Each month, Early Learning Resource Centers are asked to nominate an early learning program for accomplishments they’ve recently made to spotlight on the PA’s Promise for Children website.
The following providers was nominated by their Early Learning Resource Center for the month of April 2019.
Provider: The Learning Ladder Early Child Care Center, Erie County
The Learning Ladder moved into STARS in January 2016. Director Kenya Johnson worked for the program to become a STAR 2 in December 2016. She was excited about moving up in STARS and worked with a Mentor and her Quality Coach.
Kenya and her husband purchased an old building in the city of Erie and has worked hard to establish a child care center that allows for ample room for her children that she serves. There are not many areas around her that children can get out for gross motor, so she worked hard to have a very large portion of the building be an open space with lots of materials for the children to use. She is still working with city officials so that she can offer more space in her building and wants to open an infant room very soon.
Kenya has attended almost every single Learning Community that her current Quality Coach has offered in the past two years. She is open and has given resources and guidance to other directors.
Kenya seeks out guidance and support to build quality in her center. She encourages her staff to take professional development and attends herself so that the new information can be implemented into the rooms. She has been involved with the ELRC’s technical assistance program and the blended model of professional development/technical assistance. She is encouraging and willing to help in any way to better the environment for the children and staff and it shows. Kenya always has new ideas and achieves them.
Kenya’s program reached STAR 3 in April 2018 and the ELRC is now working together to succeed in reaching STAR 4.