Services & Programs
Who is the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles?
The Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles is a partnership of 13 community-based organizations working together to ensure the delivery of seamless, consistent, quality child care throughout Los Angeles County. The member agencies provide child care Alternative Payment (AP) and/or Resource & Referral (R&R) services.
Our Mission
The mission of the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles is to make quality child care and early education, and school readiness services accessible to all families in Los Angeles County through an Alliance of community focused Alternative Payment and Resource and Referral agencies.
Our Vision
All the children of Los Angeles County will succeed in early childhood and education; and their families will reach and sustain self-sufficiency.
Our Values
- Quality child care and/or early learning opportunities for every child in Los Angeles County;
- High quality services by all member agencies;
- Service delivery that is respectful of and sensitive to the diverse populations and cultures within Los Angeles County;
- Staff that are trained and responsive to the needs of children and families in Los Angeles County;
- Our partnership in the delivery of seamless and consistent child care services in Los Angles County;
- The equal representation, the individuality and uniqueness of each member agency.
History of the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles.
Long before the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles formally became established, many of the current member agencies had already been working together as a group. They would share best practices on the common contracts they had at the time. In 1996, a national welfare reform legislation was signed. In response to the welfare reform, California legislation created the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility for Kids (CalWORKs) program which was to take into effect January 1997. As an alliance, the group of 11 independent non-profit agencies in Los Angeles County came together and negotiated for the CalWORKs Stage 1 Contract through the Department of Social Services. The group was successful in its negotiations to administer the CalWORKs Stage 1 Contract in Los Angeles County. This group was informally called “L.A. Execs.” The original key members were: Duane Dennis from Pathways, Dr. Alice Walker Duff from Crystal Stairs, Inc., Karen Kaye from Connections for Children, Cliff Marcussen from Options, Lorraine Schrag from Child Care Resource Center, and Lisa Velarde from Children’s Home Society of California.
In 1998, the CalWORKs Stage 1 Program was implemented in Los Angeles County. However, external stakeholders were concerned about the variability of the child care services provided in Los Angeles County. The L.A. Execs came together and received grant funding from the California Endowment Foundation to administer the first customer satisfaction study of the child care services provided in Los Angeles County. This year long study was called “Project Reach” and was led by Grace Weltman. Through Project Reach, the group confirmed that there was variability in the child care services provided in Los Angeles County. The study showed specific areas where individual agencies were strong and weak. The group used the study to develop the basis of standards, quality assurance, and accountability in the programs they administer countywide.
By the end of the year 2000, L.A. Execs lost one of its member agencies and added 3 new independent Alternative Payment agencies to their group. The L.A. Execs now had a total 13 member agencies. In addition, they hired their first staff member, Grace Weltman, to act as a liaison and assistant to the group. As the L.A. Execs evolved, it changed its name to “Los Angeles County AP Alliance.”
In 2001, the Los Angeles County AP Alliance found themselves with an abundant number of requests from external stakeholders and with multiple projects they wanted to accomplish, as a group. One of the projects the Los Angeles County AP Alliance adopted was the Joint Quality Assurance System, which was based from the Project Reach study. Hence, as the work demanded from the group grew, the Los Angeles County AP Alliance staff grew. The Los Angeles County AP Alliance staff later included an Executive Director, a Data & QA Coordinator, a Training Coordinator, and an Executive Assistant. Furthermore, as the Los Angeles County AP Alliance grew to be more of an established group, they needed to hold their 1st Strategic Planning Meeting to determine the focus of the group.
In 2002, the Los Angeles County AP Alliance finally established a formal structure by becoming an incorporated entity with a Board of Directors and Officers. The group also had their last organization name change. The group formally became to be known as the “Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles” (CCALA). In 2003, CCALA had its first CCALA Officers. The first CCALA Officers were: Duane Dennis as Chair, Cristina Alvarado as Vice Chair, Karen Kaye as Secretary, and Steve Voss as Treasurer.
Today, CCALA continues to strive for “creating brighter futures” for all children, their families, and child care providers. CCALA advocates for quality child care, early education, and school readiness services for all children and make it accessible to all families. CCALA member agencies educate parents and guardians on how to choose quality and safe child care providers for their children. CCALA member agencies continue to work with child care providers to offer a safe and educational environment for children by offering technical assistance and educational resources to child care providers.
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