Re-imagining a More Equitable QRIS: The Quality Counts California Equity Project
By Kate McKenney, Soumya Bhat, Sherylls Valladares Kahn, Cemeré James, Traci Borgh, Laura Hawkinson, Katina Kearney-Edwards, Maya Manning, Sally Strueby, Annie Watson
One state that is undertaking a comprehensive process to create a more equitable QRIS system is California, where First 5 California along with the California Departments of Education and Social Services with contracted help from WestEd, partnered with School Readiness Consulting (SRC) to conduct the Quality Counts California (QCC) Equity Project in 2022. The team employed culturally and linguistically responsive methods to engage a broad set of perspectives and better understand the extent to which the QCC system measures and promotes early care and education quality across the state. A key goal of the project was to engage the individuals and groups who may not already offer input to the state about policies that impact them.