Child care on quality pathway

By MERANDA WATLING
mwatling@journalandcourier.com

December 5, 2007

The difference between child care centers, preschools, ministries and home providers is something even professionals have a hard time explaining to parents looking for child care.

But that task should get easier with a new system of rating providers. The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration announced Tuesday it would begin to phase in the ratings system statewide.

Under the Paths to Quality program, providers across the state will be evaluated and rated from level one -- meeting at least basic health and safety requirements -- to level four -- national accreditation. They will be able to move up each level by building on the previous one.

"In early child care and education, there are so many options for families," said Marilyn Redmon, executive director of Tippecanoe Child Care. "They can go here or there, preschool, before school, after school, school -- it's really been hard for us as a profession to get together and be aligned.

"I think that's what Paths is going to be able to do. We're all going to talk the same language."

Indiana is ahead of a growing trend toward statewide child care quality rating systems, said Jim Elicker, a Purdue University professor of child development and family studies who helped evaluate the state's pilot program. About 15 states already have programs in place.

The system, which will be phased in from January 2008 through January 2009, will be free and voluntary for child care providers. Tippecanoe County will be in the last phase of the rollout in 2009.

Local resource and referral programs including, The Child Care Resource Network (formerly ConneXions) will work with providers and agencies on guiding them through the different levels. Victoria Matney, program director of the resource network, stressed that level one is still better than no level at all and does require licensure. But, she said, she expects to see most providers aiming to move up to higher levels.

Matney compared the Paths system to movie or hotel ratings: Everyone knows what a four-star hotel is or that three stars on a movie is better than two. By having a consistent rating system for child care providers, Matney said families will better understand what each level means.

"Paths to Quality will help those on the fence whether to become licensed to become licensed," Matney said. "If they're on the fence with accreditation they will become accredited. It will be market driven."

Elicker's group's study concluded that in the pilot areas -- surrounding Fort Wayne and Evansville -- more providers did participate and moved up in the levels, and there was some evidence this translated to actual improvement in quality.

His group will follow the program as it's phased in and conduct an independent evaluation to determine effectiveness.

"If ratings are done in a valid and consistent way, those levels should mean something in terms of what quality means," Elicker said. "It has the potential to have a tremendous impact on the child care system in the state."