(FRANKFORT, Ky.) – Four state-funded preschool programs have been designated Centers of Quality, a new recognition program from the Kentucky Department of Education’s Division of Early Childhood Development.
The four are:
· Calloway County Preschool/Head Start
· Fleming County Head Start/Preschool
· Hager Preschool, Owensboro Independent
· Jessamine Early Learning Village, Jessamine County
The Centers of Quality designation was developed this year as a response to stakeholder recommendations for statewide services to deaf/hard of hearing and blind/visually impaired students. Successful applicants for the designation included the following components:
· state-funded preschool program located in a stand-alone facility with an on-site administrator
· on-site services provided to children with visual and hearing impairments
· services provided within regular early childhood classrooms
· national or regional early childhood accreditation
· Kentucky Early Childhood Standards and Parent Guides implemented
· ongoing assessment data utilized in classroom instructional planning
· professional development individualized for the staff.
Early Childhood Centers that achieve this distinction will serve as models of practice for other districts in the region through on-site consultation, mentoring, and presentations at state, regional and national levels. This year’s Centers of Quality were recognized during the RTC Summer Institute at the Lexington Convention Center and Hyatt Regency on Monday, June 9.
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