Introduction
Research Questions
- What are the demographic characteristics and career backgrounds of CCEE front-line licensing staff?
- What are the roles and responsibilities of CCEE front-line licensing staff? How much are they paid and what employment benefits do they receive?
- How do CCEE front-line licensing staff perceive their work? a) Do they feel confident and prepared to work in various CCEE settings? b) Do they feel valued in their role? c) Are front-line staff experiencing burnout and is burnout related to other aspects of their experiences?
- How do CCEE front-line licensing staff perceive CCEE licensing?
The Role of Licensing in Early Care and Education (TRLECE) project conducted a national survey of child care and early education (CCEE) front-line licensing staff to learn about their backgrounds, roles, responsibilities, job satisfaction, work environment, and burnout. Front-line licensing staff routinely conduct inspections of licensed CCEE programs and assess which licensing regulations providers are or are not meeting. Understanding how burnout, satisfaction, and the work environment are related for CCEE front-line licensing staff can help us understand how to better support these individuals. The report provides a brief description of CCEE licensing and prior research related to front-line licensing staff, an overview of the research methods, detailed findings and suggestions for future research in CCEE licensing.
Purpose
Despite its central role in state and territory CCEE systems, licensing has received little research attention. The study team hopes the information in this report begins to fill this gap and helps the broader CCEE field better understand the front-line licensing staff. This understanding may help CCEE leaders continue to strengthen licensing.
Key Findings and Highlights
- Overall, this study indicated that the ethnic and racial distribution of front-line licensing staff was similar to that of the CCEE workforce and that front-line staff have background experiences relevant to child care and high levels of education
- Almost all front-line licensing staff were state employees who received employment benefits like health insurance, retirement, and sick leave. Average annual full-time compensation was $61,776 which is less than the average compensation of state employees nationally (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2024). Few front-line staff reported that they received regular pay increases.
- The average caseload of a front-line staff member was 67 programs.
- Front-line licensing staff who felt that their caseloads were reasonable and who felt more valued by coworkers, CCEE providers, and the public experienced lower levels of burnout. Additionally, front-line licensing staff who experienced higher levels of burnout were more likely to have looked for a new job in the past three months.
- Front-line licensing staff spent most of their time conducting inspections for compliance or renewal, investigating programs, traveling between sites, and completing administrative tasks.
- Front-line licensing staff believed that the primary purpose of their role was to ensure children’s health and safety but almost all indicated that their role had several purposes, including improving CCEE quality.
- Generally, front-line licensing staff felt confident in their abilities and prepared to work in various CCEE settings with providers who serve all age groups. Front-line staff also had generally positive overall perceptions of the CCEE licensing system.
Methods
The research team developed the survey by reviewing existing surveys for other child care related professionals and consulting with licensing experts. We invited all 3,102 CCEE front-line licensing staff from all 50 states and DC to participate in the survey. We used email to distribute an individualized link to an online version of the survey and followed up with non-respondents by email, phone calls, and text message. Data collection began on May 23, 2023 and ended on July 24, 2023. The final sample consisted of 1,153 respondents.
Citation
Gal-Szabo, D.E., Early, D., Maglaque, D., Maxwell, K., Conway, J., & Gerson, G. (2024). Characteristics and work experiences of licensing staff in child care and early education. OPRE Report #2024-282. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Glossary
- Child care and early education:
- Caregiving and educational services for children from birth to age 13. CCEE includes center- and home-based settings for infants, toddlers, preschool- and school-aged children. CCEE refers to services for a larger age group than early care and education (ECE), which consists of services provided only for young children (birth to age 5 who are not yet in kindergarten). ECE programs are included within the definition of CCEE.
- Child care and early education licensing:
- Establishes regulations that must be met to legally operate a child care program. Child care licensing also monitors and enforces those regulations.
- Child care and early education provider:
- An organization or individual that provides CCEE services (adapted from Child Care & Early Education Research Connections, n.d. -a).
- Compliance:
- Adherence to licensing regulations.
- Front-line licensing staff:
- Individuals who routinely conduct licensing inspections of licensed CCEE programs. They may have other responsibilities as well, as long as one of their jobs is to routinely conduct licensing inspections.
- Inspection:
- A visit to assess if a CCEE provider is meeting licensing regulations.
- Licensing regulations:
- “Requirements that providers must meet to legally operate child care services in a state or locality, including registration requirements established under state, local, or Tribal law” (Child Care & Early Education Research Connections, n.d. -a). (Child Care & Early Education Research Connections uses this definition for “licensing or regulatory requirements.”)