Steps To Excellence Project

About the Program

Category: Children and Youth (Best in Category)

Year: 2010

The Steps to Excellent Project (STEP) is Los Angeles County’s first child care quality rating and improvement system. Designed and administered by the County of Los Angeles Office of Child Care, STEP’s primary goal is to provide parents with concise and accurate information on the quality of individual child development programs. STEP also offers trainings, workshops and fiscal incentives to support child care program’s quality improvement efforts. STEP was launched as a pilot in July 2007 and operates in eleven communities within the county. Currently, over 300 child care programs serving children from birth to five years of age have applied to participate in STEP and over 100 have been rated. STEP’s service delivery model is diverse, including both licensed family child care homes and licensed child care centers from the private and public sectors. It uses researched-based tools and an innovative rating methodology to determine the quality of care young children are receiving. STEP also advocates for increased accountability and distinguishes child care programs that meet higher quality standards by publicly posting rating results. By implementing STEP, the County of Los Angeles has demonstrated its support and advocacy for quality child care.