A Critical Analysis of Pennsylvania's Early Childhood Education Subsidy Program

• In Event: Accepting Responsibility for (In)Equity in Education? Critical Policy Analysis Across Contexts

Abstract

Participation in early childhood education (ECE) is associated with positive outcomes, including increased kindergarten readiness, less grade retention, higher graduation rates, and lower involvement with the criminal justice system (Campbell et al, 2012; Deming, 2009; Garcia et al, 2016; McCoy et al, 2017; Miller & Bassok, 2019). Importantly, only high-quality programs are associated with these kinds of outcomes (Meloy et al, 2019; Phillips et al, 2017). Accordingly, governing agencies have enacted policies aimed at scaling up both access and quality. One such policy designed to incentivize quality requires that public funds only be awarded to high-performing ECE programs, or those earning a certain score on a state’s quality rating and improvement system (QRIS). Quality rating systems are widely used, with proponents claiming they provide valuable information to families about early learning providers in a largely privatized market. However, several studies have documented how QRIS, or the ways these systems allocate points, privilege certain kinds of ECE providers: those with higher enrollment capacities, serving primarily three- and four-year-olds, and/or operating in higher-income communities are more likely to earn higher scores (Bassok & Galdo, 2016; Bassok et al, 2016; Hatfield et al, 2015; Zellman & Karoly, 2015). Thus, policies tying funding to QRIS scores may limit both access and quality by denying funding to programs that lack the fiscal and human capital needed to perform well on QRIS, making it difficult for such programs to expand enrollment or make investments that improve quality.
We critically analyze Child Care Works, Pennsylvania’s ECE subsidy program and the requirement that families apply their subsidies to programs that earn at least a two on the state’s QRIS, examining the extent to which this policy limits access by race and class. Our CPA includes quantitative analysis of Pennsylvania ECE providers from 2015 to 2019 using data from Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services and the U.S. Census. We find no significant relationship between communities’ access to subsidy-eligible ECE programs and the percentage of children in the community who live in poverty, even though the policy is intended to serve low-income families. However, we find a statistically significant relationship (r=0.329; p<0.01) between the proportion of Black and Hispanic residents in a community and the total slots available in ECE programs that earn a qualifying QRIS score. This finding suggests that families of color who depend on subsidies have reduced access to early learning opportunities for their children.
Analyzed through a Critical Policy Analysis framework, we argue that the Child Care Works policy limits families’ ability to make decisions about what kind of early learning environment is best for their children. Perhaps most importantly, we argue that the QRIS score requirement has a racially disparate impact, as it leads to inequitable opportunities for choice and access for families of color. This study has important implications for understanding whether the state’s quality rating system is based on performance standards that privilege White norms of caregiving. Failing to recognize the diverse cultural values of minoritized communities may further exacerbate existing inequities.

Authors

• Karen Babbs Hollett, The Pennsylvania State University

• Erica Frankenberg, The Pennsylvania State University