Other Early Childhood Education Initiatives
JMU CARE has supported the expansion of access to quality child care with the STEPS project and actively worked toward improving classroom quality through contributions to creating VIVAlab.
STEPS
What is STEPS?
In 2018, James Madison University received funding to expand the availability of quality child care for infants and toddlers, children with disabilities, and children in need of care during non-traditional hours. The Shared Training Education and Professional Services (STEPS) project was developed to support existing and potential family day home providers within three regions of Virginia: Eastern, Piedmont, and Western. Each region employed a Family Day Home (FDH) specialist that built relationships with current and potential family child care programs to recruit them into the STEPS program. The project supported a HUB coordinator to track progress and alignment of goals and work on a statewide level to garner support and resources specific to family child care.
VIVAlab
What is VIVAlab?
VIVAlab is a suite of open educational resources for required courses in teacher preparation focusing on partnerships between educators, families, and communities. The proposed suite of resources will incorporate microlearning performance supports, including the use of simulation and case studies, to address the need for educators to responsively engage families within birth- grade 12 educational contexts.