Research & Resources Quality Rating Systems What's Happening in Your State?
NOTE: Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Washington, D.C. are not included in this report.
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Quality Rating and Improvement Systems have become a hot topic in early childhood education. QRIS is a rating and assessment system designed to assess early childhood programs, provide incentives to improve them, and communicate their level of quality. The five components of QRIS include standards, accountability measures, program and practitioner outreach and support, financing incentives, and parent and consumer education efforts. A number of states have implemented QRIS, and many that have not are in the process of creating them. We have been actively monitoring QRIS in the states. Our particular areas of interest include whether QRIS is an effective mechanism for improving compensation for the early childhood workforce; if the neediest children are being served through QRIS; and to what extent have the states that already have QRIS examined improvements to their current system. FAQ's about QRIS
What is QRIS? QRIS stands for Quality Rating and Improvement Systems. It is a rating and assessment system designed to assess early childhood programs, provide incentives to improve them, and communicate their level of quality. These programs are frequently supported by quality set-aside funds form the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). What does a QRIS rating mean? QRIS ratings are like restaurant and hotel stars. Quality ratings are awarded to early and school-age care and education programs that meet a set of standards. Which states currently use QRIS? Currently, 20 States have a statewide QRIS with all five elements: Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Vermont. What are the components of QRIS? 1. Standards: Built on child care licensing requirements, these standards add multiple steps between licensing and higher quality standards. 2. Accountability measures: Accountability and monitoring determine how well programs meet QRIS standards, and assign ratings based on their performance. 3. Program and practitioner outreach and support: Training, mentoring and technical assistance support is provided to help programs increase quality. 4. Financing incentives: Financial incentives are awarded to programs when quality levels are achieved. An example is tiered subsidy reimbursement that pays a higher reimbursement rate to providers who care for children from families who receive CCDF (Child Care and Development Fund) subsidies and meet standards beyond minimum licensing.
5. Parent/Consumer education efforts: Easily recognizable symbols indicated levels of program quality and inform and educate parents.
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Helpful resources on Quality Rating and Improvement Systems include: National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center (NCCIC) QRIS Network
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