The needs assessment will serve as the rationale for your strategic plan and guide its development.
The needs assessment should identify areas in your state that need to be strengthened to maximize the availability of high-quality ECCE options for low-income and disadvantaged families. While the grant is intended to foster improvements in the ECCE system, its scope goes beyond that to include a focus on other systems that provide support for young children and their families. Ensuring strong connections between the ECCE system and these systems is an essential part of providing highquality support to vulnerable and underserved families. A comprehensive needs assessment should address how other systems provide support to families who are served by the ECCE system.