Owners and directors from area child care providers in Cooke, Fannin and Grayson counties came together on February 22, 2014 for a day of training and recognition at the Texoma Workforce Development Board.The Board offered the Communicating Quality as a Center Advantage and S-M-A-R-TLow-Cost Marketing training as the kick-off training event for the 2014 Director’s Academy. Prior to the training, Julie Craig, Child Care Contracts Manager with the Board, recognized area Texas Rising Star providers in attendance. Pictured below are the recognized Texas Rising Star providers at the training event.

(L-R) Beverly Bethel (Footsteps & Fingerprints, Bonham), Jana Wood (Leonard ISD Children’s Center, Leonard), Mary McDowell(The Children’s Tree Learning Center, Whitesboro), Julie Craig (Child Care Contracts Manager for the Texoma Workforce Development Board), Kathleen Todd & Haleen Parrish (The School Zone Academy, Howe), Belinda Segrest (Kiddie Kampus II, Denison), Kodi Rigsbay (Happy Days Child Development Center, Denison).

After the recognition, all owners and directors in attendance participated in a three-hour, hands-on learning experience, focused on using quality in their marketing strategy.

A Texas Rising Star provider is a child care provider that voluntarily meets requirements that exceed the State’s Minimum Licensing Standards for child care facilities. The Texas Rising Star Provider certification system provides graduated levels of certification as providers meet progressively higher standards. The Texas Rising Star program is a quality-recognition program of the Texas Workforce Commission.

Other Texas Rising Star providers in the three-county region include Angela Bell’s Registered Home (Angie’s Angels, Sadler), Colleen Hellman’s Licensed Home (Gainesville), Crossroads Learning Center (Leonard), Francina Dehorney’s Licensed Home (Ms. D’s Group Day Care Home, Denison), and Tammy Gregory’s Licensed Home (Gainesville). Additionally, the Montessori Academy of North Texas (Sherman) is a nationally accredited program through the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

The Texoma Workforce Development Board’s 2014 Director’s Academy will continue throughout the year and will offer   4-6 director specific trainings. For more information on child care provider training opportunities, go to http://www.workforcesolutionstexoma.com/child-care-training/ and for additional information about the importance of quality child care, visit www.qualitycountstexoma.com.