Do You Know That Washington State Supports Universal Preschool?

This could mean any number of things could happen in our childcare's in the future if this succeeds. It might mean that three and four year old children will be bused to the local elementary school. It could also mean a certified teacher could come to your childcare to teach pre kindergarten curriculum. There may be "Quality Grants" for providers who would like to further their education and also pay for pre kindergarten supplies.

By December 1st, Governor Gregoire will have her recommendations sent to her by DEL. We strongly urge each provider reading this to contact Bette Hyde, Director of DEL and give your input on this important subject that will affect all of us. You can email her at Bette.Hyde@del.wa.gov.

The Department of Early Learning (DEL) recently released Child Care Check. For many, it looks similar to LCCIS – the Licensed Child Care Information System. That’s because it has much of the same look-and-feel, and the intent is the same: to provide parents a way to look up the license history of a provider, and the general nature of any valid complaints.

We’ve made several changes (with input from parents and providers) to improve the usefulness of this tool, including:

  • More information on things like full license versus probationary license.
  • A vastly improved FAQ section.
  • A clearer outline for parents on other resources they can use to find child care.
  • Changing the name to more clearly reflect the purpose of this tool, so that parents know just where to go to find out more about providers.
  • Make the feedback link more obvious so people can talk to us about how Child Care Check works for them.

Many thanks to those from the Columbia River Family Child Care Association who offered input in this process to make the newly named Child Care Check much more user-friendly.

This isn’t the end of changes. We still have many goals in sight. Please use the feedback link and tell us what you’d like to see in the future. Thanks so much for your continued support and great ideas.

--Brandon Chapman, DEL Child Care Check Coordinator