Child Development and Family Center earns State of Illinois Gold rating

NIU Child Development and Family Center (CDFC) maintained the ExceleRate Illinois Gold Circle of Quality, a quality rating system for early childhood programs in Illinois that focuses on four areas: teaching and learning, family and community engagement, leadership and management, and qualifications and continuing education.

“We go through the renewal process each year as a way to show the community, our students and families that we are the highest quality early learning environment, and we are committed to maintaining the highest standards for care and education for the children in our care,” said Kristin Schulz, executive director of the CDFC. “Gold Circle programs meet or exceed specific quality benchmarks on learning environment, instructional quality, and all program administrative standards.”

The four possible ExceleRate program ratings include licensed, bronze, silver and gold, with gold being the highest rating available.

“As a publicly facing university organization,  CDFC continues its provision of high-quality early childhood programming to NIU and DeKalb communities,” said Thomas Pavkov, chair, School of Family and Consumer Sciences. “Congratulations to Kristin and her staff on work well done.”

Schulz said the CDFC team takes great pride in earning the ExceleRate Illinois Gold Circle of Quality.

“The staff members at the CDFC are dedicated to making sure they are meeting and exceeding expectations set by the state,” Schulz said. “We have highly educated and trained professionals who are working with students, children and families to meet their individual needs.”

For example, each teacher at the CDFC takes 20 or more professional development hours annually, which amounts to more than 500 hours of additional training on a wide variety of topics.

“Our staff is the best, and continues to be the best year after year,” Schulz said. “We show what we can do in supporting and connecting children and families to skills, education and community, and we use this process to learn and grow in a cycle of continuous quality improvement.”

Learn more about the Child Development and Family Center at NIU.

Source: NIU Today CHHS News

36 comments

  1. Congratulations to the Child Development and Family Center on earning the Illinois Gold rating — that’s a big achievement and shows real dedication to quality care and education.

  2. A well-deserved recognition highlighting the Center’s commitment to excellence in early childhood education and family support, reflected in its State of Illinois Gold rating.

  3. That’s amazing to hear! It’s so comforting to know there’s a place with such dedicated teachers who keep learning new ways to help kids grow. Congrats to the whole team on this awesome achievement! Play Orbit Kick

  4. Wow, achieving that Gold rating again is amazing! It’s so reassuring to know there’s a place with such dedicated teachers who keep learning new ways to help kids grow. My little one would love it there. Use Novatools

  5. Congratulations to the Child Development and Family Center for earning the State of Illinois Gold rating. This recognition reflects the dedication of the educators and staff who work hard to support children’s learning, development, and well-being every day. High-quality early childhood programs create strong foundations for families and communities. Achievements like this truly deserve to be celebrated and shared. Wishing the center continued success and growth in the future. If you enjoy discovering creative ideas and resources, feel free to visit https://www.vicpainter.com/.

  6. It’s inspiring to see the CDFC consistently meet the Gold Circle of Quality benchmarks, ensuring a top-tier learning environment for children. High-quality visual resources are such a big part of effective teaching and learning these days, and I’ve found that using nano banana 2 is a fantastic way to create consistent, high-resolution images for classroom activities.

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