Close to Home™ Press Releases
Professional Home-Based Child Care Provider in Mesa Receives Elite National Recognition
Wendy Epp Serves Children in Close to Home™ Program & Intel Preferred Provider Child Care Network
TEMPE, Ariz – (Dec. 13, 2004) One Valley mother is doing her part to raise the bar of professionalism in one of our most important, and most undervalued, occupations – that of in-home child care provider. Wendy Epp, a professional home-based child care provider in Mesa with the pioneering program Close to Home™, has been accredited through the National Association of Family Child Care (NAFCC), making her only the second in Maricopa County to achieve this recognition for excellence.
Epp is part of the Close to Home™ Program and Intel Preferred Provider Child Care Network, which are administered by Tempe-based work-life consultants Summa Associates-Choice4Care®. Epp received extensive mentoring, training and assistance from the collaborative program, which allowed her to obtain the accreditation. In addition, fees for the accreditation process were funded through a grant from ASU. Epp, who is licensed by the Arizona Department of Health Services, has been a child care provider for 2-1/2 years, usually caring for five children in addition to two of her own. Driven by a desire to excel in her role as caregiver, Epp underwent rigorous training for the certification process during the past year, supported by a grant from Summa Associates-Choice4Care®, in concert with the Arizona Self-Study Project. Epp's own family and child care families have been extremely supportive of her efforts, from allowing her the time necessary to complete training to minor home remodeling to create the ideal environment for Epp's charges.
A knowledgeable, well-trained caregiver can be a parent's best ally and resource. NAFCC's and Close to Home™'s training processes are designed to help providers set and reach quality improvement goals and help parents and policy-makers identify high-quality family child care. Accreditation requires that providers offer care and education to children in a home, spending at least 80% of the time with the children. Providers must have a high school diploma or GED plus at least 90 hours of relevant training, and must have 18 months experience in family child care regulated at the highest level available in the state. During the process, which takes from 9 months to 3 years to complete, caregivers undergo self-study, training, observation and evaluation.
"I have definitely learned something after taking all the hours of training in ECE (Early Childhood Education)," says Epp. "I have really enjoyed learning more about children's behavior and the reasons why they might act out or have separation anxiety. I've also learned a great deal about new techniques for discipline and creative new ideas to keep the children busy during the day."
Epp has words of advice for her peers: "On a business level, be as professional and organized as possible. Your day care clients will take you and your job more seriously if they know you are a professional child care provider and will take wonderful care of their children. On a personal level, make sure you take time out for yourself. Working 50 to 60 hours per week can be difficult. Be sure to take time for yourself so you don't get burned out."
Epp's role as a home-based child care provider is a critical part of the success of the Close to Home™ program, which was developed by Summa Associates-Choice4Care® with a coalition of local businesses in answer to the growing need to provide qualified child care options for working parents. As the program has grown over its first few years, key business partners have included: Intel, Bashas', Honeywell, Salt River Project, Arizona State University and AT&T.
About the Close to Home™ Program
Close to Home™ is a collaborative program developed and supported by local businesses to create a network of in-home child care tailored to meet the needs of their employees. The innovative program has been recognized by the Department of Labor as an outstanding service to the community in the way it aligns the needs of both business and employees to provide the highest quality child care for parents who must work, some for extended hours, and who want their children close by. The Close to Home™ home-based network also provides care for infants, which many child care centers do not accept.
"The Close to Home™ program is a creative example of how Arizona companies are recognizing the bottom-line importance of addressing the needs of their parent workforce," says Karen Woodford, President of Summa Associates-Choice4Care®. "Work-life initiatives are a major factor in employee retention and productivity. Considering the cost of personnel replacement, absenteeism and low morale, companies are finding that work-life programs like Close to Home™ are an investment that pays off," adds Woodford. Research has shown that employees who experience work-family conflict are three times more likely to think about quitting their jobs as those who do not.
For more information about the Close to Home™ program or becoming a professional home-based child care provider, contact Summa Associates-Choice4Care® at 480-921-2266 or visit www.childrenschoice.com.
