Formative Research to Revise Materials for Mothers and Child Care Providers of Infants (SLT)

Attachment F – Director and Provider Recruitment Communications: Initial Recruitment Email, Initial Recruitment Phone Call, and Follow Up Email to Interested Sites, Follow Up Call with Interested Site Directors, Site Confirmation Letter

OMB Burden Statement: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0524. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Initial Recruitment Email

Dear [Name],

I’m writing to share an exciting opportunity for [site name] and parents in your community. Applied Curiosity Research is working with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to develop a guide for feeding infants in child care settings and materials to support breastfeeding. We are seeking feedback from child care providers, mothers, and expectant mothers to ensure these free materials are clear, relevant, and engaging, and we are looking for a child care site to host the interviews and focus groups.

If selected, you will participate in a 45-minute individual interview with a member of the research team (scheduled at your convenience), and would like to hold a focus group with mothers and expectant mothers at [site]. The research activities will take place this spring, and we will provide flyers, posters, and other support to share the opportunity with your families. If interested and selected, your site will receive a $150 donation facility fee, and parents will receive $40 for their time.

Your feedback will be used to improve nationally-available, free resources for child care providers like yourself. Please contact me if you’re interested or have any questions. I’m happy to answer any questions and discuss next steps.

If you’d like to learn more about our company, please visit https://appliedcuriosityresearch.com.

OMB Burden Statement: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0524. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 8 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Initial Recruitment Phone Call

“Hello. My name is [name] from Applied Curiosity Research and I’m hoping to speak to [director name] about an opportunity for your child care center to participate in a USDA project.”

Hi [director name] my name is [name] from Applied Curiosity Research. We are working with the USDA/FNS to revise materials and resources about feeding infants in child care settings and materials for breastfeeding mothers. These revisions will reflect the updated Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) meal patterns and evidence-based breastfeeding guidelines. Some providers may refer to this as “The Feeding Program” or “The Food Program”. Please keep that in mind if sites do not initially react to “CACFP”.

We’re looking for feedback from child care providers and parents in [county], so we’re hoping your center (or family day care home) will be interested in hosting our research. The research activities include an individual interview with child care providers and directors and 1-2 focus group discussions with mothers and expectant mothers. The interviews will all take place at your center at a date and time that is convenient to you and the participants. Your center will receive a $150 donation for hosting the focus groups and interviews.

The only requirements for your site would be to participate in an interview, host the focus group discussions, and help recruit mothers and expectant mothers.

Is this something you’d be interested in?

[If no]. Okay, thank you for your time. Good bye.

[If yes]. Great. If you’d like, I can send you the information in an email so that you can review it. What is your email address?

I will send this information right over to you. Once you’ve had a chance to look through it, please feel free to reach out with questions or to let me know if you’re interested. In the meantime, do you have any questions?

Thank you so much for your time. I look forward to speaking with you again soon. Good bye!

OMB Burden Statement: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0524. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Follow Up Email to Interested Sites

Thank you for your interest in hosting our research activities! We are excited for the opportunity to work with [Site]. Below you will find further details about the research project.

Research Logistics

We will hold a 1-2 45-minute individual interview with the child care providers at your site at a time that is convenient to them.

In addition, we will conduct a total of X 60-minute focus groups at your site. Groups will take place at separate times, preferably on the same day. We will work with you and the participating parents to schedule a date and time that is convenient.

Each focus group will consist of eight mothers or expectant mothers. Participants will receive a free meal (if held during meal-time) that ACR will provide in addition to a $40 stipend. We will also provide your organization with a $150 facility fee.

Focus Group Participant Recruitment

We will work closely with you to recruit mothers and expectant mothers to participate in the focus groups. Our team will provide you with flyers and any other resources that you’d need to distribute to parents at your site and/or in the community. The flyer will provide parents with our email address and phone number for them to sign up for the focus group. We will handle any necessary follow up communications.

I’d love to hop on a call to discuss the project in more detail. Are you available [insert date and time]?

Thanks again. We are looking forward to working with you!

OMB Burden Statement: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0524. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 12 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Follow Up Call with Interested Site Directors

Hi [director name]. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me. Before we take the next steps for your site to host our research, I’d like to collect some more information from you and answer any questions you have.

First off, just a few questions about your site:

• How many infants does your site currently serve?

• How many providers work at your center?

• Do you have a quiet space that can hold about 10 adults for the focus groups?

• What is the primary language spoken by parents at your site? We will be conducting the focus groups in both English and Spanish and want to determine which is best for your site.

Thank you so much for answering my questions. Do you have any questions for me at this time?

Great. The next step would be to schedule the research and send you the focus group flyers to distribute to mothers and expectant mothers. What is the best way to send you the flyers – email or printed versions in the mail?

Okay. Is there anytime between March 12 and April 13 that does not work for your site to host the research? Okay, how about [proposed date]?

Great. We’ve got you in our schedule and I will send the flyers to you within the next couple days. If you have any questions or concerns that come, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.

Thanks so much. Good bye!