skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Rating Child Care Like Hotels & Restaurants

play audio
Play

Wednesday, August 7, 2013   

PHOENIX - People dine at five-star restaurants or watch movies given four stars by reviewers. Now, there's a nationwide shift under way to provide similar guidelines for parents looking for a quality preschool or child care.

Nearly every state now is planning or implementing a Quality Rating Improvement System, said Debi Mathias, director of the QRIS National Learning Network, which goes beyond just helping a parent find a safe place to "park" children under age five.

"We can have well-qualified, skilled teachers working with parents to give us the best possible outcomes in school readiness for young children," she said.

President Obama has made access to universal pre-kindergarten a goal of his administration.

Research shows that around 90 percent of brain development happens by age five, and Mathias said 60 percent of children in that early age group spend time in the care of someone other than their parents.

"That's amazing, isn't it? And we want to make sure that the experiences children are having are really focused on providing the best possible support for them," she said, "so that they can be solidly ready for school - and life in general, too."

Miriam Calderon, a senior partner in the firm School Readiness Consulting, said the ratings systems now being created and implemented around the nation have to include an easily understood method of informing parents.

"It's not just about sort of adding a couple stars," she said, "or adding a label to a program and saying, 'This is a five-star program.' There has to be a lot of effort to really help parents understand what that means."

Hundreds of experts from around the nation met last week in Washington to share ideas on assessing, improving and communicating the level of quality in early care and education settings.

More information is online at buildinitiative.org.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021