The QCC County Program Profile provides county data from the Common Data File (CDF) and the Annual Progress Report (APR). For counties that are a part of a consortium, the QCC County Program Profile provides a combined view of the CDF and APR. Both qualitative and quantitative data are presented to provide a local view of early learning and care climate.

Quality Matters is Contra Costa County’s Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS), designed to support and incentivize child care providers to deliver high-quality early learning experiences. The program is implemented through a partnership between First 5 Contra Costa, CocoKids, and the Contra Costa County Office of Education.
Participating early learning programs are assessed on their level of quality and receive a range of supports:

• Training and one-on-one coaching
• Specialized track training
• Financial incentives
• Resources to help raise and maintain quality standards

The Contra Costa County Office of Education, with funding from the Workforce Pathway Grant and support from the Contra Costa Local Planning and Advisory Council, provides additional assistance to the system through the following:

• Child Development Permit processing
• Professional growth advising
• Technical assistance and consultation for public center directors
• Reimbursements for out-of-pocket expenses related to early childhood education, including tuition, training fees, books, and educational materials

Since the launch of QRIS in 2014, hundreds of child care sites have been rated and/or received support to improve their quality. Today, 165 child care sites are actively participating in Quality Matters Contra Costa.

• First 5 Contra Costa Prop 10 (Tobacco Tax)
• IMPACT First 5 California
• CSPP Block Grant
• QCC Block Grant
• QCC Workforce Pathways Grant
  

• Contra Costa County Office of Education
• First 5 Contra Costa
• CocoKids

Outreach and recruitment for upcoming Quality Matters programs take place between May and August. We prioritize private centers and family child care homes (FCCs) who serve low-income families and children. We partner with our resource and referral agency (CocoKids) for outreach to recruit new sites and provide information sessions to interested participants. Our coaching team plays a key role in this process as well. Once sites express interest to participate in Quality Matters, they receive an application packet. When the application process is completed, sites are assigned a quality improvement coach, navigator, or model.

The level and type of coaching support offered to Quality Matters sites are tailored based on program type and individual site needs:

• Sites new to Quality Improvement or those that benefit from collaboration with peers are placed in facilitated learning groups, where they can engage in shared learning and group discussions.
• Sites needing more individualized support are assigned a Quality Improvement Coach, who provides multiple coaching opportunity sessions each month.
• High-performing sites demonstrating strong teaching practices join a specialized cohort, with access to deep-dive professional development tracks. These specialization topics may include anti-bias practices, inclusion of children with special needs, and PITC (Program for Infant/Toddler Care).

This comprehensive system is made possible through a collaborative partnership between First 5 Contra Costa, the Contra Costa County Office of Education, and CocoKids, who together provide a wide range of professional development opportunities for participating providers.

Our approach is designed to promote equity across all provider types, including state-funded programs, public sector sites, and those operating under Title 22 licensing.

• All program types receive a flat-rate stipend of $1000 for participating in Quality Matters programming.
• California State Preschool Program (CSPP) leaders are invited to join a quarterly Community of Practice designed to help programs prepare for the requirements outlined in the Management Bulletin MB 23-10.

CSPP contractors will be required to implement the CLASS Second Edition (Pre-K-3rd) and the CLASS Environment tools through a gradual phase-in, with full implementation expected by the 2028-29 program year.

In addition, Quality Matters participants are given priority access to the county’s Professional Development Program, which aims to incentivize degree attainment and support the early care and education workforce in advancing their professional qualifications.

An Owner of a Large Family Child Care Home shared: If I had to summarize what has been the most significant change, I would say the environment and curriculum are much more appropriate to the children’s specific developmental needs. It has made me more aware of developmentally appropriate practices and setup to meet all their needs. The program has helped the children we teach by allowing us to have an environment that allows them to experience, explore, and create while having fun and learning at the same time. It has helped my professional development because even though I have taken many ECHD classes it is very different to have an actual coach come and personalize all the things you learn in a classroom and help you put them into practice in your school. I would tell new potential families that QRIS is a very difficult program to participate in the first time around; however, it is totally worth it in the long run. It has great marketing potential, in that families love to hear that you participated in a voluntary training from the state because you want to offer better care.

Learn more from the videos below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECNYcX_6joY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP3_PMn1f1w