Welcome!

Welcome to the Early Childhood Colorado Information Clearinghouse (ECCIC)- your gateway to information and resources about all matters related to the healthy and thriving development of children, birth to age 8.

This website:

  • Allows you to find local Colorado agencies providing services for young children.
  • Allows you to search for information, links to quality websites, videos, and research reports.
  • Supports the ability of professionals to upload information that will be useful to others using our member sign-up and upload features.

The Early Childhood Colorado Framework represents Colorado's vision for a system of partners and efforts that will lead to all Colorado children being valued, healthy, and thriving. We hope that the ECCIC helps you play a role in achieving that vision.

How do I find out about...

  • How do I find out about what Colorado is doing for the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Fund?

    • April, 2012 — Gov. John Hickenlooper and Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia welcomed the U.S. Department of Education’s announcement that Colorado is among five finalist states invited to apply for $133 million from the 2012 Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge fund. Colorado will be eligible for up to $30 million in a non-competitive application process.
    According to the U.S. Department of Education, eligibility for 2012 Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge funding was based on the strength of applications among States that participated but did not receive awards in the 2011 competition. New Mexico, Colorado, Oregon, Illinois and Wisconsin each earned approximately 75% or more of total points possible on a 300-point scale in the 2011 competition.
    “We will apply for these funds because we are committed to providing the very best possible foundation for Colorado’s children,” said Hickenlooper. “Colorado is a leader in early education, with the goal of ensuring that every child is ready to learn.”
    “People from every corner of the state expressed support for expanding quality early childhood programs to help ensure that children start kindergarten ready to fully engage in learning,” said Garcia. “This administration has placed a high priority on supporting parents and families to make sure that all children are valued, healthy and thriving. Securing these additional federal funds will bolster Colorado’s work that is already well underway to enhance quality early childhood services.”
    In 2011, 35 States, D.C. and Puerto Rico applied to Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge, creating plans that increase access to high-quality programs for children from low-income families, and provide more children from birth to age 5 with a strong foundation needed to succeed in school and beyond. In December 2011, nine States were awarded grants-California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and Washington.
    The $133 million for additional Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge State grants will come from a larger $550 million fund provided by Congress through the Department of Education’s fiscal year 2012 budget. Additional dollars from the 2012 appropriation will be used to run a new district-level Race to the Top competition. More details on the new competition will be available later this spring.
    Colorado’s previous proposal submitted in 2011 included strategies to:
    -Evolve the statewide Tiered Quality Rating and Improvement System (TQRIS) to ensure children receive the highest quality programming in all licensed settings and implement a shared services model in high-needs communities for business stability and quality improvement.
    -Integrate early childhood learning and development guidelines within all early learning system elements including workforce competencies, comprehensive assessments systems, TQRIS, and parent training and tools.
    -Leverage the state’s comprehensive assessment systems to ensure early identification and effective interventions and supports for children with high needs, leading to kindergarten readiness.
    -Create a highly qualified early childhood workforce through a competency based system that supports both formal and informal education opportunities and allows an evaluation of educator effectiveness, linked to Colorado’s K-12 system.
    -Expand the kindergarten entry assessment to ensure that Colorado’s children are on the right path to achievement at third grade and beyond.
    -Increase the effectiveness and efficiency of delivering early learning services to families at the local level by streamlining state governance with a new early childhood office in the Department of Human Services.
    These strategies are key components to the state’s broader vision outlined in Colorado Reads: The Early Literacy Initiative.
    “Colorado is drawing closer to the day when every child will be able to read proficiently by third grade,” added Garcia.
    The U.S. Department of Education will publish a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register in the near future with the full details of this proposal.
    For more information about the previous proposal submitted in 2011, read the Executive Summary of Colorado’s Early Learning Challenge Fund Application. Click for information on the process Colorado followed to complete the application and for information about what was important to stakeholders at the listening tour. Read the Governance feedback from the listening tour about the Early Learning Challenge Fund.

  • Early Childhood Leadership Commission 2012 Annual Report

    • The Early Childhood Leadership Commission presented their 2012 Annual Report on January 20 before Governor Hickenlooper, Lieutenant Governor Garcia and the Senate Education, Senate Health and Human Services, House Education and House Health and Environment Committees. The 2012 Annual Report highlights the Commission work around state systems to better serve children and families, and sets the agenda for 2012. The Joint Session Annual Report proceedings are available via audio recording on the House Education Committee January 20 audio archive.

  • Finding Child Care
    • Colorado Child Care Facility Search is hosted by the Colorado Department of Human Services, Division of Child Care, which is the State’s lead agency in planning and implementing public child care policy.

    The Division of Child Care is responsible for the licensing and monitoring of child care facilities; managing the child care assistance program (CCCAP) for eligible families; administering child care grants and quality initiatives, and serving as the lead in implementing federal child care programs. The overall goal of the Division of Child Care is to promote quality, accessible and affordable child care services for Colorado families.

    Qualistar is the state network office for Child Care Resource and Referral. Qualistar Colorado manages a system of 17 local agencies throughout Colorado that supports parents, child care providers and local communities.

    Your local Qualistar Partner can walk you through the complexities of the child care system, providing you with the tools you need to make an informed child care decision. They can provide you with free referrals to child care programs matching your needs and preferences. They can give you information about location, quality, hours of operation, child care philosophies, licensing requirements and financial assistance.

    Visit our Child Care / Preschool page

  • How to contact the Early Childhood Council in my area?
    • There are three ways to find the Early Childhood Council in your area. 1) Click here and either scroll down or type the county name in the Search box. 2) View or download the 2010-2011 Early Childhood Councils Directory. 3) Go to the Colorado Department of Education's Early Childhood Councils website for up-to-date contact information for statewide council coordinators.
  • Becoming a member of this website?
    • Just click on the member sign up/login link . If you fill in your information, you can upload your resources to the site and receive important e-mail updates (we don’t give your e-mail address to anyone else).
  • Getting financial assistance to help me pay for child care for my child?
    • The Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP) helps low-income parents who are working or in school/training to pay for child care.

    In addition, the Colorado Preschool Program (CPP) exists as a special support to families with certain risk factors such as poverty, homelessness, teen parents, or English language learners. Most school districts offer CPP. If you qualify, the program will pay a portion of the cost, and also provides a high level of quality assurance for participating facilities. You will need to call someone at the contact numbers here to help you determine whether your child may be eligible.

    For families in the city and county of Denver who have children who will be entering their last year prior to kindergarten , the Denver Preschool Program may be available to you as an additional financial support.

  • How do I find out more about the Early Childhood and Youth Development Governance proposal?

    • The Early Childhood and Youth Development Governance Proposal will be presented in the 2012 legislative session. The governance proposal outlines the consolidation of several programs into a new Office of Early Childhood and Youth Development in the Colorado Department of Human Services and promotes stronger inter-agency coordination of programs and funding streams. For frequently asked questions related to the proposal please see the Early Childhood and Youth Development FAQ. To submit feedback, please see the Governance Stakeholder Feedback Form.