The world has faced challenges from a variety of viral respiratory illnesses over the past few decades, including the 2002 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and the 2009 swine-origin pandemic (H1N1) influenza. However, the disaster management guidelines for Early Childhood Education (ECE) programs in California were limited to earthquake and fire…

Clinicians' beliefs about an intervention's fit with an individual family influence whether they use it with that family. The factors that influence clinicians' decisions to implement evidence-based practices for young autistic children have yet to be evaluated systematically. These factors may partially account for the significant disparities in…

A worker education center in California requested the development of a job training pilot program for 6,000 state-remunerated homecare workers. These workers provide personal care services to Medicaid-eligible adults over 65 years of age and to adults with disabilities, enabling them to remain living at home. In recognition of the homecare…

Non-parental arrangements for young children serve a dual function as supports for parental activities and educational inputs for children. However, arrangements that are suited to meet families' specific needs and preferences are sometimes in tension with experts' definitions of "quality." Researchers and policymakers increasingly…

This research project included two studies that investigated (a) differences between technology use in tech-knowledgeable and less tech-knowledgeable older persons, (b) cognitive and affective variables and their association with the application of technology, and (c) the implications of these variables on the design of remote-delivered caregiver…

The purpose of this study was to expand the knowledge of adult motivation in unconventional professional settings. Nine focus group interviews were conducted with child care providers in child care settings from four states in the Western United States: California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. At each focus group interview three to eight…

With 8.4 million children in the U.S. spending an average of eight hours a week in afterschool programs, afterschool providers are an important part of the network of caring adults who can help to keep children safe. In addition, afterschool staff are "mandated reporters." Whether or not the laws specifically mention afterschool staff,…

As part of a longitudinal study, the authors interviewed 73 nontraditional students regarding their perceptions of the challenges experienced and supports received as they returned to school to earn bachelor's degrees. All participants were working in the early care and education field. Interviewees perceived the cohort structure of their B.A.…

Family, friend and neighbor (FFN) child caregivers represent a significant proportion of caregivers for young children. Yet, these caregivers receive little support for their services. In 2003, the First 5 California Children and Families Commission (First 5 California) began a study to determine the work-related needs of FFN caregivers in…

The Child Care Initiative Project, a public-private partnership designed to build the supply of child care throughout California, has achieved remarkable success in recruiting and training providers and increasing the number of child-care spaces in family day-care settings. Community-based organization and strong evaluation instruments have been…