Abbott's On-Site Child Care Center Recognized Amongst the Country's Best
15 Settembre 2004 - 5:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
Abbott's On-Site Child Care Center Recognized Amongst the Country's
Best Abbott's Center Among Just 8 Percent in Country to Receive
Full Accreditation by the National Association for the Education of
Young Children ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Abbott
Laboratories. on-site child care center, Early Discoveries,
recently received national accreditation by the National
Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), becoming
one of only eight percent of child care centers in the country to
receive this prestigious endorsement of overall quality of care.
Child care continues to be a major concern amongst the nation's
working parents, and the quality of that care is their primary
concern and criteria in selecting a center. According to the
National Child Care Information Center (NCCIC), one of the best
ways for parents to identify high-quality child care programs is to
seek out those which have achieved national accreditation. "NAEYC
Accreditation is like the Good Housekeeping Seal for child care
centers, putting these centers in a class by themselves as the
nation's best," said Kim Means, director of accreditation for
NAEYC. "The purpose of NAEYC Accreditation is to improve the
quality of care and education provided for young children in group
programs in the United States," said Means. "NAEYC-accredited
programs, like Abbott's, have demonstrated a commitment to provide
the highest quality programs for young children and their
families." Accreditation was earned by the center based on the
quality of its child development, curriculum, staffing,
environment, and health and safety. The accreditation process is
voluntary and rigorous and takes months. For Early Discoveries, the
NAEYC-accreditation process required thousand of hours and took
more than 18 months to achieve. Early Discoveries is managed by
Bright Horizons Family Solutions. One of the most significant
aspects of the accreditation criteria involves the quality of the
teaching staff, requiring the center to employ certified teachers
and offer continuing education and training. At Abbott's center, 60
percent of the teachers are certified and/or have college degrees.
To ensure that its teachers remain the highest quality, Abbott's
center offers tuition reimbursement for teachers to continue their
education. "NAEYC Accreditation is not only important to Early
Discoveries and Abbott, but to the community, as well as quality
child care continues to be in short supply," said Jim Sipes,
director of child care solutions, Abbott Laboratories. "This
accreditation confirms that we have one of the highest quality
child care programs in the country." Abbott's center, located at
the company's global headquarters in Lake County, Ill., set its
sights on earning NAEYC accreditation the moment the center's doors
opened in 2001. In addition to meeting all of the accreditation
criteria, including implementing pre-reading, pre-math and writing
skill programs, Abbott's center has set a standard all its own by
providing unique and interesting programs like pre-school yoga
classes, diversity education through activities like Chinese New
Year programs, and science projects and fairs. "My four-year-old
daughter, Madison, is already writing her name and reciting her
ABC's. She even knows how to strike a yoga pose," said Becky
Liebau, Abbott Laboratories employee and Early Discoveries parent.
"The center is amazing! Knowing she is in a fun, safe, learning
environment gives me an incredible amount of peace of mind and
enables me to focus on doing my best work." About NAEYC The
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is
the nation's largest and most influential organization of early
childhood educators and others dedicated to improving the quality
of programs for children from birth through third grade. Founded in
1926, NAEYC celebrated its 75th anniversary with over 100,000
members and a national network of nearly 450 local, state, and
regional Affiliates. NAEYC Affiliate Groups work to improve
professional practice and working conditions in early childhood
education and to build public support for high quality early
childhood programs. About Abbott Nationally recognized as one of
the country's premier employers, Abbott is committed to providing
employees with high-quality benefits and programs like the on-site
child care center to help address their child care and work/life
needs. Abbott offers full health care benefits for part-time
employees working more than 20 hours and recently announced a paid
paternity leave program. The company is recognized as one of the
"10 Best Companies for Working Mothers" by Working Mother magazine;
one of the "10 Healthiest Companies for Women" by Health magazine;
and one of the best companies for minorities by FORTUNE magazine.
Abbott Laboratories is a global, broad-based health care company
devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of
pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals,
devices and diagnostics. The company employs more than 55,000
people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.
Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the
company's Web site at http://www.abbott.com/ . DATASOURCE: Abbott
Laboratories CONTACT: Ann Fahey-Widman, +1-847-938-6388, or Julie
Ferguson, +1-847-936-6116, both of Abbott Laboratories Web site:
http://www.abbott.com/ Company News On-Call:
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