December 2002

A coalition with a growing and impressive list of 150 member educators, parents, government officials, civic leaders and early care directors are improving the quality of pre-school services in the Richmond region.

The Greater Richmond Early Child Development Coalition (ECDC) was founded by Youth Matters, Success by 6(r) and Action Alliance for Virginia's Children and Youth.

"ECDC focuses on pre-schools, home or center-based, to secure a better learning environment so kids enter school ready to learn," says Lisa Specter, deputy director for Youth matters. "This is a vital part of Youth Matters' campaign to have all Richmond region 3rd graders reading at grade level by 2010."

A key focus is helping providers achieve national accreditation, as there are no pre-school standards in Virginia. ECDC helps providers achieve accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The accreditation process is rigorous. After applying, a provider must complete an extensive self-study and then have their programs be reviewed on-site by a team of professionals. Ultimately a national commission decides whether to grant a three-year accreditation. Providers must comply with any recommendations for improvement from NAEYC and provide annual reports in order to retain accreditation. There are many accreditation criteria, including curriculum, staff qualifications and training, staff/child ratios, and interaction among teachers and children.

"There are only 20 accredited providers in the Richmond region," says Cynthia Jones, director of Success by 6(r) for the United Way. "We wanted to start by doubling that number and develop momentum so that others want to get on board, and that's what's happening."

ECDC is working with 20 centers and 10 home providers to achieve accreditation. ECDC provides these providers with a consultant who is an early childhood expert and helps providers improve their programs to meet the accreditation criteria. ECDC also covers the cost of accreditation and validation fees, provides scholarships for teacher education and grants for site improvements. The coalition expects 12of the 30 programs will be ready for accreditation by early 2003. The remainder will either be supported through an existing grant, or through a new grant recently awarded by the Robins Foundation. Fifteen additional centers will begin the accreditation process through the two-year Robins grant.

The ECDC is funded though a federal Early Learning Opportunities Act (ELOA) grant. Barbara Couto, Success by 6(r) early child development coordinator, manages the work of the ECDC. The Robins Foundation funding will support ongoing staffing for the Coalition as it continues to grow. In addition,

The ECDC partners, with the support of the Robins Foundation and counsel from the Families and Work Institute, have begun to develop a comprehensive early learning system for Richmond and a plan to engage the corporate community in this work.

For more information on this website about Youth Matters, click here. For more information on this website about early childhood interventions, click here.