Improving and Sustaining Quality Child Care is an activity in the Early Childhood Initiatives Department within Wake County Smart Start. Quality Enhancement Specialists (QES) work with 1, 2, 3 and 4-star child care facilities to improve the quality of early education for children. Facilities must apply to participate. Participating facilities receive a variety of services including consultation, training, and technical assistance at no cost. The facility is assigned a QES who will work with the staff to design an improvement plan based on ratings from the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS-R) or the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS-R). Priority for participation is given to facilities having the greatest percentage of children enrolled that receive a subsidy.
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