Quality Improvement Specialists Kathy Moss, Maria Stella Lundie, and Simone Taylor recently participated in the Eco-Healthy Child Care® Environment Training in New York City. The training focused on the importance of creating safe, healthy, and environmentally friendly child care settings for young children. The training provided an overview of what makes a child care environment eco-friendly, with a special focus on environmental hazards and the risks they pose to young children.

Each October, National Farm to School Month celebrates the many ways local farms and gardens connect children with their communities while fostering healthy eating and new skills. The month also features Farm to CACFP Week, October 18–24, which promotes incorporating local foods and gardening into nutritious Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) meal patterns. In recognition, we’re highlighting QUALITYstarsNY participating programs that make farm-to-school practices part of their daily activities.

In May, the CUNY School of Professional Studies (CUNY SPS) celebrated the first-ever graduating class of the School’s Spanish-language Child Development Associate (CDA) cohort. The CDA certificate supports preschool teachers, childcare workers, and others pursuing careers in early childhood education through required coursework, advisement, career services, and additional support. This is the School’s first CDA to be offered in a language other than English.

Yohaina Martinez and Gaby Paulino-Pena were honored at the 2026 National Association for Family Child Care Annual Conference for graduating from the NAFCC Leaders Shaping Leaders Academy. This Academy is a year-long series of professional development sessions intended to cultivate future leaders by pairing them with peer mentors, who share strategies and insights regarding family child care leadership. These conversations are immediately applicable in their day-to-day work and create a network of fellow leaders and connections in the field. QUALITYstarsNY interviewed Yohaina and Gaby about their experience in Leaders Shaping Leaders.

In June, QUALITYstarsNY attended the 2026 Early Care & Learning Council Annual Meeting to celebrate the network of Child Care Resource Centers across New York State. During the event, Julie Champion, the Executive Director of Child & Family Resources, Inc., who regularly connects with our Finger Lakes Quality Improvement Specialists, received the Child Care Resource Leadership Award. We are proud to celebrate her for her outstanding leadership and consistent support for children and families throughout the state.