Appendix A - Recruitment Materials

We need your help with an important national study about how Head Start programs fund their services. We invite you to complete our survey. As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer [$10 redeemable NOW followed by a $40 gift card upon survey completion / a $50 gift card upon survey completion].

[Redeem NOW our $10 thank you to you: LINK]

The purpose of this study on Head Start financing [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE] is to better understand:

(1) whether and how Head Start programs bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive early care and education, and

(2) the state policy contexts in which Head Start programs make those decisions.

This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding. Your experiences are very important to helping us understand the current early care and education (ECE) funding environment.

As you complete this survey, you may rely on other program staff, such as a fiscal manager, to support you in answering questions accurately. You may also wish to locate and refer to program budget documents and/or tax forms.

Take the Survey Now: [SURVEY URL]

Your Unique PIN: [PIN]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE] study, is funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the survey was developed in close partnership with the Office of Head Start (OHS).

Research Team

NORC at the University of Chicago is fielding this survey, with partners from Start Early and the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Participation is voluntary. The questionnaire will take about 45-50 minutes, and your responses will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. You have the option to skip any question or end the questionnaire at any time without any consequence. You may start the survey at one point in time and come back to it at a later point.

To answer questions accurately, you may need to consult other staff members (for example, a fiscal manager) and locate budget documents.

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach me at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

1b – Initial State Survey Recruitment Email

Dear [NAME],

We need your help with an important national study about funding in early care and education (ECE), including Head Start, state preschool programs, and other early childhood programs. We invite you to complete our survey. As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $35 gift card upon completing the survey.

The purpose of this study on ECE financing [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE] is to better understand:

(1) whether and how ECE providers bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive early care and education, and

(2) the state policy contexts in which those ECE providers make those decisions.

This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding. Your experiences are very important to helping us understand the current ECE funding environment!

This survey is designed for a [Head Start Collaboration Director / CCDF administrator / State Pre-K administrator]. To support you in answering questions accurately, you may collaborate with other administration staff, including a co-lead administrator, who are also responsible for [Head Start collaboration / CCDF funds / State Pre-k funds].

Take the Survey Now: [SURVEY URL]

Your Unique PIN: [PIN]

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Research Team

NORC at the University of Chicago is fielding this survey, with partners at Start Early and the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Participation is voluntary. The questionnaire will take about 30-40 minutes, and your responses will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. You have the option to skip any question or end the questionnaire at any time without any consequence. You may start the survey at one point in time and come back to it at a later point. To answer questions accurately, you may need to consult other staff members or locate documents.

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach me at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

1c – Follow-Up Email

Dear [NAME],

I am following up on the email below to invite you to complete a survey for our study on [Head Start / ECE] financing [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE].

[Example, optional additions to the opening statement based on non-response and timing

Your input can help shape future early care and education (ECE) financing policy decisions.
We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time.
We want to hear your voice about your experiences.
We have heard from XX% of your colleagues; add your voice!
Our final deadline for participation in this project is [DATE], and your contribution is incredibly valuable.]

Given your role and expertise, we hope that you can participate. [FOR STATE RESPONDENTS: This survey is specifically designed for a [Head Start Collaboration Director / CCDF administrator / State Pre-K administrator]]. As a reminder, you can collaborate with other colleagues to help you answer questions accurately.

As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer

[PROGRAM RESPONDENTS: $10 already sent to you via email that you can redeem today, followed by a $40 gift card upon survey completion / $50 gift card upon survey completion.]

[Switching control group to experimental condition (pre-token does work): We’ve noticed that you haven’t yet responded to our survey. As an expression of our appreciation, we are pleased to offer $10 redeemable NOW in addition to a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion. Please see our initial invitation email sent on [DATE] to redeem your $10.]

[STATE RESPONDENTS: $35 gift card]

Take the Survey Now: [SURVEY URL]

Your Unique PIN: [PIN]

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach me at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Participation is voluntary. The questionnaire will take about [45-50 / 30-40] minutes, and your responses will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. You have the option to skip any question or end the questionnaire at any time without any consequence. You may start the survey at one point in time and come back to it at a later point. To answer questions accurately, you may need to consult other staff members or locate documents.

