Elevating Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce–Four-Year Implementation Update
A summary of some of the statewide collaborative efforts in the past year made in support of the vision, goals, and recommendations outlined in the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission's 2020 report.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Care and Education System: Building Capacity for Equitable Early Childhood Systems Year 3 Performance Evaluation
The performance evaluation aims to assess the degree to which Preschool Development Grant-funded projects advance the goals of the Nebraska Early Childhood Strategic Plan, using an equitable systems lens.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Care and Education System: Leadership Perspectives on Progress in the Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five 2023 Evaluation Brief
The evaluation brief is the product of interviews with key informants (project and system leaders) to understand how PDG-funded efforts were advancing the goals of the Nebraska Early Childhood Strategic Plan.
2023 Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report
The market rate survey, conducted by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, will be used to help set child care subsidy reimbursement rates in Nebraska for 2023 ̶ 2025.
Gap Widens for Achieving Fully Funded Early Childhood System in Nebraska: Research Brief
This study, from the Buffett Institute, analyzes fiscal year 2021 funding levels and estimates the gap between that funding level and the cost of providing quality early childhood care and education. The study found that the gap between current and full funding grew from 51% to 57% between 2017 and 2021.
Nebraska's Public Investment in Early Childhood Care and Education, Fiscal Year 2021: Technical Report
This report, from the Buffett Institute, establishes an estimate of the federal- and state-level public-sector contributions to Nebraska's total investment in early childhood care and education for fiscal year 2021. It also provides a record of where funds originate and the pathways used to disseminate them to targeted recipients.
Nebraska's Public Investment in Early Childhood Care and Education, Fiscal Year 2019: Technical Report
This report, from the Buffett Institute, establishes an estimate of the federal- and state-level public-sector contributions to Nebraska's total investment in early childhood care and education for fiscal year 2019. It also provides a record of where funds originate and the pathways used to disseminate them to targeted recipients.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce–Three-Year Implementation Update
A summary of some of the statewide collaborative efforts in the past year made in support of the vision, goals, and recommendations outlined in the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission's 2020 report.
10 Year Report
Start Early. Start Well: 10 Year Report, 2013-2023 shares how the Buffett Early Childhood Institute came to be, what it has accomplished, what it has learned, and where it is going.
Nebraska COVID-19 Early Care and Education Provider Survey III
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to compound Nebraska’s child care crisis, according to a report released May 18 by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute. The report paints a grim but resilient picture of the early childhood workforce. Despite daunting challenges, early childhood professionals have persevered during a pandemic that has upended their business operations and continues to have lasting impacts on their health and well-being.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce–Two-Year Implementation Update
A summary of some of the statewide collaborative efforts in the past year made in support of the vision, goals, and recommendations outlined in the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission's 2020 report.
Using Short-Term Investments to Leverage Long-Term Sustainability: Supporting the Early Childhood Workforce with Federal Relief Funds
This report, from the Buffett Institute, looks at how long-term sustainability of quality early care and education in Nebraska could be maximized by using funds from the American Rescue Plan.
2021 Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report
The market rate survey, conducted by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, will be used to help set child care subsidy reimbursement rates in Nebraska for 2021 ̶ 2023.
Nebraska's Public Investment in Early Childhood Care and Education, Fiscal Year 2017: Technical Report
This report, from the Buffett Institute, illustrates the complexity of financing early care and education and highlights the opportunity for strategically aligning funding streams to better serve child care providers and families.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce–One-Year Implementation Update
A summary of some of the key initiatives that members of the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission have been involved in over the past year that support Nebraska's early childhood workforce and address varying aspects of the commission's recommendations.
Examination of the Fiscal and Economic Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce and the Early Childhood Care and Education System
Interim Study Report on Legislative Resolution 390 released on Feb. 16, 2021, by the Appropriations Committee of the Nebraska Legislature. The report includes study findings as well as committee recommendations.
Nebraska COVID-19 Early Care and Education Provider Survey II
According to a new survey released Aug. 4, Nebraska’s early care and education providers are under extraordinary stress and need more support to stay in business. In addition to other stressors, if the COVID-19 pandemic continues or worsens, Nebraska could lose many of its licensed child care providers unless financial assistance is provided.
Elevating Nebraska's Early Childhood Workforce: Report and Recommendations of the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission
The Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission, a group of more than 40 Nebraska public- and private-sector leaders, released a groundbreaking report on Jan. 30 to address the challenges facing the early childhood workforce. Elevating Nebraska’s Early Childhood Workforce: Report and Recommendations of the Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission is the culmination of three years of effort by the commission, formed to tackle one of the most complex and pressing challenges facing Nebraska today—expanding and strengthening the state’s early childhood workforce to meet children’s needs throughout the first eight years of life.
