Resources for Child Caring, Inc.

Knowing that …

• 90 % of a child’s brain develops in the first five years of life

• The majority of young children are in some form of childcare during the working hours

• The quality of a child’s experiences from birth to age five greatly influences his or her success later in life.

Shouldn’t we make it possible for all children to have access to quality early childhood experiences?

Resources for Child Caring, with offices in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, has devoted the past 40 years to just this issue. As Minnesota’s largest resource and referral service for parents, we work with over 15,000 families a year. We also train and support over 6,000 providers and educators a year so that they can provide the very best care and education possible. And we are home to the Redleaf Press, one of the nation’s leading publishers of curriculum, management, and business resources for early childhood professionals everywhere.

Parent Education and Referral -- As the region's leading referral agency, RCC's multilingual staff provides child care referral service to over 16,000 families a year on-line, on the phone, and in person.

Professional Development for Early Childhood Practitioners -- The quality of the child care and educational setting is dependent on the knowledge and skills of the caregiver. Each year, RCC presents over 1000 classes and workshops in over 50 community locations to build the skills of educators and care givers. Topics range from child development, assessment tools and curriculum planning to relationship building between providers and parents, health and safety.

Early Childhood Education Consultation -- In cases where focused support provided early on will make a difference, RCC provides one-on-one consultation and technical assistance. This early investment of time helps create inclusive environments for children with emotional and behavioral challenges, for instance, stabilizing situations that otherwise could become volatile or result in children being excluded from care.

Community Outreach and Access -- RCC's multilingual staff connects English Language Learners, new Americans, immigrant families, and other underserved communities to information and resources so that they can fully engage in Minnesota's early childhood care and education system.

Financial Supports -- RCC administers three major financial support programs for providers and families: Quality improvement grants and emergency funding for early childhood programs based on citizen reviewer recommendations, an eligibility-based scholarship pilot program for families to enroll children in programs rated highly in Minnesota's Parent Aware quality rating system, and Basic Sliding Fee Child Care Assistance for eligible low income families in Ramsey County.

Publishing -- As a leading national and international publisher of curriculum, management and business resources for early childhood professionals, Redleaf Press publishes a broad range of topics designed to assist teachers in providing a stimulating, child-centered curriculum based on sound and accepted theory. RCC distributes over 200,000 titles a year.