1d – Final Email

Dear [NAME],

I am following up a final time on the email below to invite you to complete a survey for our study on [Head Start / ECE] financing [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE].

[Example, optional additions to the opening statement based on non-response and timing:

Your input can help shape future early care and education (ECE) financing policy decisions.
We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time.
We have heard from many of your colleagues but want to hear your voice about your experiences.
Our final deadline for participation in this project is [DATE], and your contribution is incredibly valuable.]

As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer

[PROGRAM RESPONDENTS: $10 already sent to you via email that you can redeem today, followed by a $40 gift card upon survey completion / $50 gift card upon survey completion.]

[STATE RESPONDENTS: a $35 gift card]

Take the Survey Now: [SURVEY URL]

Your Unique PIN: [PIN]

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach me at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

Study Sponsorship and Funding

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) [LINK TO RESPONDENT-FACING PROJECT PAGE] study is funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

1e – Follow-Up Phone Script

Hello. My name is [NAME] from NORC at the University of Chicago.

Am I speaking with [NAME OF RESPONDENT]?

IF YES, CONTINUE.
IF NO, ASK IF THE RESPONDENT IS AVAILBLE TO SPEAK.
IF NO, ASK THE RESPONDENT FOR A GOOD TIME TO CALL BACK.
IF THE RESPONDENT NO LONGER WORKS HERE, REQUEST NEW CONTACT INFORMATION:

Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with us today.

We are conducting the Financing for ECE Quality & Access for All (F4EQ) Study, funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) within ACF, the Administration for Children and Families of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

[IF HEAD START DIRECTOR] We are following up on an email we sent earlier inviting you to participate in a survey about Head Start financing. We’re specifically interested in whether and how Head Start programs think about and approach combining multiple funding streams to support the services they provide.
[IF STATE ECE ADMINISTRATOR] We are following up on an email we sent earlier inviting you to participate in a survey about financing in early care and education, or ECE. We’re specifically interested in how states approach administering their ECE funding streams and learning more about your state’s financing policies and requirements around ECE financing.

We know you are busy, but your viewpoint and expertise are invaluable to the project given your first-hand experience as a [JOB TITLE]. We are happy to offer a $[50/35] gift card as a thank you for your participation. [EXPERIMENTAL GROUP OF PROGRAM RESPONDENTS: You received a $10 upfront gift from us that’s redeemable now before the survey. You’ll have the option to choose and receive the remaining $40 gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Would you be interested in completing the survey?

IF YES, CONTINUE.

IF NO, ASK IF THE RESPONDENT HAS ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SURVEY (AND ANSWER THEM).

Great! I can send you a link to the survey. What is the best email address for me to use?

[Record email address and update records.]

Please feel free to respond to that email with any additional questions you may have.

Thank you for taking the time to speak to me today. We appreciate your time and thank you for contributing to this important research!

1f – Outreach Letter to Tribal Leadership

Dear [JOB TITLE] [LAST NAME],

NORC at the University of Chicago is pleased to announce the Financing for ECE Quality & Access for All (F4EQ) study (OMB #XXXXX). It is a national study of Head Start (HS) and early care and education (ECE) financing.

We hope that the American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) Region XI Head Start program in your community, [PROGRAM NAME], will participate in the study. We want to respect [NAME OF TRIBE] Tribal sovereignty and address all research review requirements that the Tribe may have in place. [Please contact us at [F4EQ STUDY EMAIL] if the [NAME OF TRIBE] has any research review requirements that NORC should observe by [DATE]/ We are aware that [ENTITY] has research review requirements that NORC should observe.] This letter is to introduce the study and answer any questions you may have about the surveys we plan to send out.

The study is sponsored by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in collaboration with Office of Head Start (OHS), in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), in the Department of Health and Human Services. OPRE has contracted with NORC at the University of Chicago to conduct the study.

