Using Maps to Inform Decisions about Child Care and Early Education

The purpose of this resource is to assist CCEE leaders in using maps to understand and improve CCEE access.

This resource has two parts:

1. We describe how CCEE leaders can use maps to inform decisions about: 1) policy effects, 2) resource allocation, 3) supply building, and 4) supporting families. We also share example maps and offer suggestions about how to engage partners in the decision-making process.
    
2. We describe technical considerations for developing maps about CCEE access including how to 1) select the appropriate data to include for ease of decision-making, 2) choose an analytic approach that supports decision-making, and 3) display map contents to support decision-making.

To develop this resource, we conducted an online search to identify which states, territories, and localities use maps to display CCEE access. For the maps identified, we recorded the type of information presented and assessed the types of decisions CCEE leaders could make when using the maps. We also talked with four CCEE mapping teams to learn about their goals for creating maps, how they engaged key partners, and lessons learned from using maps to support CCEE access.

Lin, V., Bumgarner, E., Gonzalez, D.O., & Maxwell, K. (2022). Using Maps to Inform Decisions about Child Care and Early Education, OPRE Report #2022-254, Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.