Interview with a PreschoolFirst Subscriber

Santa Margarita Children's Center, San Rafael, CA, a PreschoolFirst subscriber recently earned NAEYC Accreditation. We spoke to Arleen Uryu, the proud Director of this center, about their recent accomplishment.

PF Staff: What does it means to be a director of a NAEYC Accredited child care program?

AU: It’s a HUGE accomplishment! It means that we have reached the level of quality standards that have been set by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.  After three years of working towards this goal, we can stand tall and be proud of the work we do for families and children.   This is a personal accomplishment for me and a personal pride for all associated with our center- families, teachers, staff, and the professional community.  We are very proud.

PF Staff: Why did your program plan to pursue NAEYC Accreditation?

AU: It was a long time desire of mine to receive recognition and validation for the excellent education and child care service our center had been providing to the community.   The self study process of NAEYC Accreditation helped us to fine tune our program policies and examine how we were educating and caring for children.    The NAEYC self assessment resulted in our choosing PreschoolFirst as our curriculum resource and assessment tool.  This program allowed us to be intentional and accountable for our teaching.  The program also helped us to organize and to be thoughtful in our approach to reaching each child.   The NAEYC Accreditation process is a great training and validation tool and was worth all the work invested into the process.

PF Staff: Was PreschoolFirst instrumental during the NAEYC Accreditation process? If it was, then how?

AU: Definitely! Having PreschoolFirst’s play-based activities in place and easily accessible to us was helpful in planning intentional curriculum for children.  Our high scores in NAEYC’s “Assessment standard” can be credited to PreschoolFirst. PreschoolFirst has taken the guess work out of meeting individual children’s needs. 

From a Director’s point of view, it can help to hold teachers accountable for their work with children.  We have also found this tool helpful in sharing information with other resource professionals around children with special needs.  It has also been a training tool for my teachers in understanding developmental growth.  The database allows us to see where children’s strengths are at all times. It very much meets the needs of the children.

PF Staff: Do you think your families benefit from PreschoolFirst system?

AU: They absolutely benefit.   PreschoolFirst allows teachers to accurately track data on each child or group and therefore facilitates accountability in meeting the all the needs of each child in the program.   

PF Staff: Would you like to share your experiences and be a part of PreschoolFirst support group in future to assist other PreschoolFirst users who may pursue NAEYC Accreditation?

AU: I might be interested!