Nationally, each Head Start/Early Head Start Program Director will be invited to respond to a web-based survey. Please note that the study will not involve any data collection from EHS/HS teachers, children, or families. NORC will not visit classrooms or centers. Please also be aware that it will not be possible to share the local F4EQ Study data collected from [Program Name(s)] back to the Tribe. We cannot provide data back to the Tribe because there will be only one respondent from each program, which would mean that the individual respondent will be too easy to identify. At the conclusion of the study, the data will be archived for potential research use by others, without any identifiable information included. The available data sets and any written products from the study will be carefully adjusted so that no individual respondent, EHS/HS program, or tribe/tribal community can be identified.

Attached is a Fact Sheet providing additional details about the study.

[We look forward to learning about any research review requirements from you and the [NAME OF TRIBE] leadership.]

Please reach out to Dr. Stacy Ehrlich Loewe at [PHONE NUMBER] or at Loewe-Stacy@norc.org if you have any questions.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

1g – Letter of Endorsement from OHS Director

Dear Head Start Program Director,

We are pleased to announce the start of the national Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) study. This study is an important federal effort to better understand at a national level how and under what conditions Head Start programs either combine or do not combine their Head Start funds with other funding sources to provide early care and education services.

Your responses will provide the Office of Head Start with essential information about:

(1) whether and how Head Start programs bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive early care and education, and

(2) the state policy contexts in which Head Start programs make those decisions.

The results of this study will inform Head Start policy and practice as the Office of Head Start strives to better support programs with different funding models.

Your participation is critical so that we can understand the perspective of leaders like you who make funding decisions about early care and education.

The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) sponsors the study, and the survey was developed in close partnership with the Office of Head Start (OHS). OPRE has contracted with NORC at the University of Chicago to complete this work, with partners Start Early, Children’s Equity Project (CEP) at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Dr. Margery Wallen.

For additional information regarding the F4EQ study or the survey, please contact the study’s Federal Project Officer, Paula Daneri (Paula.Daneri@acf.hhs.gov) or the Project Director, Stacy Ehrlich Loewe (loewe-stacy@norc.org).

Sincerely,

[Name]

Director, Office of Head Start

1h – Mailers

Letter 1 (Initial) PROGRAM

Dear [NAME],

As you read in the included letter from OHS Director [NAME], we need your help with an important national study about how Head Start programs fund their services. The national Head Start Financing Study is an important federal effort to better understand at a national level how and under what conditions Head Start programs either combine or do not combine their Head Start funds with other funding sources.

This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding, and we need your expertise as a program leader because you influence and make funding decisions in response to the requirements of your funding sources.

We invite you to complete our survey, which you can find at [SURVEY URL]. You may also scan the QR code below with your device. To access your questionnaire, you will need to enter your unique PIN.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Access Pin: [PIN]

This survey will take about 40-50 minutes. To answer questions accurately, you may need to consult other staff members (for example, a fiscal manager) and locate budget documents.

Your participation is completely voluntary, and you may start and stop at any time, or pause and return to the survey later on without any consequence. Your survey progress will be saved. Your name, your program, and any other identifying information will NOT be attached to your responses. All data will be reported anonymously and in aggregate (together with all other responses).

[As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $50 gift card. You’ll have the chance to select the gift card of your choice immediately upon completion.]

[As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer $50. We’ve sent $10 to your email redeemable NOW. You will also receive a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey. You’ll have the chance to select the gift card of your choice immediately upon completion.]

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) study, is funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the survey was developed in close partnership with the Office of Head Start (OHS). OPRE has contracted with NORC at the University of Chicago to complete this work, with partners Start Early, the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

Letter 2 (Follow-Up) PROGRAM

Dear [NAME],

We are following up on the previous letter you received inviting you to complete a survey for a study on Head Start financing. Your input can help shape future early care and education (ECE) financing policy decisions.

Given your role and expertise, we hope that you can participate in the study. We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time. As a reminder, you may rely on other program staff, such as a fiscal manager, to support you in answering questions accurately. You may also wish to locate and refer to program budget documents and/or tax forms.

