Poster #95 - Public investments and infant-toddler child care availability: Differences between centers and home-based programs

• In Event: Saturday Poster Luncheon

Abstract

Introduction. Oregon, like the rest of the country, continues to face a child care shortage to meet demand. The state has invested significantly in Oregon’s supply through contracted slot programming in recent years. As a result, there are an increasing number of opportunities for child care programs to participate in with publicly-funded contracted slot programming, most of which is designed for preschool-age (3-5) children. This influx of public investment has the potential to shift the supply landscape. Specifically, policymakers are concerned that contracted slots programs for preschools may inadvertently reduce the supply of infant-toddler care because providers are shifting their programs to serve more preschoolers.

Research Questions. The study asks: RQ1) To what extent do Oregon child care facilities provide care for infants and toddlers? How does the prevalence of infant-toddler supply differ between centers and home-based child care? RQ2) To what extent does contract slot participation predict a facility's odds of serving infants and toddlers, controlling for other factors?  RQ3) Given increased public investments in Oregon, how has this influenced the supply of infant-toddler care over time? 

Data and Methods. Data come from the Oregon Child Care Research Partnership’s Estimating Supply Administrative dataset, which measures facility-level capacity by age group for all licensed programs (n=3,412). Facilities that report capacity for at least one infant- or toddler-age child are defined as serving infants and toddlers. Descriptive analyses are used to compare child care facilities with and without infant-toddler capacity. Multivariate logistic regressions are used to evaluate the unique association between a facility’s contracted slot participation and serving infants and toddlers cross-sectionally and over time.

Results. Below are the preliminary results based on 2022 data. By Fall 2025, longitudinal models will assess the extent to which participating in contracted slot programming predicts changes in infant-toddler supply over time. 

(RQ1) In 2022, 71% of facilities served infants and toddlers, 28% served only preschool or school-age children, and 2% had missing data. 85% of home-based facilities reported serving infants and toddlers, while 47% of centers reported serving infants and toddlers. Fourteen percent of facilities participated in public contracted slot programming.

(RQ2) Logistic regression models found that participating in public contracted slots reduced the odds of serving infants and toddlers in home-based settings, but not in centers, controlling for program size and metropolitan status.

(RQ3) We expect to gain insight into the unique influence of public program opportunities on the extent to which individual programs opt to serve or not serve infants and toddlers over time.

Discussion. Preliminary results find that home-based settings have lower odds of serving infants and toddlers when participating in publicly funded contracted slot programming. Given that many families choose home-based settings for their infants and toddlers, examining whether this negative association persists over time is critical. Results have implications for policymakers looking to simultaneously improve parent access to available care options while building supply at the community and state levels.

Author

• Megan E Pratt, Oregon State University
  Presenting Author