State Profile | Iowa

The Afterschool Investments project has developed profiles for each state to provide a snapshot of the "state of afterschool," as well as an opportunity to compare afterschool activities across the country. This profile provides key data and descriptions of the afterschool landscape, which includes a range of out-of-school time programming that can occur before and after school, on weekends, and during summer months. It is designed to serve as a resource for policymakers, administrators, and providers.

• Quick Facts
• Statewide Initiatives
• Notable Local Initiatives
• Statewide Organizations
• Additional Resources
• Notes and Sources

Quick Facts

Demographics

For more demographic information, visit http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/statepro/index.html

Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)

CCDF Administrative Overview

Settings

Where CCDF-Subsidy school age-children are served:

Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool

"Resource and referral and school-age" targeted funds:
Funds may be used for contracts that support statewide systems of Child Care Resource and Referral agencies. These funds are used to support the statewide delivery of the "Welcome to School Age Care" training curriculum. The Iowa School Age Care Alliance is contracted by the Lead Agency and can use funds to provide support and incentives for expansion and retention of school age care providers through an ongoing equipment grant program, participating in state and national professional development conferences, and hosting annual statewide conferences on afterschool care.

Other quality activities:
Funds may be used for comprehensive consumer education, for grants or loans to providers to assist in meeting State and local standards, and to monitor licensing and regulatory requirements. They may also be used for professional development, improving childcare providers’ salaries, activities promoting inclusive childcare, early language, literacy, reading and math development, and for youth focused health programs.

Provider Reimbursement Rates

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

Program Licensing Policies

Exemptions apply to instructional programs administered by a school system accredited by the department of education or the state board of regents, or a program provided under specific Iowa Code sections.

Systems/Quality Supports

21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC)

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Statewide Initiatives

• Iowa Afterschool Alliance. The Iowa Afterschool Alliance, a coalition afterschool programs, champions, and other interested individuals and organizations, along with partners from the juvenile justice, education, youth development, and child care sectors, began in 2003 with funding from the C.S. Mott Foundation, to build and support a network of quality, accessible, and affordable afterschool programs for all Iowa children and youth. In 2008, the IAA released Iowa’s Blueprint for Afterschool, a policy document intended to start conversations, build awareness and assist Iowa in becoming a national leader in the provision of out-of-school time opportunities.

  For more information, see http://www.IowaAfterschoolAlliance.org

• Iowa Collaboration for Youth Development (ICYD).The Iowa Collaboration for Youth Development (ICYD) Council is a network of state agencies committed to improving results among Iowa’s youth.  ICYD originally formed in 1999 to carry out a Youth Development State Collaboration demonstration grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Family and Youth Services Bureau.  The purpose of the grant was to better align and coordinate state youth policies and programs using a positive youth development results framework.  Over the last several years, ICYD has participated in a variety of state and national youth initiatives, including the Forum for Youth Investment’s Ready by 21 Quality Counts, the Youth Policy Network of the National Governors Association and the National Crime Prevention Council’s six-state Embedding Prevention in State Policy, and it continues to serve as a multi-system forum for the development and coordination of state youth policy and programs.  ICYD represents state and community agencies and organizations promoting positive youth development policy and practice by disseminating best practices, facilitating varied afterschool efforts, and providing a forum for regular networking and information-sharing among state and community partners.

  For more information, see: http://www.icyd.org.

• AmeriCorps State of Promise Program. Coordinated and administered by Iowa State University Extension, 4-H Youth Development, this initiative provides extended learning opportunities for youth by assigning AmeriCorps members to afterschool and summer programs in a number of Iowa school districts. Funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service and the host sites’ extensive network of community partners, the program provides academic assistance, mentoring, and service learning opportunities for over 700 Iowa middle school students.
• Iowa's Promise. As a result of Iowa's successful work collaborating on youth initiatives, Iowa was selected as one of five states to receive a $20,000 grant from America's Promise. The grant will help facilitate collaboration between existing public and private partnerships, increase awareness about child and youth development issues, and continue to keep children and youth issues a priority for Iowans.

