Child Care Council News and Events

Child Care Council Inc. is the newest recipient of the prestigious CDA Gold Standard following a quality review of their training and student services by the Council for Professional Recognition (the Council). The CDA Gold Standard is part of the Council’s early childhood education effort to help CDA students find the high-quality training and student services they need in preparation for the CDA exam and a career as an early childhood educator.

“Child Care Council is honored to earn the CDA Gold Standard,” said Kristin Perrone, director of professional development and Region II Infant Toddler Resource Center, Child Care Council Inc. “This recognition demonstrates the quality of our in-person and online training programs to give child care providers the tools and information they need to succeed in early childhood education. We share the online program honor with our valuable partner, Cypherworx.”

Earning the CDA Gold Standard is recognition that Child Care Council Inc. successfully demonstrated that its early childhood education training is based on the Council’s three industry-leading principles of:

1. Alignment with the CDA formal education coursework found in the CDA’s Eight Subject Areas.
2. Sound business policies and practices.
3. Quality student services that meet their educational and professional needs.

“We believe that the Council’s CDA Gold Standard award adds value and integrity to the early childhood profession by verifying connections between the Council’s proven teacher competencies and the quality of training resources available to CDA students,” said Valora Washington, chief executive officer, Council for Professional Recognition.

In addition to offering high-quality training, CDA Gold Standard applicants must provide evidence that they serve the CDA student community with excellence, which includes professional development that prepares students for successful completion of their training program.

“It’s exciting to think about the many young children, families, and communities that will benefit from the high-quality education and training students will receive from Child Care Council Inc., a CDA Gold Standard organization,” Washington added.

About The Council for Professional Recognition
For more than 30 years, the Council for Professional Recognition has been the leader in promoting improved performance and recognition of professionals in the early childhood education of children ages zero to 5 years old. The Council recognizes and credentials professionals who work in all types of early care and education settings – Head Start, pre-k, infant-toddler, family child care, and home visitor programs. As a non-profit agency, the Council sets policies and procedures for assessment and credentialing, including the CDA® and the new CDA Gold Standard; publishes the industry leading training books and workbooks, including its CDA Competency Standards and Essentials textbook and workbook (2nd edition). Visit: http://www.hcdacouncil.org

Child Care Council Inc. CEO Barbara-Ann Mattle was named recently to the Notable Women in Human Services Hall of Fame.

The Human Services Council of New York also recognized Barbara-Ann Mattle with the 2020 Strong Nonprofits Leader Award for her work in the human services sector. The honors were part of the Human Services Council of New York’s Women’s History Month celebration of women, past and present, who have made a significant impact in human services and our communities.

“These are incredible honors to be named to the Notable Women in Human Services Hall of Fame and to receive this year’s Strong Nonprofits Leader Award,” Barbara-Ann Mattle said. “This recognition is a testament to my decades of work to improve and support the development of high-quality child care programs in New York state.”

Child Care Council Inc. CEO Barbara-Ann Mattle was selected by the Rochester Business Journal as a 2019 Icon Honors award recipient.

Established in 2017, Icon Honors recognizes Rochester business leaders, over the age of 60, for their notable success and demonstration of strong leadership within and outside their fields. The honorees have moved their businesses and Rochester forward by growing jobs and making a difference in the community. Honorees must have a long-standing commitment to the Rochester business community and significant professional accomplishments through innovation and leadership.

Barbara-Ann Mattle has worked to support child care development and to enhance the quality of child care, both locally and nationally, for 35 years.

“I am honored and humbled to be selected to receive the RBJ’s Icon Honors award,” Barbara-Ann Mattle said. “I have worked tirelessly to improve the quality and increase the quantity of child care in our region. These efforts have included collaborating with the business community and helping new child care businesses get established.”

“This year’s Icon Honors awardees are an impressive group of leaders. They represent a level of professional achievement and community awareness and action that is truly remarkable,” said Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, group publisher of the Rochester Business Journal. “They spark innovation and progress, in Rochester and beyond. The Rochester Business Journal is pleased to honor them.”

The Icon Honors awards were presented Dec. 9, 2019 at a reception at Genesee Valley Club in Rochester.

The New York State Council on Children and Families (CCF) announced that its New York State Birth Through Five Project (NYSB5) will award grants of to Child Care Council and other Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies to identify challenges and collaboratively assess their region’s child care needs.

Here’s a WROC TV story about the grant.

