Rating Point System
All QUALITYstarsNY programs are on a path to excellence and earn a Star Rating. With ongoing support and resources, programs at every Star level enhance and sustain their quality over time.
A program’s Star Rating is determined using a point system. Sites earn points for meeting Standards in each of the four categories: Learning Environment, Family Engagement, Qualifications & Experience, Management & Leadership.
Overview of the Rating Process
All QUALITYstarsNY programs complete the rating process by submitting a Standards Inventory where they provide evidence to demonstrate which Quality Standards their program meets. When a program demonstrates that they meet a quality indicator, they earn points toward their rating score.
Programs receive a Provisional Rating of 1-5 Stars before the Active Rating is issued. The Provisional Rating is based on the points they earned from their Standards Inventory. A Provisional Rating of 3-5 Stars leads to completion of an Environment Rating Scale (ERS) assessment from QUALITYstarsNY’s independent observation team. For these programs, the average score of the ERS observation(s) is combined with their Provisional Rating points to calculate the program’s Active Rating.
Breaking Down the Point System
ERS Assessment Scores
All sites can earn up to 290 possible points before receiving points for the ERS assessment conducted by QUALITYstarsNY’s independent assessment team. Programs Provisionally Rated 3-5 Stars can earn up to 50 points based on their ERS assessment scores.
Standards Based on Site-specific Conditions
Some Standards relate to best practices when serving specific populations of children, which only apply to programs that meet the condition. Up to 20 possible additional points may be scored depending on the populations of children served. These conditions include:
- Serving infants
- Serving toddlers/preschoolers
- Serving children with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs)/ or Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs)
- Serving children whose home language is not English
- Serving 50% or more of children whose home language is not English
Score Threshold Requirements
- Programs that do no earn at least 10% of total points in each category will automatically receive a rating of 1 Star.
- Programs that undergo an ERS assessment as part of the rating process and earn an average score of 4.25 or below will automatically decrease a Star level for their Active Rating.
| Learning Environment | Family Engagement | Qualifications & Experience | Management & Leadership | Total Possible for All Sites | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total possible for all sites (with no ERS & site-specific conditions) | 53 | 57 | 90 | 90 | 290 |
| Minimum points required to exceed threshold of 10% of points in category | 6 | 6 | 9 | 9 | N/A |
| Total possible for all sites with ERS (with no site-specific conditions) | 103 | 57 | 90 | 90 | 340 |
| Total possible under all conditions with ERS | 108 | 72 | 90 | 90 | 360 |
Provisional Rating Calculation
To calculate a site’s Provisional Rating, divide the number of points earned, including any conditional points but without ERS points, by the total possible points (without ERS) and multiply that number by 100. The resulting percentage determines the site’s star level.
Active Rating Calculation
For programs Provisionally Rated 1-2 Stars, their Star Rating becomes their Active Rating.
Programs Provisionally Rated 3-5 Stars will undergo an independent ERS assessment. To calculate a site’s Active Rating, add the number of points earned in the independent ERS observation to points earned in the Provisional Rating, divide that by the total possible points, now including the 50 total possible ERS points, and multiply that number by 100. Programs that score below a 4.25 on their independent assessment will automatically drop a star level, regardless of the final point calculation.
*Please note that decimal points are not rounded up. Ex: a resulting percentage of 59.56% is 59% (3 Stars).
Example of Points and Star Rating Calculation
Program A is a preschool program that serves children with special needs. Like all other sites, Program A is eligible for up to 290 points before factoring in the ERS points. Since Program A also meets the requirements for Standards CPI 7 & PH 2, an additional 4 points can be earned. Therefore, Program A’s Provisional Rating is based on the number of points earned out of 294.
Program A receives 168 points from their Standards Inventory submissions before factoring in an independent ERS observations. The 168 points they earned is divided by 294 and multiplied by 100 to obtain 57%. Program A therefore receives a Provisional Rating of 3 Stars.
Provisional Rating: 168 ÷ 294 = .57 X 100 = 57% 3 Stars
Since Program A earned a Provisional Rating of 3 Stars, an ERS assessment will be conducted to calculate their final rating. Program A receives an average ECERS-R score of 5.25 for a total of 40 additional points (Standards CE3-5). The 40 points are added to the initial 168 points for a total of 208 points. Since sites can receive up to 50 additional points for the ERS observations, 50 is added to the 294 original total possible points for a total now of 344. 208 is divided by 344 and multiplied by 100 to obtain 60%. Program A therefore receives an Active Rating of 4 Stars.
Provisional Rating: 208 ÷ 344 = .60 X 100 = 60% 4 Stars