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Notable Local Initiatives

• Kids and Company Quality School-Age Child Care. Kids and Company provides child care to school-age children before and after school, on non-school days and throughout the summer for children attending Council Bluffs elementary schools. The Kids and Company program is funded primarily through parent fees. Approximately 18% of the families receive DHS subsidies for their childcare. Kids and Company also seeks out small grants to assist in its financial management. Areas of focus in the program are Character Counts Curriculum from Drake University, and Kid Fit, to help prevent childhood obesity. The program participates in the CACFP program.   

  For more information please visit www.cbkidsandco.org

• Clinton Community Schools 21st Century Program. Clinton Community Schools is the recipient of two 5-year 21st CCLC grants, one issued in July 2003 and the other in July 2004. The program serves four elementary sites, one middle school site and one alternative high school program. Goals of the program include helping families enhance relationships between home, school and community, improving the academic performance of all students and keeping kids safe after school. Additional activities include enrichment programming, prevention education and adult literacy. Before school programs are held at all elementary sites with all sites providing summer activities including academics.

• Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa. Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa, operating in three sites in the Des Moines inner-city, provides a safe, positive setting for youth between the ages of 5 and 18. Professional staff and engaged volunteers provide youth development programming in character and leadership development, health and life skills, education and career development, arts, sports, and fitness and recreation. The three sites are open every day after school and all day during school breaks and the summer. The Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa raises 98% of its operating funds from private sources, and receives a small percentage of funding through Boys and Girls Clubs of America.   

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Statewide Organizations

National AfterSchool Association Affiliate:

Iowa Afterschool Association
1508 8th St SW
Altoona, IA 50009 – 2319
Phone: 515-967-0788

Statewide Child Care Resource & Referral Network:

Iowa Department of Human Services
Division of Children and Family Services
Child Care Bureau
Hoover State Office Building – 5th Floor
Des Moines, IA 50319
Phone: 515-281-5584

Statewide Afterschool Network:

Iowa Afterschool Alliance
200 10th St., 5th Floor
Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: 515-243-2000
Web: http://www.IowaAfterschoolAlliance.org

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Additional Resources

State Child Care Administrators:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/dirs/display.cfm?title=ccdf

State TANF Contacts:
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/states/tanf-dr.htm

21st Century Community Learning Centers Contacts:
http://www.ed.gov/programs/21stcclc/contacts.html

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Notes and Sources

Demographics

Total population, 2008: Annual Estimates of the Population for the United States, Regions, States, and Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2008, U.S. Census Bureau.

Number of children ages 5-12, 2008: Estimates of the Resident Population by Single-Year of Age and Sex for the United States and States: July 1, 2007, U.S. Census Bureau.

Percent of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch rate, 2006: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Note: Most recent data.

Percent of K-12 students in Title I "schoolwide" schools, 2006: Numbers and Types of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Schools enrolling at least 40 percent of students from poor families are eligible to use Title I funds for schoolwide programs that serve all children in the school. Note: Most recent data.

Child Care and Development Fund

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is the largest federal funding source for child care. States receive a funding allocation determined by formula and have broad flexibility to design programs that provide child care subsidies for low-income children under the age of 13 and to enhance the quality of child care for all children. Federal CCDF funding consists of mandatory, matching, and discretionary funds. Federal law requires that states spend at least 4 percent of their CCDF funds as well as additional targeted funds on activities to improve the quality and availability of child care. CCDF administrative data in this and the following sections is from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Bureau, as reported by States, unless otherwise noted.

FFY09 CCDF Allocation: Funding allocations are based on appropriation and do not reflect any reallotted or redistributed funds that may occur at a later date.

FFY09 state MOE plus match: In order to receive Federal matching funds, a state must expend Maintenance of Effort funds. Note that this does not capture actual expenditures, only the minimum required to draw down all available federal funds.

FFY09 Tribal CCDF Allocation: Federal CCDF Funds are awarded directly to Federally-recognized Indian Tribes.

