Early Childhood Quality and Supports

General Information

Schools offer a variety of programs serving children under kindergarten age:

• Infant/toddler care 6 weeks to 4 years in child development labs in high schools
• Employee child care for children of teaching staff
• Early intervention programs birth to 3 years old
• Pre-kindergarten programs, including the TN Voluntary Pre-K classes
• Non-public school child care as a part of their school's mission.

These programs are monitored regularly for compliance with all applicable rules in Chapter 0520-12-01 and are encouraged to provide nurturing activities to promote healthy physical and mental development.

In addition to compliance with Chapter 0520-12-01, the public school administered Pre-K programs (TN Voluntary Pre-K, Title I funded, and/or locally funded) must provide educational programs in compliance with Chapter 0520-01-03-.05(5) and correlated with the Tennessee Early Learning Development Standards.

For school-age children, the before and after school programs (also referred to as school-age care programs or extended school programs) must provide programs in compliance with Chapter 0520-12-01. School age care components should provide a blend of activities to promote experiential learning, development of social emotional skills, and physical activities.

The point of afterschool programs is not to extend the typical classroom format, but to provide an opportunity for students to engage in unique activities which support and reinforce learning.

Contact Your Local Evaluator

The table below lists the contact information for evaluators of child care programs and their geographic location.