PROJECTBuilding Child Care Research Capacity
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    CSRE LogoThe Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) has funded the Urban Institute, in partnership with Mathematica, to provide child care research and evaluation capacity-building resources for Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Lead Agencies and their research partners through two active projects: the Child Care Research and Evaluation Capacity Building Center contract (2019–2024) and the Center to Support Research and Evaluation Capacity of CCDF Lead Agencies cooperative agreement (2022–2027). This work builds upon an earlier OPRE-funded and Urban Institute–administered contract, the Center for Supporting Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Implementation (2016–2022).

    The activities of the two current capacity-building centers include the following:

    • Learn more about research and evaluation capacity-building needs and strengths of CCDF Lead Agencies through a needs assessment to inform center activities.
    • Develop publications and webinars to increase the capacity of all CCDF Lead Agencies to conduct and use research that supports their policy and operational decisions.
    • Support collaboration and learning among CCDF Lead Agencies and their research partners funded by OPRE to engage in selected researcher-agency partnerships.
    • Leverage learning and advance evidence-based research in child care and early education by supporting data sharing and collaborative analysis across a few of OPRE’s researcher-agency partnerships.
    • Share the research findings of the researcher-agency partnerships widely, supporting them in translating their research and connecting them with multiple audiences.

    The Center to Support Research and Evaluation Capacity of CCDF Lead Agencies is supported by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the United States (U.S.) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award (Grant #: 90YE0293) totaling $7,278,368, with 100 percent funded by ACF/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, ACF/HHS or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit the ACF website, Administrative and National Policy Requirements.

    Researcher-Agency Partnerships​​​​​​

    The table below provides a list of researcher-agency partnerships supported by these centers and their associated grant programs: 
    Research Areas Children and youth
    Policy Centers Center on Labor, Human Services, and Population