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Close To Home™ Taking Care of Businesses
Home-based Child-Care Network Offers Best-Case System
TEMPE, Ariz – (Oct. 18, 2004) Employees who experience work-family conflict are three times more likely to think about quitting their jobs as those who do not. Realizing that neither the private sector nor the government has answers to child care dilemmas faced by working parents, some Arizona businesses stepped up with a creative solution in a program called Close To Home™. Now additional corporate support is needed to ensure the program will flourish.
Armed with convincing data indicating the critical importance of child care solutions for working parents, a coalition of Arizona businesses, including Intel, Bashas', Honeywell, Salt River Project, Arizona State University and AT&T joined together with Tempe-based work-life consultants Summa Associates-Choice4Care® to create the Close To Home™ program nearly 10 years ago. Originally funded in a public/private cooperative with the American Business Collaboration, the program has been funded over the last five years exclusively by Valley businesses. While the start-up financial burden has been borne by a few, the results have been overwhelmingly positive and represent an opportunity for the business community at large ... a new model for solving key issues effecting employees.
"In-home child care is a key element of Intel's childcare strategy," explains Adam Sorensen, Work/Life Program Manager, Intel Corporation. "Through our participation in Close to Home™, we have been able to invest in improving the quality and professionalism of in-home child care and provide a broader range of flexible child care options to our employees. Close to Home™ is an innovative approach to child care that benefits not only our employees, but also the community and the care providers. We see Close to Home™ as a real win-win-win."
According to Karen Woodford, President of Summa Associates-Choice4Care®, "We are at a critical juncture where the program's success should be recognized and celebrated. As we renew the financial commitment from our existing partners, we need to reach out to our business community to support and grow this program. The foundation is very strong, and program participation offers new business participants the benefit of a strong network and a proven track record of positive results.
"The multi-firm, collaborative program is a creative example of how Arizona companies are recognizing the bottom-line importance of addressing the needs of their parent workforce," says Woodford. "Work-life initiatives are a major factor in employee retention and productivity. Considering the cost of personnel replacement, absenteeism and low morale, companies are finding that work-life programs like Close to Home™ are an investment that pays off."
Close To Home™ has been recognized by the Department of Labor as an outstanding service to the community in the way it aligns the needs of both business and employees to provide the highest quality child care for parents who must work, some for extended hours, and who want their children close by. The Close To Home™ home-based network also provides care for infants, which many child care centers do not accept.
According to a recent needs assessment survey, administered by Summa Associates-Choice4Care® for ten Ventura county California employers, 60 percent of parent respondents say their ability to not miss work or to work longer hours is impacted by child care responsibilities. Of the parents surveyed, a significant 34 percent had considered leaving their job during the previous year due to child care problems.
Since its inception, the Close To Home™ program has recruited approximately one thousand new child care homes and expanded slots for children by 4,000. But the program has only scratched the surface, notes Woodford, and has blossomed in relative obscurity. The infrastructure is now in place for many more firms to learn about and join the collaboration and start reaping the benefits ... and keeping productive employees at work.
Child care providers who participate in the Close to Home™ program are committed to professional development through training that meets the guidelines of recognized authorities like the National Association of Family Child Care (NAFCC) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The providers, who work diligently to create a safe, home-like environment for their charges, are available for workdays that begin or end during hours when traditional child care centers are closed. Woodford estimates the program has saved Arizona companies millions of dollars in reduced absenteeism and employee turnover over the years.
For more information about the Close To Home™ program, contact Summa Associates-Choice4Care® at 480-921-2266 or visit www.childrenschoice.com.
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October has been designated as National Work and Family Month by Senate resolution 210, which states that "supporting a balance between work and personal life is in the best interest of national worker productivity," and "reducing the conflict between work and family life should be a national priority."
What is Work-Life?
"Work-Life" is the practice of providing initiatives designed to create a more flexible, supportive work environment, enabling employees to focus on work tasks while at work. It includes making the culture more supportive, adding programs to meet life event needs, ensuring that policies give employees as much control as possible over their lives, and using flexible work practices as a strategy to meet the dual agenda — the needs of both business and employees.
Source: Work & Family Connection newsletter