Child Care Quality

NY Quality Child Care

QUALITYstarsNY is a voluntary program that supports high-quality childcare statewide for all types of early childhood providers. Participating in QUALITYstarsNY is a commitment to excellence. Programs receive support and resources to strengthen the quality of their program and sustain high-quality care. Programs are rated according to system criteria and receive support and encouragement for continuous quality improvement (i.e., continuous efforts to strengthen and sustain the ability to promote healthy child development).
Ask your employees to look for programs that participate in QUALITYstarsNY. It’s hard to find child care.  It’s even harder to know how to compare child care programs and understand the quality of the settings. QUALITYstarsNY is designed to take the guess work out of looking for quality child care for parents.

Choosing Child Care

Choosing child care is one of the most important decisions parents make for their children. The Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) partners with Child Care Resource Centers across the state to deliver a variety of services focused on parents, child care and after-school providers – helping parents to find quality child care and helping child care programs to offer quality care.

Child Care Resource Centers

There are 35 Child Care Resource Centers throughout New York. Staff specialists help parents locate and choose quality child care by providing referrals to local child care providers, information on state licensing requirements, availability of child care subsidies, and other information.
Resources for Parents
For some excellent tips on how to identify whether a child care program is considered “good quality” or not, check out the Parent Guide offered by Child Care Solutions. While this guide is geared for those looking for child care in Cayuga and Onondaga Counties, the tips are helpful for anyone looking for child care anywhere in New York State. They even offer a helpful checklist!