2019 Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report
The market rate survey, conducted by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, will be used to help set child care subsidy reimbursement rates in Nebraska for 2019 ̶ 2021.
The Nebraska Panhandle: An Assessment of Birth-Grade 3 Care and Education
A new collaborative report is intended to better understand and improve early learning and developmental outcomes for children in the Panhandle. The report was produced by Educational Service Unit 13, the Panhandle Partnership, Inc., and the Buffett Institute. The report details key findings based on extensive community mapping work and information obtained from four months of focus groups with more than 200 Panhandle residents across 15 communities. Participating school district communities included Alliance, Banner County, Bayard, Chadron, Hay Springs, Hemingford, Garden County, Gering, Gordon-Rushville, Kimball, Mitchell, Morrill, Potter-Dix, Scottsbluff, and Sidney. Findings from the report were shared April 17, 2019, at a special luncheon and panel discussion in Gering.
Superintendents' Early Childhood Plan Evaluation
These reports focus on the implementation of the Superintendents' Early Childhood Plan, an innovative, groundbreaking approach to reducing income- and race-based achievement gaps by focusing on the "School as Hub" for birth through Grade 3 approach. The plan is the largest effort of its kind in the nation, affecting more than 3,500 children and over 500 educators and other early childhood professionals in the Learning Community of Douglas and Sarpy Counties.
2021-22 Report (seventh year of implementation)
2020-21 Report (sixth year of implementation)
2019-20 Report (fifth year of implementation)
2018-19 Report (fourth year of implementation)
2017-18 Report (third year of implementation)
2016-17 Report (second year of implementation)
Five Year Report
This report presents a by-the-numbers profile and the details of who we are and what we've accomplished in our first five years.
Technology-Supported Early Childhood Professional Development in Nebraska
This report investigates the current uses of technology in early childhood professional development, how Nebraska programs are integrating technology into their professional development, and how technology can be leveraged to provide more access and more effective professional development to early child care providers in the state. The report was authored by Jan Esteraich for the Buffett Institute. Esteraich is a doctoral student in the Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies (CYAF) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Survey
This survey—the largest and most comprehensive study ever of Nebraska's early childhood workforce—provides insights into the current status, working conditions, and attitudes of teachers and caregivers responsible for children from birth through Grade 3. Findings from the survey, conducted by the Buffett Institute with assistance from the Bureau of Sociological Research at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, were presented Sept. 6, 2017, in Lincoln.
Research briefs resulting from analysis of the survey data were released in January and April 2019. Just out: the brief Risk Factors for Depression Among Early Childhood Teachers, which is based on a study, Workforce well-being: Personal and workplace contributions to early educators' depression across settings. That study was published in late March in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Survey
Early Childhood Teacher Turnover in Nebraska
Risk Factors for Depression Among Early Childhood Teachers
Our First Three Years
This report published in November 2016 shares the story of the Buffett Early Childhood Institute's first three years of operations—how we came to be, what we've accomplished, and where we're going. It includes a forward from Hank Bounds, president of the University of Nebraska.
Buffett Early Childhood Institute/Gallup Survey on Early Childhood Care and Education in Nebraska
The purpose of the Buffett Institute/Gallup Survey was to gather public opinion data about Nebraskans’ attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge about early care and education across the state. The findings of the main report, Nebraskans Speak About Early Care and Education, were announced March 29, 2016, in Lincoln. The second report, Nebraskans Speak About the Early Care and Education Workforce, was released Oct. 24, 2016, in Kearney, Neb. The third report, Urban and Rural Nebraskans Speak About Early Care and Education, was released March 24, 2017, in Scottsbluff, Neb. The fourth and final report, Nebraska Parents Speak About Early Care and Education, was released June 6, 2017, in Omaha.
Nebraskans Speak About Early Care and Education (Main Report)
Nebraskans Speak About the Early Care and Education Workforce (Second Report)
Urban and Rural Nebraskans Speak About Early Care and Education (Third Report)
Nebraska Parents Speak About Early Care and Education (Fourth Report)
Conference Report: Transforming the Early Childhood Workforce in Nebraska
The Buffett Early Childhood Institute convened a statewide conference entitled “Transforming the Early Childhood Workforce in Nebraska” on October 5 - 6, 2015. The conference brought together educators from throughout the state to begin building a consensus around how to address Nebraska’s early childhood workforce needs. The conference report includes a summary of presentations, emerging themes, and next steps.
Nebraska Higher Education Inventory
The Nebraska Higher Education Inventory (2015) conducted by the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at University of California, Berkeley, in conjunction with the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, provides the most complete picture to date of the state’s early childhood-related offerings and degree programs, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics.