Teachers have long had a set of national standards they can meet to demonstrate expertise in their profession, and now family child care providers do, too. With the UFT’s help, 200 members of the union’s Family Child Care Providers Chapter are starting down the path to national accreditation with the National Association for Family Child Care, their profession’s version of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Half of the candidates took their first step on Jan. 18 when they gathered at the UFT’s lower Manhattan headquarters for the first in a series of union-sponsored full-day workshops designed to help them meet the standards for national accreditation. The other half are receiving the training at another site. “As professional early childhood educators, we are always striving to improve our skills and the standing of our profession,” said UFT Family Child Care Providers Chapter Chair Tammie Miller (left). “NAFCC accreditation indicates to parents and the public that our programs are of the highest quality.” NAFCC sponsors the only nationally recognized accreditation program designed specifically for providers. Providers interested in receiving accreditation must meet basic eligibility requirements and the National Quality Standards for NAFCC Accreditation, which they can do by taking the UFT’s workshops. It is a yearlong commitment, and providers must attend every session in order to earn accreditation.

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