Why An Increasing Number of Early Education Programs Are Partners
Because Partnership...
Increases Services to Children...Through new and innovative approaches to responding to children and their families' needs. For example, through partnership with a local family child care home system, a center-based child care program was able to offer sick child care and care during non-traditional center hours.
Enhances Family Services...By calling upon the family service expertise of its partner. For example, a local pre-K/school readiness program partnered with Head Start to offer full family services to those enrolled, including mental health support groups and monthly home visiting.
Provides Families Greater Flexibility...Through offering more early education options. Some partnerships have found that because of the more varied services they could offer through the partnership, parents with more than one child in care could be better served.
Offers Financial Benefits...To both the early education programs engaged in the partnership and to families. When programs maximize the resources and exercise cost savings benefits that partnering can provide, the partners can address long-standing quality issues that have a financial root.
Maximizes Facilities & Other Resources...Helping to ensure that children and their families receive the best possible services. Partnership programs often share facilities and transportation, medical, nutrition, and staff training resources.
Strengthens & Unites Early Education's Voice...To spur community and state action for children. Over the past decades, the early education voice often has been fragmented and less than powerful because of competing interests and limited resources. In working together, programs deepen their understanding of what's needed to best serve their communities' families, and how to more effectively advocate for change needed in early education. This united voice can be powerful change agent.
Partnership benefits not only the programs who link together, but also the children, families, and communities that they serve.
Source: Website of QUILT (Quality in Linking Together, Early Education Partnerships): http://www.quilt.org
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