Welcome to VAFCCA
The Virginia Alliance of Family Child Care Associations
Welcome to the Virginia Alliance of Family Child Care (VAFCCA) Home page. We invite you to look around and become better acquainted with our mission and services. VAFCCA is a progressive statewide Association. We are made up of 21 Local Associations with community roots. The mission of the VAFCCA is the promotion of professional development of Family Child Care Providers (Providers) in the areas of child care training and early childhood education. Areas that have an impact on the delivery of quality child care services. A trained Provider offers an environment that is educational, stimulating and nurturing. An environment equipped to provide children with meaningful learning and play experiences to support them through their varying stages of development. Family child care is the most common form of child care in this country. Working parents for a number of reasons chose a Family Child Care Provider to meet young children’s custodial and developmental needs. The economy and working Parents rely on our support. Children learn to succeed and Virginia economy works because quality Family Child Care services and support is at work.
VAFCCA is an Organization with over 29 years of accomplishments and representing Family Child Care Providers across the state. Since our establishment in 1989, we have continued to take pride in our history, dedication, and commitment to professional development as well as the practice of quality child care. Our members measure their success in a variety of ways, including curriculum enhancement, increased enrollment, improved facilities, parental satisfaction, and personal satisfaction. As covered under the Historian Committee link, our founders believe that the organization exists to serve Family Child Care Providers. Our name reflects who we are. Our name represents who we are and our mission statement is a representation of what we do. One of our major responsibilities is to provide advocacy representations for children, families, and Providers. Another large area of responsibility is to strive to meet our members’ professional development needs through training opportunities. The VAFCCA exists to support the Family Child Care Profession and Providers’ professional development. This year we will again offer over 30 accumulated hours of training. It is not too early to start making plans to attend the 17th Annual Training Conference scheduled for September 19-21, 2008. Vendors and trainers have already begun contacting us with request for “Exhibitors Applications” and “Call for Presenters Proposals”.2008 Conference Activities
Membership is open to anyone interested in personal and professional development in the field of early childhood development or anyone interested in children’s development….Preparing children to succeed in life. We offer training and volunteering opportunities that can help our members to meet personal and professional goals. Quality child care is more than a general public perception of custodial care such as the role of baby sitting, changing diapers, and feeding babies. In actuality, it is about supporting children’s overall development, providing children with the strong foundations to be successful, as well as working with parents, business, and making a significant contribution to Virginia’s overall economy.
Family Child Care Providers Support Parents
Family Child Care Providers supply the necessary support for working parents to succeed at work. Quality child care services entails children being in a safe environment with a trustworthy Provider charged with the responsibilities of providing the foundation of instilling and building children each day with life long skills for success. The right child care arrangement can support a boost in a working parent’s career. It also gives parents the opportunity to explore different career paths by providing them with piece of mind to pursue their own career goals, knowing that their children are with a trustworthy person in a safe environment and that their needs for a strong start for life are being more than met.
Family Child Care Providers Support Businesses and the Community
Children, working parents, and businesses benefit from the expertise of a skilled and properly trained Provider in the delivery of quality child care services. Quality child care extends into the business community and Virginia’s economy. The 2006 Virginia Child Care Resource and Referral Network Annual report states “62 percent of Virginia’s children under the age of six are routinely cared for by someone other than their working parents. In Virginia, there are an estimated 800,000 children under the age of 12 with 350,000 being under the age of six of working parents. The aforementioned percentage is projected to rise from 62 to 85 percent by the year 2010.” This same report states the following: “Parents of young and school age children are increasingly reliant upon child care to enable them to go to work, to be productive and reliable employees and support their families.”
Although the VAFCCA promote training and professional development, financial resources continue to be a major barrier. We view this challenge as an opportunity that calls for a partnership with business leaders and the broader community to offer financial support because every one benefits from the delivery of quality child care services. Families in our communities are at work because quality child care is at work. Working together we can accomplish more and have a greater impact than we could as individuals. Thank you for working in unity to provide quality child care for children in Family Child Care Day Homes. It is a privilege to be entrusted with the job of children’s development.
Working Together We Can do a Much More
- Create a support system using parents, businesses, and local government and other agencies resources to promote quality child care and school readiness
- Deliver training and educational opportunities to Family Child Care Providers
- Enrich the lives of children, families, and the communities. Make a difference
- Heighten the community awareness of legislative issues and impact on children, families, and communities
- Offer incentives and motivation for Family Child Care Providers to pursue higher education in the field of Early Childhood
- Provide environment that naturally permit children to learn how to play to learn
- Succeed in equipping children with life skills for life successes
- Teach / train children on how to be successful learners
- Use resources to educate communities about quality child care and best practices
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