Latest News
Participant Spotlight: Shante Parrish Receives United Federation of Teachers Outstanding Provider Award
The United Federation of Teachers has awarded QUALITYstarsNY participant Shante Parrish the Provider Appreciation Award for Outstanding Providers. Shante Parrish is the Owner/Operator Jump for Success, Corp., a group family child care program in the Bronx, NYC.
Happy Provider Appreciation Day!
May 6 is Child Care Provider Appreciation Day. The QUALITYstarsNY team wants to express our gratitude for everything providers do each day for children and families!
Participant Spotlight: Blossom Home Daycare’s Cozy Corner Transformation
In her brief work so far with QUALITYstarsNY, Rosa Cortez has made some wonderful enhancements to create a space in her program for children to feel comfortable and at home in their surroundings.
Learn How the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) Can Benefit Your Early Childhood Program
Did you know child care centers and family providers can receive reimbursement for serving healthy meals and snacks to children in their care? QUALITYstarsNY recently hosted CACFP Information Sessions for family providers and center-based programs to learn about the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), a federal program that helps early childhood programs serve nutritious meals to support children's growth and development. Representatives from the New York State Department of Health and Hunger Solutions [...]
Spotlight: Collaboration with Inspiration by Quality Improvement Specialist Sarah Gould-Houde
By Sarah Gould-Houde, Quality Improvement Specialist for Capital Region I have had the honor and excitement of supporting all modalities of regulated child care serving children from six weeks to five years of age in Warren, Washington and Saratoga Counties for the last five years as a Quality Improvement Specialist (QI Specialist) for QUALITYstarsNY. QUALITYstarsNY is New York State’s Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) for early childhood programs. As the state’s [...]
Invest in New York: Child Care Deserts Grant Opportunity
April 20 Update: QUALITYstarsNY has created a new Child Care Deserts Grant webpage with more information about the grant requirement that providers awarded a Child Care Deserts Grant participate in Start with Stars, a project of QUALITYstarsNY. Visit the new webpage to submit questions about QUALITYstarsNY and Start with Stars from individuals interested in applying for the OCFS Child Care Deserts Grant. QUALITYstarsNY will use these questions to create informational materials and develop Information [...]
Governor Hochul Maintains $5 Million Funding for QUALITYstarsNY in the NYS Budget for FY 2023
On January 18, Governor Kathy Hochul released the New York State Executive Budget for fiscal year 2022-2023 (FY 2023). We are pleased to share that the Governor maintained the state’s $5 million funding for QUALITYstarsNY in the proposed budget for the next fiscal year. QUALITYstarsNY thanks the Governor for continuing to demonstrate her strong commitment to young children and families as a champion of New York’s early childhood education system. Sustaining QUALITYstarsNY’s Expansion In [...]
Apply for the Winter/Spring 2022 Quality Improvement Specialist Pipeline Project
22-Hour Certificate Program for Early Childhood Leaders In partnership with the New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute, QUALITYstarsNY is offering a 22-hour certificate program for experienced early childhood leaders interested in learning the skills to advance their career, deepen their understanding of high quality early childhood education practices, and position themselves for success as a Quality Improvement Specialist candidate. Update January 26, 2022: The application window is [...]
New Requirement for Training Standards Starting April 1, 2022
QUALITYstarsNY has several Quality Standards related to staff trainings that can earn programs points during the rating process. As of April 1, 2022, trainings must be entered into The Aspire Registry for approval in order for programs to earn points for the applicable training Standards. Programs may still earn points toward their rating for trainings that take place before April 1, 2022 that are not entered as approved events in Aspire, as long as [...]
Lawmakers visit Exploration Acres as Last Stop on Child Care Listening Tour
On December 1, QUALITYstarsNY participant Exploration Acres hosted lawmakers for the final stop of NYS Senator Jabari Brisport’s state-wide child care listening tour. Owned and operated by René & Paul Leonard, Exploration Acres is a group family child care program in Granville—located in Washington County in northern New York, which joined QUALITYstarsNY during the pandemic. Their QUALITYstarsNY Quality Improvement Specialist Sarah Gould-Houde also joined for the visit to discuss the importance of quality in early [...]