The Action Research Collaborative (ARC) is partnering with a New York state agency to strengthen early childhood care and education across the state, with a strong focus on the childcare workforce.
ARC will evaluate projects from the New York State Council on Children and Families (CCF) that focus on employee support and development, programming, and support systems for providers and families, supported by a one-year grant from CCF for $1.7 million.
"ARC's broader mission is to be responsive to the needs of communities - to use scientific evidence to inform decision-making in policy and practice, and to evaluate the effects of those decisions on the lives of communities," said Neil Lewis Jr. '13, ARC co-director and associate professor of communication and a Nancy and Peter Meinig Family Investigator in the Life Sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) and at Weill Cornell Medicine. "Working with CCF on these programs is in direct alignment with that mission."
ARC is part of the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research in the College of Human Ecology, and CALS.
Four projects focus on supporting early childhood care and education workers. One provides scholarships for workers who want to receive credit for lived experience before entering a relevant degree program. Another aims to improve their health and well-being; it will be led by Laura Bellows, associate professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences (CHE). Two of the projects are new - a registered apprenticeship program for childcare assistants and a program to subsidize tele-mental health benefits for childcare staff.
In addition to these projects, ARC researchers will analyze CCF's implementation of the Pyramid Model, a framework used in early childhood settings to promote children's social and emotional growth through strong relationships, positive learning environments and individualized support.
ARC will also evaluate two efficiency-based initiatives - the Shared Services Alliance, a pool of resources that childcare providers can access, and an effort to link the state's early childhood data systems to better coordinate support and services across state agencies.
"This portfolio is exciting because it allows us to study systems together," Lewis said. "From the mental health of childcare staff to the logistics of scaling services to the feasibility of linking data systems, we can generate rich knowledge that would be harder to get by studying any one part in isolation."
The ARC-CCF partnership began with conversations in Albany, where ARC researchers meet annually with policymakers to discuss community needs and share research.
"We're always looking to gather the evidence needed to inform our work - to learn important lessons that can enrich our theories, and to gain answers to practical questions," said Vanessa Threatte, CCF executive director.
ARC brings experience in community-engaged evaluation, including studies of the Double Up Food Bucks nutrition incentive program in upstate New York, and experiences of families in transitional housing in New York City.
"Part of ARC's mission is to bring together people and sectors that historically don't collaborate with one another to solve pressing societal issues," said Tashara M. Leak, associate professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences (CHE) and ARC co-director. "More than ever, we must leverage our respective strengths to advance the health and well-being of New Yorkers."
ARC will lean on its network of researchers from across Cornell for its work on the projects. Along with Lewis and Leak, this includes Marlen Z. Gonzalez, assistant professor of psychology (CHE) and Jamila Michener, associate professor of government in the College of Arts and Sciences, and senior associate dean for public engagement (Brooks School). Other collaborators include Bellows and Elizabeth Eagen, deputy director of the Citizens and Technology Lab in CALS, along with graduate students, postdocs and research staff.
ARC will provide CCF reports on each project, offering insights into what works, what doesn't, what can be implemented, and where improvements are needed.
"This collaboration has the potential to improve programs that touch thousands of families across New York state," Lewis said. "It's exactly the kind of work ARC was designed to do - translating research into action that makes a difference in people's lives."
Juan Vazquez-Leddon is the communications director for the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research.
