Delaware sees strides made in an early childhood education initiative

State officials highlighted the accomplishments of a major early childhood education initiative Tuesday.

Gov. Markell and others were in Wilmington honoring the high performing child-care providers participating in the Delaware Stars for Early Success rating program.

Officials assess the progress of Delaware Stars for Early Success.

Officials assess the progress of Delaware Stars for Early Success.

Created in 2006, the Delaware Stars rating program measures childcare providers on a 1 to 5 scale for the level of quality in areas including learning environment, professional development, family engagement and business and management practices, and offers technical and financial support as providers seek to move up the scale.

Delaware Children?s Department Secretary Vivian Rapposelli says over 330 childcare providers are now part of Delaware Stars and many participating moved up the 5 star rating scale this year.

?I think that the level of Stars movement the programs have made have been key because every time they?re able to commit to a higher star, you know they?re bringing in quality and making improvements to their programs which the enriches the environment for the children we?re trying to serve,? said Rapposelli.

According to the Delaware Office of Early Learning, just 28 centers were rated between 3 and 5 stars last year. That jumped to 88 this year. 21 earned the highest rating of 5 stars, up from 13 a year ago. 4 star rated facilities surged from 11 to 48 in the past 12 months and 3 star providers jumped from 14 to 19.

?It?s exciting to see programs improve in terms of their quality because ultimately what that means is that kids are getting a better education before they start kindergarten and [they're] getting off to a great start, said Lt Governor Matt Denn. ?So, for us it?s not just about a 3, or a 4, or a 5 star. It really translates into kids being able to thrive in school.?

The program received a major boost in the last 18 months, helped by $22 million set aside by the state for early childhood education and part of the $50 million Delaware won in the federal Race to the Top Early Learning challenge.

Those funds have led the state to set an ambitious goal for the Stars program ? to have 80 percent of high need children in a rated program in 5 years. The state was at 20 percent a year ago. It stands at 31 percent this year.

Markell emphasized that means there?s still work to do to reach the state?s goal and a ?culture of high expectations? must be maintained.

?It?s not enough to put the money in. We?ve got to make sure we?re delivering,? said Markell ?So, the culture of high expectations has to be across the board. If centers are applying, let?s make sure we?re working with them to get them going. We have to work with parents, providers, everybody.?

Source: http://www.wdde.org/34499-delaware-early-childhood-eductaion-program

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