The University of North Texas at Dallas (UNT Dallas) unveiled its new Child Development Mock Classroom Monday March 8, a facility aimed at meeting the growing need for quality licensed childcare facilities in Dallas. Funded by The Dallas Foundation, the mock classroom will serve as a training ground for current and future childcare workers, directors and specialists to learn about state and federal standards, and how to implement those standards well.
“By 2018, the need for child daycare is expected to grow by 15 percent thanks to the government’s increased emphasis on early child education programs,” said Dr. Nedra Washington, program coordinator for the child development and family studies program at UNT Dallas. “This classroom will play a crucial role in making sure that families in our region have access to the best quality childcare facilities and staff available.”
The mock classroom is part of a $50,000 grant that also will fund on-campus accreditation training for local childcare centers. Training will be provided by expert child development faculty from UNT Dallas. Ten participating childcare centers also will receive off-site accreditation consultations, facility improvements, and funding for their initial NAC accreditation fee. The participating centers include:
- Betty-Lin E.C.L.C., 1123 E. Ledbetter Dr., Dallas
- For Keep’s Sake, Inc., 2520 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Dallas
- Gingerbread House Academy, Inc., 612 Matador Ln., Mesquite
- Greenville Avenue Child Development Center, 1013 Greenville Ave., Richardson
- Jackson Playland, 2515 Peabody, Dallas
- Jefferson Place L.C., 3430 S. Marsalis Ave., Dallas
- Kids Concepts, 4019 W. Ledbetter, Dallas
- Stepping Stones ECDC, 8315 Lake June Rd., Dallas
- Stepping Stones ECDC, 5904 Samuell Blvd., Dallas
“This mock classroom marks an important partnership between UNT Dallas and the communities we serve,” said Bob Mong, president of UNT Dallas. “It also reinforces the university's commitment to improving early childhood education.”
“The quality of any childcare center is directly tied to the staff‘s understanding of how to best guide the learning and development of young children,” said Helen Holman, Chief Philanthropy Officer, The Dallas Foundation. “By providing training to childcare directors and staff, the ABCD Mock Classroom will not only help centers learn how to meet national accreditation standards, it will raise the quality and level of care that is so essential to the social, emotional and brain development of our youngest citizens. As advocates for high quality early childhood programs, The Dallas Foundation is pleased and honored to support UNT Dallas in this effort.”
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About UNT Dallas
The University of North Texas at Dallas (UNT Dallas) is the only regionally accredited, public university in the City of Dallas. A member of the University of North Texas System, UNT Dallas is rapidly becoming a university of first choice as a result of the personal involvement of faculty, student support resources, affordability, location, and the relevancy of programs and degrees to career offerings in the region. The university offers 21 undergraduate and six graduate degree programs in high-demand fields including child development, teacher education, business, public health, and counseling. There are four academic schools and one professional school: School of Business, School of Education, School of Human Services, School of Liberal Arts and Science, and the College of Law.
About The Dallas Foundation
The Dallas Foundation is the oldest community foundation in the state, and serves donors and nonprofit agencies through North Texas. The foundation acts as a keystone — a link between donors and the community issues they care about.
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Date: March 7, 2016
By: Ashley Johnson, PR/Communication Director, Ashley.Johnson@untdallas.edu or 972-338-1098
