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Aledo ISD Child Development Center Earns Prestigious Four-Star Certification

The image appears to be a collage of headshot photographs of various individuals, along with logos and text indicating that this is related to the "Texas Rising Star" program. The individuals in the photographs are smiling and appear to be of diverse backgrounds.

For Aledo Middle School staff member Jaycie Watkins, dropping her 18-month-old daughter Jaylee off at the Aledo ISD Child Development Center each morning puts her mama heart at ease.

Jaycie knows without a doubt that Jaylee is loved and cared for. After all, following long breaks Jaylee nods with excitement when asked if she’s ready to go back to school to see her teachers and friends. 

“Jaylee has been going to the CDC since she was 6 weeks old, so leaving her that early initially made me uneasy,” said Jaycie, the principal’s secretary at AMS. “Ever since her first day, no matter what age classroom she is in, I have never once looked back at that decision and know she is in the most capable hands! They look after her so well and I never have any doubt they are doing what is best for her on a daily basis. 

“We have definitely built strong connections and relationships with her teachers and don’t know what we would do without them.”

Recently, the Texas Workforce Commission affirmed what CDC parents already knew: the CDC is one of the best child care programs in the state.

In just its fourth year, the AISD CDC has been recognized as a Texas Rising Star Four-Star Certified child care program by the Texas Workforce Commission, signifying their commitment to meet a level of quality that exceeds child care regulation standards in Texas. The Four-Star rating is the highest possible rating by the Work Force Commission’s Texas Rising Star program.

The CDC has 130 students and 23 staff members, providing care and early-learning opportunities for employee children ages six weeks to 4 years old. 

The brainchild of the 2019 Bearcat Growth Committee, the CDC has been an important recruiting and retention tool for Aledo ISD, offering top-notch and affordable child care while following the school-year calendar. 

The community-led Bearcat Growth Committee saw both a need for expanded space for early childhood education and the benefits of an employee childcare program in their 2019 bond proposal. The voter-approved bond included $1.7 million for renovating the former Vandagriff Elementary into an Early Childhood Campus serving children in the district’s Pre-Kindergarten program and Preschool Program for Children with Disabilities through the now-named AISD Early Childhood Academy. It also included opening the Child Development Center.

“Having the CDC available for district employees absolutely changed the game for me,” Jaycie said. “Knowing that I could send my child to a school near where I work added an extra level of ease and accountability. Not every parent can say this, and I feel extremely blessed.”

The district is committed to exceptional experiences for all students, and this recognition is proof that that’s happening down to the littlest Bearcats in the district. 

“We have worked hard over the last four years to have the very best, most nurturing, trusted and top tier environment for our littlest Bearcats to grow and thrive,” CDC Director Becky Albertson said. “Our employees provide the best care and education - I am so proud to work alongside them.”

The Texas Rising Star program is a quality improvement, rating and certification system for early childhood programs in Texas. The program ensures that child care and early learning programs who participate in TWC’s Child Care Services’ program meet higher quality standards for providing early care and education.

Child care programs are rated in the following categories with the following weights:
Director and Staff Qualification Training - 20%
Teacher-Child Interactions - 40%
Program Administration - 20%
Indoor and Outdoor Environments - 20%

Texas Rising Star-certified programs require annual monitoring to ensure high-quality child care and early learning is provided. Every year, Aledo ISD CDC staff members complete a required number of training hours, meeting and exceeding district expectations for quality care.

“We have extremely high standards in Aledo ISD, and this recognition is the result of extremely hard work and is confirmation that our Child Development Center is among the very best in the state,” Aledo ISD Superintendent Dr. Susan Bohn said. “The CDC is an amazing benefit to our Aledo ISD employees. They know that, while they are working each day to give our students exceptional experiences, their own small children are getting them, too. We are so proud of and grateful to the CDC staff.”