No pre-token: [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $50 gift card upon completion of the survey. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Claimed pre-token: [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $40 gift card following survey completion. Our records indicate that you have already claimed your $10 thank you gift card sent with our initial invitation but have not yet completed the survey to redeem your $40 gift card. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Did not claim pre-token: [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer $10 redeemable NOW (included in our initial invitation) in addition to a $40 gift card following survey completion. Our records indicate that you have not yet claimed your $10 redeemable at [INFO] or completed the survey to redeem your $40 gift card. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Switching control group to experimental condition (pre-token does work): [We’ve noticed that you haven’t yet responded to our survey. As an expression of our appreciation, we are pleased to offer $10 redeemable NOW in addition to a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion. Please see our initial invitation email sent on [DATE] to redeem your $10.]

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Access Pin: [PIN]

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) study, is funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Letter 3 (Final Letter) PROGRAM

Dear [NAME]

We are following up a final time to invite you to complete a survey for a study on Head Start financing.

We have heard from many of your colleagues, but we want to hear your voice about your experiences. Our final deadline for participation in this project is [DATE], and your contribution is incredibly valuable.

Given your role and expertise, we hope that you can participate. We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time. As a reminder, you may rely on other program staff, such as a fiscal manager, to support you in answering questions accurately. You may also wish to locate and refer to program budget documents and/or tax forms.

Control (pre-token doesn’t work): [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $50 gift card. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Control (pre-token does work): [We’ve noticed that you haven’t yet responded to our survey. We are pleased to offer $10 redeemable NOW at [INFO] in addition to a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Claimed pre-token: [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey in addition to the $10 you have already claimed. You may select and receive your additional $40 gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

Did not claim pre-token: [As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $40 gift card upon completion of the survey in addition to $10 redeemable NOW at [INFO]. You may select and receive your second $40 gift card immediately upon survey completion.]

If you are interested in participating, please go to [LINK] to begin or scan the QR code below. To access your questionnaire, you will need to enter your unique PIN.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Access Pin: [PIN]

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) study is funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Letter 1 (Initial) STATE

Dear [NAME],

We need your help with an important national study about how early care and education (ECE) programs combine different funding sources to pay for early education, care, and other services.

Our study on ECE financing aims, in part, to better understand how states approach funding ECE providers and offer guidance to ECE programs and care providers about using multiple funding sources. We are asking those in administrative roles in all 50 states and D.C.—yourself included—about your office’s policies and practices, as well as how you collaborate with other offices that fund ECE providers.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Pin: [PIN]

As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $35 gift card. This survey will take about 30-40 minutes. To answer questions accurately, you may need to consult other staff members and locate policy documents.

Your participation is completely voluntary, and you may start and stop at any time, or pause and return to the survey later on without any consequence. Your name, your state, and any other identifying information will NOT be attached to your responses. Any published data will be reported anonymously and in aggregate (together with all other responses).

This survey is designed for a [Head Start Collaboration Director / CCDF administrator / State Pre-K administrator]. To support you in answering questions accurately, you may collaborate with other administration staff, including a co-lead administrator, who are also responsible for [Head Start collaboration / CCDF funds / State Pre-k funds].

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Letter 2 (Follow-Up) STATE

Dear [NAME],

We are following up on the previous letter you received inviting you to complete a survey for a study on early care and education (ECE) financing. Your input can help shape future ECE financing policy decisions.

Given your role and expertise, we hope that you can participate in the study. We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Pin: [PIN]

As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $35 gift card. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.

As a reminder, this survey is designed for a [Head Start Collaboration Director / CCDF administrator / State Pre-K administrator]. You may collaborate with other administration staff, including a co-lead administrator, who are also responsible for [Head Start collaboration / CCDF funds / State Pre-k funds].

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

Letter 3 (Final Letter) STATE

Dear [NAME]

We are following up a final time to invite you to complete a survey for a study on early care and education financing.

Given your role and expertise, we hope that you can participate. We know you are likely very busy, and we appreciate your time.

As a thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer a $35 gift card. You may select and receive your gift card immediately upon survey completion.

If you are interested in participating, please go to [LINK] to begin or scan the QR code below. To access your questionnaire, you will need to enter your unique PIN.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Access Pin: [PIN]

For any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach us at [email] or [phone number].

