SUTQ is a state tiered rating system for child care centers in Ohio. It began with the idea that quality early care and education can make a difference in children’s lives and school outcomes.

ECEC has participated in SUTQ since its inception in 2005 when there was a 1-3-star rating and it was administered by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. In October 2014 the scale was expanded to 5 stars and the Ohio Department of Education joined the ranks of having its Early Childhood Education programs rated. We achieved our 5-star designation when our rating was set to renew in March 2015. The first 2,000 days of your child’s life are crucial to his or her development: research in brain development shows that your 5-year-old’s brain is much closer to an adult’s brain than to the brain of an infant. We take this early care and education seriously, and as a result of having 5 Stars, your child will participate in a program that:

• Has lower staff/child ratios (1:6 for toddlers, 1:9 for preschoolers);
• Has all administrators and teachers participate in a minimum of 20 hours of professional development in a 2-year cycle;
• Provides competitive compensation and benefits to our staff, which helps us retain good teachers and help good teachers make a career out of early child care and education;
• Regularly assesses our teachers, help them define their short-term and long-term goals, and conduct continuous improvement plans school-wide. We are always striving to better ourselves and our practices;
• Provides ongoing assessment of children that leads to implementing intentional activities and experiences that meet the needs, interests, and abilities of children across all developmental domains.

For more information on Step Up to Quality please visit 

http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Early-Learning/Step-Up-To-Quality-SUTQ

their website.