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Pre-K Application and Database Access Case Study
The Pre-K Application aNd Database Access (PANDA) solution is a web-based system that allows Pre-K providers to apply for Pre-K and Resource Coordination grants from the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL). It also allows providers to submit rosters and waiting lists, complete reconciliation, and update their contact information online. PANDA has been in use since 2003, and CORE K12 and DECAL continue to expand and improve the system.
Early Child Care and Pre-K facilities must adhere to specific guidelines set forth by the State in order to be certified by the State as accredited facilities. In addition to guidelines for child safety while in these facilities, the State also promotes the implementation of learning milestones for pre-school age children and nutritional guidelines for those students attending early child care facilities.
The PANDA solution is a three-tier solution which enables early child care facility providers to apply for certification, provide rosters of the students they are serving as well as list those students on their waiting lists. A Unique Student Identification module developed by CORE K12 allows the State to track students as they move across the State, through name changes and other demographic modifications in order to provide longitudinal reporting.
In addition, it allows administrators and compliance monitors to provide the results of site visits and online/offline audit, evaluations, and feedback of the facilities and the programs they provide. State personnel can also identify all students receiving pre-K services from licensed facilities, thereby facilitating quick dissemination of information to parents and care providers related to a particular facility. This capability is provided through PANDA’s own document creation and MS Office Integration utility for automatic forms, letters, and contracts creation.
Most importantly, it allows parents from across the State to review the evaluations and scores for certified facilities and see why a facility that was not certified failed its certification. This helps parents make an informed decision about which child care facility to send their children to and help provide a more enriched care-taking and educational experience for their young ones.
As a comprehensive data monitoring system for the State of Georgia’s universal Pre-K program, PANDA has been serving approximately 10,000 Pre-K facilities and nearly 100,000 children annually since 2003. The system is critically important for the State to review the success criteria that are considered when determining which of the certified facilities will receive supplemental revenue grants that are an incentive for certification and maintenance of high standards.