Enrolling your child in early care and education programs is one of the key steps to ensuring that they develop a strong foundation for future learning and growth. Quality childcare, preschool, transitional kindergarten (TK) and kindergarten programs are foundational to the long-term health, education, and wellbeing of children.
Decades of research demonstrates that language, social, emotional and physical development improve when children participate in and regularly attend quality programs in their first five years of life. Ninety percent of a child’s brain develops by age five. Children engaged in quality care and preschool are much more likely to enter school ready to learn, stay in school, and graduate on time.
To address the growing need to connect families to affordable, quality child care and early learning programs, the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) serves the county as the Child Care Resource and Referral (R&R) agency and has embarked on the “Steps to Success” campaign. As the resource and referral agency, it is SCCOE’s goal to ensure that every family in Santa Clara County has access to the information required to access high-quality early care and education (ECE), as well as provide the full variety of ECE providers within the county with access to a system that supports both their programmatic and financial success.
The “Steps to Success” campaign seeks to increase enrollment, promote regular attendance in early learning programs and engage children and their families in safe, equitable, inclusive high-quality early childhood experiences. Newly approved state legislation (AB 22) extends universal access to full-day Transitional Kindergarten (TK) programs for all 4-year-olds statewide at no cost to families. Children who turn five between Sept. 2, 2021, and Dec. 2, 2021, can enroll in TK for the 2021-2022 school year. Children who turn five between September 2, 2022, and February 2, 2023, can enroll in TK for the 2022-2023 school year.
With the collective support of our community partners, schools, and early learning providers, we are ensuring that every child in our county has a strong foundation for success in life and future careers. We encourage families to learn more about the high-quality early learning and childcare options available to them on our website: www.enrollsantaclara.org.