Join us tomorrow morning at 10 a.m., live or virtually, for the release event of a report from the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation (MTF) “Building Blocks: Status of Child Care Reform in Massachusetts and What Comes Next.” The event is being hosted by The Boston Foundation.
And right before the MTF event, The Boston Foundation is hosting a live watch party for Strategies for Children’s 9:30 Call. So if you’re attending this event in person, be sure to arrive early and join the party.
The Building Blocks report — which follows up on an MTF report released in 2023 — looks at the progress Massachusetts has made since 2023 in reforming the Child Care Financial Assistance (CCFA) program. Administered by the Department of Early Education and Care, CCFA helps families pay for early childhood and afterschool programs. CCFA serves more than 65,000 children from vulnerable families, including low-income or homeless families.
Unfortunately, the program has had unsolved problems. The new MTF report explains:
“For many years, CCFA system challenges resulted in provider reimbursement payments not meeting actual costs, outdated and often arbitrary policies affecting families and system efficiency, geographic inequities across the state, an inefficient use of public resources, and burdens for already vulnerable families.”
Fortunately, as the report adds, “The state has made a lot of progress in improving the CCFA system since our 2023 study, and there is now a roadmap for continued momentum. It will take the commitment and collaboration of everyone in the sector to accomplish the goals outlined in this report as we move towards a better early education and care system for our Commonwealth.”
To learn more, please join us tomorrow morning for the release event.