Click here to download a copy of the FY11 QRIS Grantee Map.

Click here for a recent summary of the 2011 QRIS Program Quality Improvement Grant Awards.

Click here for the protocol on returning unexpended funds.

QRIS 2011 Final Financial Forms: Family Child Care, ASOST, Center-School

Coordinated by the Wheelock College Aspire Institute, Together for Quality (T4Q) is a new statewide collaboration designed to advance Massachusetts' Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS).

The QRIS, created by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC), rates the quality of early education and out-of-school-time (OST) programs. Programs can use it to identify areas for improvement. Families can use it to compare and select high-quality programs for their children.

T4Q is a collaboration among the EEC and three of the state's leading early education and OST organizations: Wheelock College, the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley (UWMBMV), and the Community Advocates for Young Learners (CAYL) Institute.

Purpose
The main goal of T4Q is to support and strengthen the capacity of early education and OST program leaders to identify, prioritize, and implement improvements that propel them forward in the state's QRIS and to enhance the quality of diverse children's programs across the Commonwealth. Programs benefiting from this initiative will include: child care centers, out-of-school time (OST) and school-age child care programs, family child care homes, public preschool programs, private schools, preschool and kindergarten programs, and Head Start programs.

Program Components
T4Q includes three core components to support QRIS:

• T4Q Training on QRIS for early education and OST programs on the QRIS system and how to apply for QRIS Program Improvement Grants. These trainings will be provided by the CAYL Institute in each EEC region.
• QRIS Program Improvement Grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to 300 to 600 programs across the state. In total, $2.82 million in grants will be awarded. The United Way will issue the request for proposals (RFPs) and oversee the administration, implementation, and evaluation of grants.
• T4Q Field Coach Program for selected grantees to provide technical assistance and coaching support. Trained field coaches will provide content-focused consultation to programs in staff professional development, curriculum and instruction, child assessment, and/or program management. The T4Q Field Coach Program is managed by the Aspire Institute of Wheelock College.

Connection. Innovation. Optimism