Quality child care is essential to the safety, healthy development and school readiness of children. Virginia Quality is our state’s quality and rating system. It is a voluntary system which is primarily dependent on the motivation of the program director’s and teachers to meet program criteria to move from one level to the next. State funding for the quality rating system is insufficient to bring these efforts to scale. Currently, Virginia Quality enrolls only about 25% of eligible programs.

One of GrowSmart’s strategic goals is to connect providers to the Virginia Quality system and support their growth in quality levels. We collaborate with Virginia Quality staff, which serves the eastern region. Our efforts focus primarily on recruiting centers to join Virginia Quality and ensure they are successful in growing their quality levels. Since the relaunch of Virginia Quality 2.0 in 2016, we have worked hard to increase Virginia Beach program engagement. Our efforts have proven successful and we have seen an 80% increase in program engagement since 2017. 

Currently, 35% of our licensed child care centers are engaged in Virginia Quality. This is Virginia Beach’s highest participation in the quality rating system to date

Upon enrollment in VQ, a childcare or preschool site is awarded a quality level based on four nationally recognized quality standards and best practices:

• teacher education and qualifications;
• curriculum and assessment;
• environment;
• and classroom interactions.

After receiving a level rating, a site is able to progress through the levels at their own pace, based on their current level of quality. There is no fee to participate in Virginia Quality. Enjoy the benefits of Virginia Quality Participation:

• Access professional development, technical assistance, coaching, and grants linked to achieving and maintaining quality
• Develop practical goals and strategies to guide self-improvement
• Communicate to families the good work you do every day and your commitment to continually improve quality.

Find a local rated center or family day home here..

If you are a center director interested in participating in VQ, please contact Heather Kitis, Virginia Quality Eastern Region Program Coordinator at:

Heather Kitis: virginiaquality@tcc.edu
Call: (757) 822.5225