Creating Technology Aids for Childcare Access: Insights into System Innovation

By Venkat Reddy and Dahui Li

Editor’s Note: This is a summary of an interview with Sabina Andersson published in the Journal of Information Technology Case and Application Research.

Sabina Andersson, the chief product officer at the Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC), leads the product teams behind two landmark platforms at the CDEC: Raising Colorado Kids and the Early Childhood Integrated Data System (ECIDS). Together, these initiatives won the Colorado Technology Association’s 2025 APEX Project of the Year award. Andersson brings experience from AWS, Zapier and Vevo, and is focused on using responsible technology to modernize government while protecting vulnerable communities.

The Two Platforms

Raising Colorado Kids is a family-facing digital hub — a “front door” for early childhood services in Colorado. Families answer about 20 plain-language questions to find programs they may qualify for, including Universal Preschool and the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP). This screening tool can be completed anonymously, and it also explains why a family might not qualify right now, helping them plan for the future. The next phase will allow families to enter their information once and reuse it across multiple program applications.