Thank you,

[NAME]

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

Research Team

Privacy and Protection of Your Responses

1i – Postcard Reminders

PROGRAM

We need your help with our study on Head Start financing, a national study about how Head Start programs fund their services. We invite you to complete our survey.

Goals:

Understand whether and how Head Start programs bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality early care and education.
Understand the state policy contexts where Head Start programs make those decisions.

Your input can help shape future policy decisions around early childhood funding.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Pin: [PIN]

To thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer [$10 redeemable NOW followed by a $40 gift card upon survey completion / $50 gift card upon survey completion]. Please see your email or previous mailings for details.

Questions/Concerns: [email] [phone]

Thank you!

________________________

Study Sponsorship and Funding

STATE

We need your help with our study on early care and education (ECE) financing, a national study about how ECE programs combine different funding sources and the state policy contexts in which they do so. We invite you to complete our survey.

We want to learn about how states approach funding ECE providers and offer guidance to programs and care providers about using multiple funding sources.

Your input can help shape future policy decisions around early childhood funding.

[SURVEY URL]

Your Unique Pin: [PIN]

To thank you for your participation, we are offering a $35 card. You may choose and immediately redeem your gift card upon survey completion.

Questions/Concerns: [email] [phone]

Thank you!

Study Sponsorship and Funding

1j – Program Survey Flyer

A Study on Head Start Financing

We need your help with an important national study about how Head Start programs fund their services.

Complete our survey.

We want to learn about how Head Start programs fully fund their programming and services, including those programs that choose to use funding on top of their Head Start funds. We are asking all Head Start Program Directors across the country—yourself included—to tell us more about how they pay for the full cost of care. This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding.

This study hopes to better understand:

Whether and how Head Start programs bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive early care and education
The state policy contexts in which Head Start programs make those decisions

This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding.

Please complete the online questionnaire at [SURVEY URL] or scan the QR code. You’ll need your unique PIN included in our invitation emails.

The questionnaire will take about 45-50 minutes
Responses will be kept private to the extent permitted by law
You can skip questions, end the survey at any time, or pause and resume later
You may need to consult other staff or budget documents

To thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer [$10 redeemable NOW followed by a $40 gift card upon survey completion / $50 gift card upon survey completion]. See the enclosed letter for more details.

Questions? Contact [phone] [email] for more information

This study, titled the Financing for ECE Quality and Access for All (F4EQ) study, is funded by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE)

Survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago, partnered with Start Early, the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

[Organization Logos]

[OPRE Logo]

1k – State Survey Flyer

A Research Study on ECE Financing

We need your help with an important national study about coordinated funding in early care and education (ECE).

Complete our survey.

We want to learn about how states approach funding ECE providers and offer guidance to programs and care providers about using multiple funding sources. We are asking those in administrative roles in all 50 states and D.C.—yourself included—about your office’s policies and practices and how you collaborate with other offices that fund ECE providers. This work may inform future policy decisions around early childhood funding.

Please complete the online questionnaire at [SURVEY URL] or scan the QR code.

The questionnaire will take about 30-40 minutes
Responses will be kept private to the extent permitted by law
You can skip questions, end the survey at any time, or pause and resume later
You may need to consult other administration staff in similar or co-lead roles

To thank you for your participation, we are pleased to offer $35. See the enclosed letter for more details.

Questions? Contact [phone] [email] for more information

Survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago, partnered with Start Early, the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

[Organization Logos]

[OPRE Logo]

1l – Informed Consent Language to be Presented at Start of Surveys

Title of Project: Financing for Early Care and Education Quality and Access for All, or “F4EQ”

Why are we doing this study?

Many early care and education (ECE) systems and program leaders piece together multiple funding sources to meet the total cost of delivering high-quality programming. Bringing together, or combining, these various funding streams requires coordination across different levels of the ECE system and has critical implications for program quality, workforce strength, and equity in access and outcomes for young children and their families.

To date, we know very little about how and how often this is done on a national scale. This study seeks to document common approaches to combining funds (including single-funding-source approaches), how these approaches can equitably advance the provision of high-quality, comprehensive ECE services, and how participation in these approaches impacts integration or coordination across different ECE systems.