Child Care Council was recently featured on News10NBC’s Rochester in Focus show.

You can see the show here.

Child Care Council Inc. CEO Barbara-Ann Mattle has been recognized with a statewide award from the Family Child Care Association of New York State (FCCANYS).

At the recent FCCANYS annual conference, Mattle was honored with the 2018 Friend of Family Child Care Award. She received the award in recognition of her 34 years of supporting family child care development and of her work to enhance the quality of family child care, both locally and nationally. The award also highlighted the numerous educational-program presentations Mattle has given at the association’s annual conferences.

“It is quite an honor to receive this year’s Friend of Family Child Care Award from FCCANYS,” Barbara-Ann Mattle said. “I accepted the award on behalf of the entire Child Care Council leadership team and staff, who work with me to improve the quality and increase the quantity of child care in our region.”

NAFCC honors Council with Accreditation Facilitation Project of the Year award

Child Care Council Inc.’s work to support child care providers has been recognized with a national award.

The National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC) recently presented its Accreditation Facilitation Project of the Year award to the Council for its success in helping nine Latino child care providers to earn their Child Development Associate degree and in developing high quality programs that have earned them NAFCC accreditation. The program’s results actually increased the number of accredited family child care providers in Rochester by 900 percent. The program has now been expanded to include family child care providers from throughout our community.

“All of us at Child Care Council are extremely proud to receive this national recognition,” said Barbara-Ann Mattle, Child Care Council CEO. “This award is a testament not only to our talented Latino services team but to all of our Council staff for the work they do, each and every day, to help child care providers expand their education and enhance the quality of their work with young children. It is our hope that it will also encourage other communities to embrace this quality initiative as a path to the top of their state quality rating systems for family child care providers.”

“This award recognizes Child Care Council for the success of this project, but it also highlights the heart displayed by Council leadership and staff to have a positive impact on providers’ lives,” said Dawn Cramer, accreditation operations manager, NAFCC.

Pictured (from left to right): Hector Santiago; Council CEO Barbara-Ann Mattle; Linda Schumacher, NAFCC accreditation council chair; provider Carmen Gonzalez; Lynne Fisher; Ed Maier; and provider Juanita Sanchez.

Child Care Council Inc. is introducing a new program to give away free books to children of all ages.

Through Books 4 Fun, a collaborative program with the Rochester Public Library, the Council will provide free, gently used books to children in four ways:

– Council staff will distribute the books to legally exempt, family child care homes, school-age child care programs and child care centers during site visits and inspections
– Providers visiting Child Care Council can take a free book for each child in their care
– Children visiting Council offices can take a free book home. In the Rochester office (595 Blossom Road, Suite 120), the books are located in the front office reception area, in the consultation/computer room, and in the Kid Zone in the Repurpose and More Store.
– Council employees also will distribute free books at various community events

The Rochester Public Library is donating books for the program, and it has donated more than 2,000 books to date. Each book includes a Books 4 Fun program sticker with a space for each child to write his or her name as the owner of the book. The Council also is accepting donations of new or gently used children’s books at all its offices.

“Books 4 Fun is at the heart of what Child Care Council is all about – promoting early childhood education and preparing children for the future,” said Barbara-Ann Mattle, Child Care Council CEO. “This collaboration with the Rochester Public Library, focused primarily on children in the city of Rochester, will help ensure that more kids are reading books.”

“Giving books to children and their parents helps parents understand that their children love books at a very young age,” said Shelley Matthews, Rochester Literacy Coordinator, Book Angel Project, Rochester Public Library. “Reading is important to all children’s futures. The Book Angel Project has brought more than two million books into the homes of Rochester’s children.”

The Books 4 Fun program is kicking off first in Rochester and Monroe County, and it will be extended to the Council’s Livingston County (Lakeville) and Wayne County (Newark) branch offices over time. This program builds off the Council’s existing My First Library, which was established in 2001 with financial support from Council volunteer and supporter Joan Frazier. Frazier has been instrumental in working with Council staff to plan and coordinate the Books 4 Fun program as well.

Child Care Council has been selected to receive a Community Health Award from Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.

The award will help fund the Council’s Asthma Friendly Child Care Endorsement initiative, which trains child care programs in Monroe, Wayne and Livingston counties on ways to safely provide care to children with asthma.

Child Care Council is one of nine Monroe County-based nonprofits chosen from among 200 applications to receive an Excellus BCBS Community Health Award. The awards were announced during a news conference on April 20, 2017.