Since 2021, Urban Institute partnered with the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) to explore pressing questions about strengthening early care and education statewide.
DECAL’s commitment to evidence-based policies and practices is foundational to our partnership. We collaborate with DECAL to systematically gather and share evidence, with a strong emphasis on understanding the experiences of
- the families who need care and education;
- center-based and home-based child care educators;
- DECAL’s leadership, administrators, and staff; and
- community leaders who are experts in early care and learning.
We gather perspectives through surveys, interviews, and focus groups; analyze administrative and national survey data; and conduct microsimulation modeling to explore the early care and learning landscape in Georgia. We also collect feedback from key informants to ensure our findings are accessible and useable to those closest to the work.
As of 2026, we have compiled perspectives from more than 10,000 people. Our work has helped DECAL understand parents’ experiences with the state’s child care subsidy program, Childcare and Parent Services; child care supply challenges; the state’s quality rating and improvement system, Quality Rated; the need for nontraditional-hour care; and uses for COVID-19 relief funding. Select one of these topics from the left-side navigation to learn more.
Collaborate with Us
We welcome opportunities to partner with state and local leaders across the country to understand and improve early care and learning opportunities in their communities. Contact the child policy team by emailing [email protected] to learn more.
