Glenn Duffy Elementary pre-K program honored

GRAVETTE — The pre-K program at Glenn Duffy Elementary School in Gravette has earned a three-star rating as an Arkansas Better Beginnings program, according to Zane Vanderpool, program director and principal at Glenn Duffy. This is the highest level award a provider can receive and signifies the best quality of child care in Arkansas. Better Beginnings is Arkansas’ quality rating improvement system for licensed child care and education facilities.

Glenn Duffy Elementary’s program was assessed in five areas during the Better Beginnings rating process, Vanderpool said. It was rated on business practices, staff qualifications and training, appropriate classroom setting, educational learning environment and child health and development.

Vanderpool noted that all child care facilities in Arkansas are licensed by the state Department of Human Services. Minimum licensing requirements primarily address health and safety issues. Better Beginnings, however, looks beyond minimum standards and evaluates the elements of high-quality child care and early education experiences. Better Beginnings’ curriculum is based on the early learning and development guidelines in math, science and literacy.

As a result of the school’s decision to provide the highest quality childcare through Better Beginnings, parents of students in the program can expect increased qualifications and training for staff and administrators, administrative practices that exceed national standards, increased standards for classroom quality, daily activities that address learning goals for children and a written curriculum plan, Vanderpool said.

Principal Vanderpool invited school patrons to visit ARBetterBeginning.com to read about the benefits of enrolling their children in an Arkansas Better Beginnings facility and view the resource library there. They may also follow the Better Beginnings social media channels to receive additional resources and updates, he said.