Overview of Community Day Care Center of Lawrence, Inc.

This section describes the makeup and responsibilities of the Community Day Care Center of Lawrence, Inc.

Overview

Founded in 1970, Community Day Care Center of Lawrence, Inc. (CDCCL), doing business as The Community Group, became a private, nonprofit organization in 1973. It creates opportunities through education and related services. CDCCL provides the following programs and services, which are more fully described in the Appendix to this report.

• Community Day Learning: state-licensed education and care programs for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, school-age children, and teen parents
• Child Care Circuit: childcare financial assistance vouchers, information regarding childcare resources and referrals, and parent education
• Community Partners Initiative: educator training, data analysis, and consultation
• School Management Services: management services for three public charter schools and one district public school

Subsidized Childcare

The Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) uses both vouchers¹ and contracted slots² to purchase developmentally appropriate childcare for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and school-age children. Eligibility is primarily based on service need, family size, and monthly income. Families that have vouchers or contracted slots pay copayments based on their incomes and family sizes. Very-low-income families receive free childcare.

To be eligible for subsidized childcare through either a voucher or a contracted slot, a family must first be placed on EEC’s centralized waitlist. A parent or guardian can be placed on the waitlist by telephone, by applying online, or by contacting a Child Care Resource and Referral Agency³ (CCRR). Applicants must provide information on themselves, their children, their income, and their need for services to be placed on the waitlist. If funding is available, the applicant is notified and referred to a specific childcare vendor or to a CCRR. Applicants are required to complete applications and fee agreements and provide documentation such as photo identification, proof of address, children’s birth certificates, service need information, and proof of income. Successful applicants are either given a contracted slot with a vendor or issued a voucher by a CCRR that can be accepted by any vendor that accepts state-subsidized payments. Eligibility is redetermined at least every 12 months. Children referred for childcare by the Department of Children and Families (DCF) through either a voucher or a contracted slot, or by the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) through a written referral document, get immediate placement if slots are available and are not placed on the waitlist.

CDCCL is a contracted childcare provider and also operates a CCRR. According to statistics provided by CDCCL, it provided childcare to clients in the following categories during the audit period.

Clients Served by Type

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Type	Fiscal Year 2018	Fiscal Year 2019
Income Eligible	631	617
Supportive*	265	360
Teen Parent Infant/Toddler	120	127
Total Contracted Slots	1,016	1,104
Vouchers†	495	528
Total	1,511	1,632

*     This category consists primarily of referrals from DCF and DTA.

†     These vouchers are issued by CCRRs, including CDCCL’s Child Care Circuit.

During the audit period, the Child Care Circuit (the CCRR operated by CDCCL) made payments to approximately 300 childcare providers on behalf of voucher recipients, of whom there was an average of 8,246 children per month in fiscal year 2018 and 8,594 children per month in fiscal year 2019.

Sources of Revenue

During fiscal years 2018 and 2019, CDCCL received revenue from the following sources, according to its Uniform Financial Statements and Independent Auditor’s Reports⁴ for each year.

Summary of Revenue by Fiscal Year*

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Revenue Source	Fiscal Year 2018	Fiscal Year 2019
EEC—Vouchers	$67,246,607	$74,499,198
EEC—Contracts	9,282,007	10,112,442
Other Revenue	2,493,744	2,504,973
Client Resources	1,557,025	1,707,921
Direct Federal Grants	1,474,352	1,450,504
Massachusetts Local/Quasi-Governmental Entities	1,232,845	1,233,342
State Agency Non–Purchase of Service	933,542	975,849
Massachusetts Government Grants	872,623	1,164,652
Investment Revenue	614,896	796,378
Purchase of Service Subcontract	282,131	250,462
Private Client Fees	265,669	232,669
Contributions, Gifts	54,298	48,396
Total	$86,309,739	$94,976,786

*     CDCCL’s fiscal year begins July 1 and ends June 30 (e.g., fiscal year 2018 began July 1, 2017 and ended June 30, 2018). 

1.     Childcare vouchers are certificates that show the number of hours and days per week for which a child has been approved for subsidized childcare. Parents with vouchers can select any childcare provider that has space available and accepts vouchers.

2.     Contracted slots set aside spaces at specific childcare centers, family childcare providers, or schools for children from low- to moderate-income families.

3.     CCRRs administer the childcare voucher program and give families information and referrals for licensed and license-exempt programs, including childcare centers, family childcare providers, preschools, and out-of-school programs. CCRRs also receive voucher payments from EEC that they then distribute to childcare providers.

4.     Under Operational Services Division regulations (Section 1 of Title 808 of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations), any contractor or subcontractor that has been awarded a contract in excess of $100,000 to provide human and/or social services from a Commonwealth agency is required to file a properly completed Uniform Financial Statement and Independent Auditor’s Report annually. These reports contain contractual and financial information prescribed by the Operational Services Division, including audited basic financial statements. 

Date published:	April 3, 2020