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NAEYC Accreditation

Boston’s early childhood programs are among the best in the country. One key lever in ensuring quality programs is earning accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), which affirms that these programs offer high-quality, state-of-the-art education to help get children off to a successful start. This accreditation process drives transformational change in our early childhood programs and leads to an increasing ability of the school community to engage in quality practices. Through the process of pursuing accreditation, all adults develop the adaptive capacity to:

  • Be sensitive and responsive to children and families

  • Consistently engage in high quality developmentally appropriate practices

  • Show continuous improvement and refinement of the skills, attitudes and dispositions that serve to help young children grow and learn.

Guiding Principles

  • Development of the whole child in addition to focusing on academic skills

  • Children as strong powerful learners

  • Family-centered practices

  • Cultural Competence

  • Assessment includes observation and reflection and is used to drive and modify curriculum so it responds to the needs of individual children

  • Ongoing development of portfolios

  • Developing the capacity of the school-based personnel to own the process and maintain quality

Our Goal

Our goal is for all BPS elementary schools to achieve accreditation. Currently, 48 schools have received NAEYC accreditation, with another 2 in process (generally a 3-4 year process). These 50 schools include 75% of the total number of K0, K1 and K2 classrooms in the Boston Public Schools.

BPS Early Childhood Programs that have received accreditation (in alphabetical order):

  1. Adams

  2. Baldwin ELC

  3. Beethoven

  4. Blackstone Elementary

  5. Chittick

  6. Clap Innovation

  7. Condon

  8. Conley

  9. Curley

  10. East Boston EEC

  11. Edison

  12. Eliot

  13. Ellis

  14. Ellison/Parks

  15. Everett

  16. Gardner Pilot Academy

  17. Guild

  18. Hale

  19. Haley

  20. Harvard-Kent

  21. Haynes EEC

  22. Henderson

  23. Holmes

  24. J.F. Kennedy

  25. Kenny

  26. King

  27. Lee K-8

  28. Mario Umana Academy

  29. Mason

  30. Mather

  31. McKay

  32. Mendell

  33. Mozart

  34. Murphy

  35. Orchard Gardens

  36. Perkins

  37. Philbrick

  38. Quincy

  39. Roosevelt

  40. Russell

  41. Taylor

  42. Tynan

  43. UP Academy Dorchester

  44. UP Academy Holland

  45. Warren-Prescott

  46. West Zone ELC

  47. Winship

  48. Winthrop

Schools that are working with us on meeting the accreditation standards include:

  • Hurley and Mary Lyon

Now Hiring NAEYC Accreditation Mentors

The BPS Department of Early Childhood is seeking contractors to serve as NAEYC Accreditation Mentors to assist early childhood programs in BPS in achieving accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The NAEYC accreditation process guides schools to provide the highest quality early childhood programs for Boston’s children 3-5 years old. 

The NAEYC Accreditation Mentor will provide NAEYC accreditation support and technical assistance to principals, teachers, paraprofessionals and other school staff.

Please see the contract job description here with details and instructions for applying.

(updated June 2022)

Contact us if you have any questions about NAEYC accreditation or are looking for portfolio support. 

 

Focus on Early Learning