Updates
2022-23 Annual Report
In July, we celebrated the ninth anniversary of Step Up to Quality! We have so much to celebrate: more than 700 providers who are participating in our program, more than 41,000 children in Nebraska who have been educated by a Step Up to Quality-rated provider, and the launch of Step Up to Quality 2.0 earlier this year. To see more about our achievements and results over the past year, please read our annual report.
Quality Time Podcast Season 2
Season 2 of our podcast, Quality Time, is coming in August! The response to season one was so great, we wanted to expand our topics and give early childhood educators in Nebraska even more gratitude, attention, and resources in this season. Our host Colleen Schmit is back, and she has some fun interviews in store for us! She’s talked to more providers across Nebraska, and even some national experts. Stream, subscribe and be sure to keep a lookout for upcoming episodes!
Partner Toolkit
We love working with the many early childhood organizations and initiatives across Nebraska. These partnerships are important to us as we all work to improve the overall quality of care for our youngest residents. To help our partners explain all the benefits that Step Up to Quality offers to child care providers, we created a digital toolkit of resources and materials.
School Readiness Tax Credits for the Early Childhood Workforce and Step Up to Quality Program Participants
The School Readiness Tax Credit for Nebraska’s child care programs and their staff has been reinstated for the 2024 tax year, making this the perfect time to enroll in Step Up to Quality if you aren’t already participating. Stay tuned as we will be sharing more information on how Nebraska’s child care programs and the early childhood workforce can apply for these tax credits next year. We understand that you may have questions, and are working to provide detailed timelines, eligibility requirements, and application instructions.
Step Up to Quality Program Materials Available in Spanish
Our Program Guide, Rating Request Forms and all accompanying program materials are now available in Spanish. View and download Spanish materials.
Stepping into Quality Children’s Book
We are proud to unveil our first-ever children’s book! This custom book, called Stepping into Quality, was mailed out to the more than 700 providers enrolled in our program and is designed to help make the first day of child care a happy memory. We’ve created some digital downloads you can use on your social media to mark the occasion.
If you’re a child care provider not yet participating in Step Up to Quality, it’s not too late to join and receive a copy of our book! Simply enroll on our website, and we’ll send you a copy soon after.
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