Post Falls center helping state develop child care standards

In the infant room at The Cottage Childcare & Learning Center, babies doze in gently swaying hammocks strung along the wall.

The subtle motion promotes brain development and coaxes infants into relaxation, said Jackie Adams, director and co-owner of the Post Falls child care facility.

The hammocks are a new addition to the center this fall, and they’re the product of the center’s participation in a state pilot project that aims to improve child care in Idaho.

The Cottage is one of 22 facilities around the state involved in “Reaching the STARS,” a voluntary program that assesses providers and supplies them with support and resources to develop a plan for improvement.

Providers also are given a “star” rating, furnishing parents with a snapshot of the day care’s qualifications.

The pilot’s results will be used to develop a statewide, voluntary ratings program, which will be rolled out in 2008 under the umbrella of the Idaho State Training and Registry System (STARS).

“It’s for parents to use to evaluate the care,” Adams said of Reaching the STARS. “It’s a good thing for Idaho. It may take some time. Once it catches on, it will be helpful.”

Officials from IdahoSTARS, a state-funded child care professional development program, say the pilot project is a way to beef up the state’s oversight of child care. A growing number of children are enrolled in day cares, yet fewer than half of the roughly 4,000 child care programs in Idaho hold a license. And less than 1 percent are accredited. During the last legislative session, preschool standards and day care licensing bills were proposed, but none passed.

“Our state licensing is dismal at best,” said Karen Mason, executive director of the Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children. “We need to be working with providers on a voluntary basis to improve quality, because we think children need that now, not when we can be successful with our Legislature.”

Thirty-nine states have quality-rating systems in place, Mason said. They vary by state; some are included in the licensing system, some are voluntary and others are required.

Reaching the STARS will give the state of Idaho an example of a tried and tested system, Mason said.

“Really what we’re doing is creating a model for what we would eventually hope the Legislature would adopt,” Mason said.

A year ago, Reaching the STARS randomly chose its 22 participants – three from the North Idaho area – from volunteer facilities. Over the course of the year, the providers were assessed on a variety of factors, including the facility’s environment and safety, employees’ professional development, group size, interaction between children and caretakers, the program’s curriculum and parental involvement.

The program provided education on everything from hand-washing procedures to changing diapers, and it assigned each site a mentor to help with needed changes.

Providers in the pilot project also were eligible for roughly $1,000 per classroom for the improvements. The Cottage has garnered about $8,000 in grants, Adams said.

The Cottage has focused on improving health and safety factors in the day care, including doubling the number of sinks in the classrooms and lowering them for better child access.

Adams also has reconfigured the diaper-changing stations for improved sanitation and, in the toddler room, has installed a “loft,” a raised, carpeted platform with steps and a ramp for kids to apply their motor skills indoors.

Cottage employees are buying into the emphasis that Reaching the STARS places on professional development, Adams said. Seven recently enrolled in a child development credential program.

“I’ve been urging them to all along, but Reaching the STARS seems to be more of an impetus to do that,” Adams said.

The child care providers will receive a final rating – up to seven stars – that will be available to the public. Providers likely will need to update the rating every two to three years once the system goes statewide, Mason said.

The effectiveness of the voluntary rating system will rest on parents, said Jane Zink, a project specialist with Reaching the STARS.

“Where the support is going to come from is parents asking providers if they have a star rating,” Zink said. “The main benefit is for parents to see the difference between programs. They really don’t oftentimes have the information to see what quality looks like.”

Kelley Woodard, the mother of two children at The Cottage, said she appreciates the center’s focus on improvement, especially after having a poor experience with a different provider.

“If other day cares were in this program, it would open their eyes,” said Woodard, of Coeur d’Alene. “You need to be willing and proactive to better your center.”