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Funding: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) appropriates an additional $2 billion in one-time CCDF Discretionary funding available to State, Territory and Tribal Lead Agencies in FY09 as part of the economic stimulus package.

FFY07 total quality expenditures: This data includes FY07 and prior year funds expended for quality from each of the CCDF funding streams (mandatory, matching, and discretionary) and expenditures under targeted funds for infant and toddler, school-age care and resource and referral. This figure provides information obtained from state financial reports submitted for FY07.

Uses of CCDF Targeted Funds and Quality Dollars for Afterschool: Portions of CCDF discretionary funds are targeted specifically for resource and referral and school-age child care activities as well as for quality expansion. (These funds are in addition to the required 4 percent minimum quality expenditure.)

Maximum rate for school-age category: Rates are listed for center-based care, family child care, and license exempt programs; where rates vary by region or county, the rate for the most populated urban area is given.

Standardized monthly school-age rate: Monthly rate for a child, age 8, in care after school during the school year at a center in the most costly district for four hours per day, 20 days per month. Calculated (in the lowest tier of a tiered system) using information from the FY2008-2009 State CCDF Plan, including rate structures, as submitted to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.

Separate subsidy rates for different age ranges and Tiered Reimbursement Rate Systems: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Child Care Bureau. Report of State Plans FY2008-2009.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Child Care

In addition to spending TANF funds directly on child care, a state may transfer up to 30 percent of its TANF grant to CCDF. Expenditures represent TANF funds spent in FY07 that were awarded in FY07 and prior years. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, available at: In addition to spending TANF funds directly on child care, a state may transfer up to 30 percent of its TANF grant to CCDF. Expenditures represent TANF funds spent in FY07 that were awarded in FY07 and prior years. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, available at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofs/data/2007/tanf_2007.html.

Program Licensing Policies

States with separate school-age licensing standards and states with specialized requirements for child care centers serving school-age children: National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center (NCCIC) and National Association for Regulatory Administration, 2007 Child Care Licensing Study, see: http://www.naralicensing.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=160.

Ratio of children to adults in school-age setting: Data from the National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC), available at: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov.

School-based, school-age programs exempt from licensing: Research conducted by Afterschool Investments, March 2008.

Systems/Quality Supports

School-age credential: NCCIC, State Professional Development System Credentials for Individuals, see: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/poptopics/pd-credentials.html.

Statewide quality rating system: NCCIC, Quality Rating Systems: Definitions and Statewide Systems, see: http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/pubs/qrs-defsystems.html.

Statewide afterschool network: National Network of Statewide Afterschool Networks, see: http://www.statewideafterschoolnetworks.net/.

21st Century Community Learning Centers

The 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program is a state formula grant. Funds flow to states based on their share of Title I, Part A funds. Data from the U.S. Department of Education 21st Century Community Learning Centers Office and the 21st CCLC Profile and Performance Information Collection System as of July 2009.

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The Child Care Bureau awarded a technical assistance contract to The Finance Project for the Afterschool Investments project. The goals of the Afterschool Investments project include:

• Identifying ways that state and communities are using Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) subsidy and quality dollars to support out-of-school time programs, and sharing these practices and approaches with other states;
• Identifying administrative and implementation issues related to CCDF investments in out-of-school time programs, and providing information and context (about barriers, problems, opportunities) as well as practical tools that will help CCDF administrators make decisions; and
• Identifying other major programs and sectors that are potential partners for CCDF in supporting out-of-school time programs and providing models, strategies, and tools for coordination with other programs and sectors.

Contact Us:

Email:
afterschool@financeproject.org

Web:
http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/afterschool/

The Finance Project
1401 New York Avenue, NW
Suite 800
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-587-1000
Web: www.financeproject.org

The Afterschool Investments project's State Profiles are designed to provide a comprehensive overview of noteworthy State and local initiatives across the country. Inclusion of an initiative in the Profiles does not represent an endorsement of a particular policy or practice.