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Accreditation
Accredited Programs
Accredited programs have demonstrated a commitment to
providing a high quality program for young children
and their families. They have voluntarily gone through
an extensive self-study process and welcomed an outsider
to come in and validate the quality of their program.
Accrediting Organizations
There are three major national organizations that accredit
regulated child care programs. The National Association
for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accredits
programs that serve a minimum of ten children, ages
birth to 8. The National Association for Family Child
Care (NAFCC) accredits smaller programs that are in
a home-setting. The National School-Age Care Alliance
(NSACA) accredits programs that serve children ages
5 to 14.
Difference Between Accreditation
and Keystone Stars
Keystone Stars is a publicly funded program open to
all licensed child care providers in the state of Pennsylvania.
The state provides support for programs to move from
one star to another. Accreditation is privately funded
and costs a significant amount of money for the program
going through the process. All accredited programs are
automatically eligible for a Star 4 designation under
Keystone Stars.
How do I begin the accreditation
process?
A program can begin the accreditation process by contacting
the appropriate organization (NAEYC, NSACA or NAFCC)
and requesting self-study materials.
National
Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
886-623-9248
National
Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC)
801-269-9338
National
School-Age Care Alliance (NSACA)
617-298-5012
Is there anyone available in Montgomery
County to help me through the accreditation process?
There are child care providers in Montgomery County
who have been through the accreditation process. NAEYC,
NAFCC, and NSACA maintain databases of the accredited
programs. Some of them are willing to talk with other
directors about their experience. and/or have offered
to give tours of their center. Contact the Consortium
for more information.
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