Research shows that there is a direct link between quality child care/education and well-trained and knowledgeable professionals. This is why quality child care - care that provides a loving, nurturing, stimulating, and stable environment - helps children reach all of the developmental milestones that will enable them to succeed in school and in life.
With our help, early care and education and school age child care professionals in all kinds of programs can improve their skills and practices in areas ranging from child development and best practices to administration and management. Because our economy demands that most parents work, most children spend significant amounts of time in non-home settings. Thus, the future of our community depends, in significant measure, on the quality of care our children receive from the professionals in the field.
Research tells us that investing in decent salaries and benefits for these professionals, and in their ongoing education and training is linked to higher quality care. (The Children of the Cost, Quality and Outcomes Study Go To School, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center, 1999)