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STEP Child Care Quality Rating Guide
Application Materials
STEP Scoring Matrices
Quality Improvement Training Opportunities
Quality Improvement Resources
STEP Policy Handbook
Board of Supervisors Motion to Approve the Implementation Plan
STEP Outreach Presentation
STEP Brochure (English / Spanish)
STEP Contact Information
What is STEP?
The Steps to Excellence Project (STEP) is Los Angeles County’s first pilot quality rating and improvement system for licensed child care programs serving children ages 0-5.
STEP was developed by the Policy Roundtable for Child Care and is administered by the Office of Child Care within the Service Integration Branch of the Los Angeles County Chief Executive Office.
The purpose of STEP is to:
- Provide parents with clear, concise information on the quality of individual child care settings
- Create incentives and supports for programs to meet and maintain higher program standards
- Distinguish programs that are meeting these higher standards
- Provide benchmarks to determine if the quality of care in individual programs or communities is improving over time
Who can participate in STEP?
Participation in STEP is voluntary.
Child development centers and licensed family child care homes serving children ages 0-5 located in any of the following STEP pilot communities are eligible to participate in STEP:
- Altadena
- Florence/Firestone (zip code 90001)
- Inglewood
- Long Beach
- Pacoima/Arleta
- Palmdale
- Pasadena
- Pomona
- San Pedro
- Santa Monica
- Wilmington
Applicants must also possess a child care license for at least one year in order to participate in STEP.
What services does STEP offer?
Child care programs that choose to participate in STEP will be eligible to receive:
- A one-time grant (up to $5,000) to support quality improvements that directly relate to STEP quality areas;
- Priority enrollment in free quality improvement trainings and workshops sponsored by the Office of Child Care; and
- A free on-site observation and quality rating conducted by highly trained and reliable reviewers.
How does STEP rate child care quality?
STEP examines six areas of a child care program’s operation. These areas have been shown by research and best practice to impact the quality of care, and include:
- Regulatory Compliance
- Teacher/Child Relationships
- Learning Environment
- Identification and Inclusion of Children with Special Needs
- Staff Qualifications and Working Conditions
- Family and Community Connections
The quality of each of these areas is rated using a scale of one to five. The following is a brief summary of what the different STEP quality levels mean:
STEP 1: Beginning Quality Level
STEP 2: Intermediate Quality Level
STEP 3: Good Quality Level
STEP 4: Advanced Quality Level
STEP 5: Excellent Quality Level
A child care program’s overall STEP quality rating is the result of the program’s demonstrated ability to meet STEP’s quality criteria per each quality area. Click on either of the following links to view more information regarding STEP’s quality criteria and rating system:
What do the STEP ratings mean?
All programs rated by STEP have a three-year history of substantial compliance with child care licensing regulations. Programs rated at STEP 1 meet these basic health and safety regulations. Programs with scores of 2 and above exceed basic regulations. As STEP scores increase, so do the environmental, relational and educational standards for child care professionals working with young children. Programs with higher STEP ratings have demonstrated an ability to meet the various quality criteria that support early learning and healthy emotional development of young children.
Who is participating in STEP?
As of January 2010, over 300 family child care homes and child development centers have volunteered to participate in the Steps to Excellence Project, and over 100 programs have received a STEP Quality Rating.
View the STEP Child Care Quality Rating Guide to view quality ratings achieved by each STEP rated child care program.
Application Materials
Licensed child care programs – both centers and family child care homes – within the STEP pilot communities are invited and encouraged to participate in STEP. Click on one of the following links to download a STEP application packet:
For Centers:
For Family Child Care Homes:
To download the materials, you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available at most browsers. Read the instruction on how to install Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Quality Improvement Training Opportunities
A new STEP Training Catalogue for Early Childhood Educators is posted online and distributed to STEP participants every quarter. The catalogue features trainings and workshops especially designed to help child care programs improve their quality prior to receiving a STEP Quality Assessment Site Visit. All trainings are free and open to any child care professional working with young children ages 0-5. Click here to view a copy of the most current catalogue.
For more information about trainings, contact STEP Training Coordinator Doris Monterroso via email at dmonterroso@ceo.lacounty.gov or by telephone at (213) 974-9526.
Quality Improvement Resources
STEP Contact Information
For more information on STEP, contact Helen Chavez, STEP Project Manager by e-mail at hchavez@ceo.lacounty.gov or by telephone at (213) 893-0505.
Office
of Child Care, within the Service Integration Branch
of the Chief Executive Office
222 S. Hill St., 5th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 974-4103 Phone – (213) 217-5106 Fax
Office
of Child Care Home Page
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