Areas of Expertise

Early Care and Learning

Research is clear: enriching and engaging early childhood experiences support children to develop and learn. Formal and informal early care and learning structures are a key part of that development. 

ECE Insights understands the issues facing the early care and learning sector, including:

  • Workforce recruitment and retention
  • Quality standards
  • Inadequate supply, particularly for infants and toddlers
  • Childcare deserts
  • Funding fragmentation
  • Linguistically and culturally appropriate care and instruction

All of these issues demand strong policy and programmatic solutions that are data-driven and backed by solid research. ECE Insights brings content knowledge combined with the research expertise to support the development of innovative solutions.

ECE Insights’ Founder and Principal, Meg Franko, has been the principal investigator on several large studies of the early care and education sector including:

  • A statewide examination of the impact of COVID-19 on the early care and learning sector in Colorado
  • An early care and learning workforce study for the Michigan Department of Education
  • A multi-year evaluation of the operations of the Denver Preschool Program
  • An economic analysis of the impact of the early childhood sector on the Colorado economy
  • A cross-site evaluation of a federally funded five-year early literacy initiative in Colorado
  • A multi-site kindergarten transition initiative in Colorado funded by the Buell Foundation

Contact us to talk about how we can support your early care and learning research, evaluation, and data goals.