STEPS TO EXCELLENCE PROJECT Promoting Quality Child Care Provider Information Session September 2007 A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care

2 What is STEP? STEP is a new quality rating & support system being piloted in select communities in Los Angeles County.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 3 What is a quality rating system? Quality Rating System (QRS): a method to assess, improve & communicate the level of quality in child development settings*. Parent Education Standards Fiscal Incentives Accountability Outreach/Support

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 4 Why Implement a QRS in LA County? 1. Families & the County are investing millions of dollars to purchase child care services 2. Very little is known about the quality of care being purchased 3. High quality child care has positive impacts on children & families 226,000 Kids $1.38 Billion

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 5 What is the purpose of STEP? Provide parents with clear, concise information on the quality of information on the quality of individual child care settings Distinguish programs that are meeting higher standards Create an incentive for programs to achieve and maintain high standards Provide benchmarks to determine if quality is improving over time

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 6 Principles Guiding STEP: 1. Voluntary & beneficial 2. Inclusive 3. Aligned 4. Based on research or best practice 5. Support and technical assistance

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 7 What does STEP offer Providers? 1. Mini-grants for Quality Improvement 2. Free Trainings on selected topics Environment Rating Scales Developmental Screenings Dual Language Learners Child abuse FCC Infant/Toddler Training with West-Ed (New!) 3. Free on-site reviews to assess program quality

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 8 STEP will Promote Your Program! STEP will distinguish high quality programs. STEP programs will be posted on the Office of Child Care Web site and other County Web sites, information will be provided to the child care resource and referral agencies. STEP and STEP rated-programs will be promoted through local media. STEP

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 9 What does STEP Measure? Regulatory compliance Teacher/Child Relationships Learning Environment Identification & Inclusion of Children with Special Needs Staff Qualifications & Working Conditions Family/Community

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 10 Let’s Look At An Example… Quality Area 2: Teacher/Child Relationships Please turn to page 3 of the STEP Scoring Matrix

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 11 Who can participate? Can I be part of this great Child Care Quality Initiative?

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 12 STEP Pilot Communities ●Inglewood● Florence/Firestone ●Long Beach ● Pacoima/Arleta ●Palmdale● Wilmington ●Pasadena ●Pomona ●Santa Monica

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 13 Does your program have… …a 3-year track record of substantial compliance with child care licensing & health regulations? NOT held a Probationary License NOT required to participate in a Compliance Plan NOT been issued a civil penalty NOT been the subject of legal action by the Environmental Health Division

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 14 What will it be like… …if I volunteer to participate in STEP?

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 15 The STEP Process Submit Application License Review Site Visit (UCLA) Receive Grant & Implement QIP Prepare Portfolio Rating awarded & posted QIP Mini-Grant Requested? Yes No Self-Evaluation

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 16 Preparing Your Program Portfolio Create a STEP file box Compile documentation on compliance with each of the 6 STEP components (see application pg.17-31) Prepare for classroom observations

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 17 The STEP Site Visit Notify the Office of Child Care that your program is ready for the STEP quality review. Have a staff person ready to answer questions. Have the Portfolio ready for review and a comfortable space for the Field Researcher to work.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 18 Results of the on-site review Results of the classroom observations and Portfolio reviews will be compiled and forwarded to the program and to the Roundtable. The Roundtable will consider the data on individual programs on a quarterly basis, and will award ratings at that time.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 19 What do the STEP Ratings mean? STEP 1 – Program meets CCL requirements. Teachers have 12 college units in Child Development. STEP 2 – Program exceeds legal requirements, has slightly higher teacher to child ratios and higher qualifications for director. Program has participated in on-site observation. STEP 3 – Program significantly exceeds CCL requirements, teachers have 24 units in Child Development and 16 General Education units. On-site observation resulted in higher scores.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 20 What do the STEP scores mean? STEP 4 – Program is operating well beyond CCL regulations, with higher teacher to child ratios and small group sizes. Teacher have specialization units. STEP 5 – Program is exemplary in group sizes, teacher to child ratios and teacher to child interactions, staff qualifications.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 21 Promotion of STEP rated programs STEP programs will be listed on the Office of Child Care Web site. Resource and referral agencies will be notified of program ratings. Media outreach will be conducted to promote STEP programs.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 22 Submitting your STEP Application Please refer to your STEP Application Packet (Turn to pg. 9)

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 23 Only 3 Simple Forms to Complete Please turn to pages Intent to Participate in STEP Memo 2. Program Description 3. Regulatory Compliance History

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 24 Requesting a Mini-Grant SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 25 Mini-Grant Application Form Please refer to your STEP Application Packet (Turn to pg. 17)

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 26 Mini-Grant Guidelines Individual Grants will be capped at $5,000 per program Improvements must be related to the STEP Quality Rating Scale You will need to complete & submit a Quality Improvement Plan

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 27 Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) 4). Describe the policy, practice, or product to be changed or created. State which component(s) of the STEP rating scale this activity is related to. 5). Describe how this change will be implemented. 6).Describe how this change will impact staff performance, development and/or retention. 7). Provide a timeline for implementing this change, including key milestones. All QIP activities must be completed by March 1, 2008.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 28 Mini-Grant Budget Guidelines 8). Provide a detailed budget of resources needed to implement this change. If the plan is to purchase equipment, please provide a justification for using a particular vendor, the catalogue and page number listing equipment, item price and shipping costs. If the plan is to hire a consultant, provide a justification for using this consultant, the hourly rate and hours needed to complete each deliverable. If the plan is to print materials, specify the materials to be printed and provide at least two quotes.

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 29 Important Dates 12/1/07: Deadline to submit STEP Application, Mini-Grant Application form & QIP 3/1/08: Deadline to implement all QIP activities 5/1/08: Deadline to schedule Quality Rating Site Visit (if you requested a Mini-Grant)

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 30 STEP Quality Supports  Priority Enrollment in Free Trainings  Visit the Office of Child Care website for dates & registration materials Sample Training Menu: Environment Rating Scales Developmental Screenings Dual Language Learners Child abuse FCC Infant/Toddler Training with West-Ed (New!)

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 31 Other STEP Quality Supports  STEP Tool-Kits for all approved applicants  Fall ‘07: Mini-Grant conference call (evening) and TA session (daytime)  Winter ‘08: STEP Program Portfolio preparation workshop

A Project of the Policy Roundtable for Child Care 32 STEP Contact Information Materials & Information: Questions: Helen E. Chavez (213)