Early Learning Center receives national accreditation

After a year-long, four-step process, the Jamestown Early Learning Center has earned accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children or the NAEYC.

Of the 418 licensed centers in Rhode Island, only 72 are accredited.

Centers applying for this national honor must complete an extensive application process, a highly trained program assessor visits the program to determine that it is meeting the NAEYC standards, and then the results are reviewed by a national panel in Washington DC. The NAEYC has developed 10 standards for high-quality early childhood education.

Programs that meet these standards provide a safe and healthy environment for children, have teachers that are well trained, have access to excellent teaching materials, and work with a curriculum that is appropriately challenging and developmentally sound.

In Jamestown, the Jamestown Early Learning Center is the only preschool or childcare program that is nationally accredited. By earning accreditation, the Jamestown Early Learning Center has become a leader in a national effort to raise the quality of early childhood education, and to give all children a better start.