THE INITIATIVE
The Quality Child Care Initiative (QCCI) was formally launched in June 1998 following nearly a year of research and planning. The Initiative is based on the belief that every child deserves a good start in life and that all families should have access to high quality early education and care, regardless of their ability to pay.

The QCCI is a long-term, strategic initiative focused on improving the quality of early education and care in Stark County. The Initiative's purpose is to: offer Stark County's children, ages birth through eight, the finest early education and care in the country. The public announcement of the Quality Child Care Initiative in 1998 has led to funding commitments of over $6 million for this work. The Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine and the Foundation's Board and Staff remain steadfast in their determination to make a difference in the lives of young children in Stark County.

In addition to the Quality Child Care Initiative, the Foundation received over 4 million dollars from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation for the SPARK Initiative (Supporting Partnerships to Assure Ready Kids). For more detailed information about SPARK visit the website at www.sparkohio.org

The Quality Child Care Initiative's four focus areas are accreditation, professional development, support services, and public awareness.

Accreditation
The Foundation is interested in improving the overall quality of early education and care in centers, preschools, and family child care homes throughout Stark County. Requests for Proposals are periodically offered to local nonprofit centers and preschools that are interested in pursuing accreditation through the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Support for accreditation of family child care homes through the National Association of Family Child Care is provided periodically through the Family Child Care project at the Early Childhood Resource Center.

Professional Development
The Early Childhood Resource Center (ECRC) opened its doors in March 2000 and was created to provide educational opportunities and supports to early childhood professionals working in all settings, including family child care homes, child care centers, Head Start programs, and school districts in Stark County. Parents and other professionals who serve young children also participate and make use of the resources provided. The ECRC provides on-site training programs and houses a state-of-the-art production lab, classrooms, and offices. With a significant investment in resources the ECRC, in collaboration with the Stark County District Library, houses a lending library. This library contains a collection of children's fiction and non-fiction books, Big Books, videos, CDs and tapes. There is also a broad selection of parent/teacher resource books and professional videos. The Center provides opportunities for early childhood educators at every level.

Located at 3114 Cleveland Avenue, NW in Canton the Center is open weekdays and some evenings. For more information, call (330) 491-ECRC (3272) or visit their web site at http://www.ecresourcecenter.org/

Support Services
Support services for child care centers and family child care providers are developed in response to needs identified through the Foundation's ongoing evaluation efforts in Stark County. The Family Child Care Project was funded as a result of an independent survey of 1,000 households in Stark County completed in 1999. Results showed that over 50% of children under the age of five were being cared for in home-based settings. Since then, the Foundation has provided several grants to establish a comprehensive support program for family child care providers. Nearly 200 family child care providers are now served through this outreach program. Resources, family child care accreditation support, scholarships, and training opportunities are just a few of the services now available to family child care providers.

Public Awareness
Efforts to advocate for local, state, and national support are ongoing. The Foundation has committed financial as well as staff resources toward ongoing advocacy efforts at the local, state, and national levels.

The Sisters of Charity Foundation's Board of Directors and Staff remain steadfast in their determination to make a difference in the lives of young children in Stark County. For more information, contact the Foundation's President, Joni T. Close at: jclose@scfcanton.org.