

Answering this question can provide insight into the characteristics of programs that differentiate QRIS participation. This can help identify which programs may experience barriers or inequitable access to participation (including perceptions that the QRIS will not support the program’s unique features and approaches). To answer this question, use site level information to identify programs participating in the QRIS. Additional site level information, such as early childhood setting, can then be used  to analyze patterns of high quality CCEE program distribution.

Identify CCEE Program Sites that are Operational

Identity program sites currently in operation by selecting program sites with “Active” indicated in the option set for the data element Operational Status.

Identify QRIS Participation Status for Operational CCEE Program Sites

Using the element, QRIS Participation History, create two groups of program sites (Site ID); those that indicate “Program site currently participates in the QRIS” and those that indicate either “Program site has never participated in the QRIS” or “Program site previously participated in the QRIS”.

If the state does not have a QRIS, but has another quality improvement system or initiative, use the data element Quality Improvement Participation to identify the participation status of program sites (Site ID) participating in the state’s other quality improvement initiative by selecting the option “Program site currently participates in another QI initiative”.

Compare the Characteristics of CCEE Program Sites by QRIS Participation Status

Compare the characteristics of the two participation groups using elements like Program site Address (geography), Type of Funding (funding), Early Childhood Setting (program site type), and Staff Classification, Degree or Certificate Type (director qualifications).

Geography: Use the individual fields in the data element Program Site Address to create geographical areas. The field “County” can be used to create areas within the state that can be compared based on QRIS Participation History. To ascertain how service levels differ by county, divide the number of program sites in a given county with a QRIS Participation History indicating “Program site currently participates in the QRIS” by the total number of providers in that county.

Funding: There are several different categories of funding within the data element Type of Funding; each indicating a “Yes” anytime a program site receives that type of funding. Total the yes responses for each of the categories of funding and compare between the two participation groups.

Early Childhood Setting: Compare each of the types of settings (e.g. family child care, center-based, home-based, etc.) in the data element Early Childhood Setting by totaling the “Yes” responses for each type.

Director Qualifications: Using the data element Staff Classification select for practitioners that indicate “Yes” to the field “Administrator”. Create groups using the fields in the data element Degree or Certificate Type. One possible grouping would be directors without a Bachelor’s degree and directors with a Bachelor’s or higher. Compare these groups against their program sites QRIS Participation History.