My current full-time gig

While writing grants and promotional materials may not be exactly what I hope to do with my life, my current job is the best I’ve had in terms of both management and program quality. I recently shot some photos and wrote this feature story to build awareness for the program to help it expand.

MSU program improves childcare quality

If home is where the heart is, then it’s no wonder that 54 percent of Mississippi children attend unlicensed home childcare programs.

Known by a variety of names, these businesses whether called “family childcare,” “in-home childcare,” or “family home care,” are places where caregivers open their homes to create safe learning environments. As part of the Mississippi State University Extension Service, the Nurturing Homes Initiative (NHI) partners with these businesses to increase the quality of care.

As the only employees of their own small business, home care providers often operate with limited access to materials that encourage emotional, social, physical, and intellectual growth in children. To fill that void, the Mississippi Department of Human Services, Division of Early Childhood Care and Development, funds NHI to teach best practices and provide supplies.

NHI has worked with over 1,200 in-home child caregivers to improve learning opportunities for over 6,000 children. By meeting with providers in their homes, NHI field technicians provide one-on-one, hands-on mentoring by reviewing lesson materials, discussing challenges and concerns, and modeling age-appropriate activities. While the state requires child caregivers at licensed centers to earn 15 hours of staff development each year, home providers have no state-mandated education requirements and can face challenges accessing education.

“It’s not that these providers don’t want to go to training,” NHI Program Director Tonya Adkins said. “It’s that when they are the only ones running their programs, each day they take off for training is a day they don’t make any money. That’s why we come to them.”

Statistically, the NHI project has yielded positive results. After completing NHI objectives, programs have scored consistently higher on the national Family Care Rating Scale that evaluates space/furnishings, basic care, language/reasoning, social development, adult needs, and the program overall. On five of the sections, the improvement has averaged over one point on the seven-point scale.

“Research consistently supports the fact that the relationship between caregiver and child is a key indicator of the quality of care. When a child receives better quality, supportive and stimulating care, he is more likely to show normal development at two, six, and ten years,” said NHI creator and MSU Extension Professor Louise E. Davis. “We know that the early years are the most important learning years for young children. That’s why we’re there.”

Improving learning environments is the main goal of NHI. Following Hurricane Katrina, the Nurturing Homes Initiative Part II launched to restore and re-establish childcare services for 151 in-home childcare businesses to their pre-Hurricane Katrina care level. Using funds from the Mississippi Department of Human Services, NHI-2 rebuilt playgrounds and fences and enhanced educational services in the 12 coastal counties. By providing safe and secure places for children, parents could return to work and rebuild their lives, knowing their children were well cared for.

Yvette Shelby, owner of Train up a Child Christian Learning Center in Clinton, knows NHI’s impact firsthand. Though she originally completed the program in 2007, she has returned for an online certification program.

“The Nurturing Homes Initiative helped to improve my child care by giving me more accountability,” Shelby said. “Knowing that a representative was coming to my home led me to make sure that I had created a safe and comfortable learning environment for the children.”

NHI recruits providers by offering incentives such as developmentally appropriate learning materials and books, membership in the Adult and Child Food Program, and educational opportunities for advancement.

NHI technical assistant Kelly Carmody said, “Many of the providers that I see have very little materials, if any, for the children to use. With the NHI educational materials, the children have the resources they need to enhance the learning process. The provider becomes more confident.”

By investing in quality, NHI has a lasting impact. “I still reference back and use the ideas and information in those guide books that were given to me, and the children are still enjoying all of the developmental toys provided by Nurturing Homes,” Shelby said. “For every suggestion they made they provided the materials to go along with it. The thing that impressed me most was they did not come to my home just to educate me or just to educate the children; they came to educate me and the children. We looked forward to seeing either one of them each time they arrived. My experience with those ladies is the best.”

In its eleventh year, the NHI has been replicated and expanded to 80 of the state’s 82 counties and is currently being piloted in Puerto Rico. More information about NHI, including how to participate, is available at www.nurturinghomesinitiative.com.

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Official university release to the media

Bonus my site content: screen caps of the report I wrote and designed to nominate this program for an award. The above feature was written based on the report.