Who is funding this study? The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE) in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The study is being conducted by NORC at The University of Chicago, their partners at Start Early and The Children’s Equity Project, and independent consultant Margery Wallen.

How do I participate? [PROGRAM DIRECTORS] You are invited to take a web-based survey that will ask you questions about your program’s funding sources, how your program makes funding decisions, technical assistance support you receive about financing, any collaborations you may have around coordinating funding, and your beliefs about ECE funding. You may consult other staff members and/or budget documents to help you answer questions accurately.

How do I participate? [STATE ADMINISTRATORS] You are invited to take a web-based survey that will ask you questions about your state’s ECE funding system(s), how your state makes funding decisions, any collaborations you may have around coordinating funding, supports you receive and provide to providers around financing, and your beliefs about ECE funding.

How long will it take? This survey will take about [45-50 / 30-40] minutes to complete. [PROGRAM SURVEY, IF RECEIVING PRE-TOKEN OF APPRECIATION, “At the end of the survey, you will receive a $40 token of appreciation. This is in addition to the $10 you have already received.” PROGRAM SURVEY, IF NOT RECEIVING PRE-TOKEN OF APPRECIATION, “At the end of the survey, you will receive a $50 token of appreciation.” STATE SURVEY, “At the end of the survey, you will receive $35 as a token of appreciation.]

Risks: There are no risks to participating in this research.

Benefits: This study will provide a national picture of the extent to which and how Head Start programs bring together federal, state, and local funding sources to provide high-quality, comprehensive early care and education. It will also offer new information about the state policy contexts in which Head Start programs make those decisions. Your participation in this study will help policymakers make informed decisions about ECE funding.

Privacy: The study is descriptive; it is not designed to capture individual program-, child- or family-level data or evaluate compliance with the Head Start Program Performance Standards (HSPPS). Data will not be used for monitoring purposes. Your responses will not impact ACF funding for your program.

The data collected will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. To minimize risks to privacy, we use a secure system to collect these data. Once the data are collected, we remove all identifying information and replace it with a study ID. Only the researchers involved in the study will know that someone from your program participated in the study. In any written reports of the data, your responses will be combined with others and reported together so that individual information is not identifiable. If you would like to withdraw from the study, please notify the research team at [F4EQ STUDY EMAIL]. If you choose to withdraw from the study, we will maintain and analyze the data collected up to the time of withdrawal. If at the time of withdrawal, you request that we destroy all your data and exclude your responses from the study results, we will honor your request unless the data has already been aggregated, at which point we will no longer be able to separate person-level data.

To further protect your PII, we have obtained a Certificate of Confidentiality (CoC) from the National Institutes of Health. This Certificate strictly limits or prohibits forced disclosure of identifiable and sensitive research information to anyone not connected to the research except when the participant voluntarily consents or in a few other specific situations. For example, we cannot disclose your PII to a court without your consent. However, we still must follow federal, state, or local reporting requirements. For example, reporting child and elder abuse, some communicable diseases, and threats to harm yourself or others.

NORC will securely maintain the data from this study. At the conclusion of the study, the data will be archived for potential research use by others without any identifiable information included. The data may be linked to administrative data such as the Program Information Report (PIR) or Head Start Enterprise System (HSES). This will help further the field’s understanding of coordinated funding models within Head Start programs.

Right to Ask Questions: If you have any questions, concerns, or comments about the study, please contact the research team at [F4EQ STUDY EMAIL]. If you have questions about your rights as a research volunteer, please call the NORC Institutional Review Board toll free at 1-866-309-0542.

Voluntary Participation: Your participation is voluntary. You may stop and exit the survey at any time or skip any question you do not wish to answer. There are no negative consequences for skipping a question or not completing this survey.

You must be 18 years of age or older to take part in this research study.

Proceeding with the survey implies that you have read the information in this form and consent to take part in this research study.

Do you agree to participate in this study?

Yes → Proceed to survey

No → Thank you for your consideration.

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Appendix A - Recruitment Materials