Merit Schools of Stafford Lakes and Garrisonville Granted Full Accreditation by NAEYC

In the 30 years since NAEYC Accreditation was established, it has become a widely recognized sign of high-quality early childhood education. More than 7,000 programs are currently accredited by NAEYC—less than ten percent of all child care centers, preschools, and kindergartens nationally achieve this recognition.

By earning a NAEYC accreditation, early education programs demonstrate their commitment to their communities, collaborative relationships with families, and finding ways to continuously improve the quality of their programs.

“The heart of NAEYC accreditation focuses on the quality care the children experience,” Debbie Kestner, Director of The Merit School of Stafford Lakes said. “The process carefully considers all aspects of a program including health and safety, teacher qualifications, longevity, and physical environment. An emphasis is on the children’s relationships with the teachers and how the program helps each child grow and learn intellectually, physically, socially, and emotionally.

During the accreditation process all areas of the school’s program are examined including administration, staff development and the working environment, the developmental program, outdoor and indoor environments, health and safety as well as parent and community relations.