Day Care at VGCC Franklin Campus awarded Five Stars
The state of North Carolina has once again awarded a five-star rating — the highest possible rating — to the Child Care Center at Vance-Granville Community College’s Franklin County Campus .
State evaluators recently conducted an examination of the center using the Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scale (ECERS). They evaluated the center on 43 different measurements, falling under one of seven categories, including: space and furnishings, personal care routines, language reasoning, activities, interaction, program structure and parents and staff. Items for measurement could be as specific as hand-washing procedures or the number of fiction books available in the classroom. Like its counterpart on the college’s main campus, the facility earned the five-star rating this year for having a knowledgeable and dedicated staff, a safe and attractive environment, and opportunities for children to develop mentally, physically and socially. The center scored a total of 14 out of a possible 15 points.
Day Care Center manager Michelle Patterson expressed her satisfaction at earning the high rating and said she was especially pleased for what it means to the children. “There is a direct link between the number of stars earned and the quality of care at a center,” she said. Since the Division of Child Development of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services began the current system of rating child care centers in 2000, the centers on VGCC’s Main Campus and Franklin County Campus have both earned the five-star rating in four consecutive evaluations (2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010). “I would like to personally thank all my staff who worked so hard for months to earn this renewal,” Patterson said. “I also appreciate the Franklin County Campus faculty and staff, especially Early Childhood instructor Tina Dekle, for her expert advice, the purchasing staff and the maintenance staff. It truly does take a village to raise a child!” Patterson pointed out that not only does the center provide outstanding child care, but it also affords an excellent learning environment for students in Vance-Granville’s Early Childhood Associate program.
“I am very proud of the five-star status maintained by our child care staff,” Franklin Campus Dean Bobbie Jo May said. “We are very fortunate to have quality day care that we can provide to our students, staff and the community.”
Boasting two classrooms, a kitchen and fenced-in outside play area, the Child Care Center on Franklin Campus is licensed to accommodate 22 children, ages two to five years. Due to the recent graduation of several older students, spaces for several children are currently available for the fall semester. For more information or to enroll children at the center, call Michelle Patterson at (919) 496-1567.
Above: The staff of the VGCC Franklin Campus Child Care Center, including, from left, Sheila Davis, Michelle Patterson, Teresa Gallatin, Lawanda Wilkerson, and Latoya Mayo, celebrate the center’s fourth consecutive five-star rating from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (VGCC Photo)
