Child care center online rating system attracts kudos, critics
After years of planning, Wisconsin began rating child care centers and posting the results online, drawing mixed reactions from child care providers.
Supporters say the rating system, called YoungStar, appropriately rewards centers that work to become nationally or locally accredited.
But critics say the ratings rely too heavily on the educational attainment of teachers instead of how children fare at the centers, and they worry parents will dismiss out-of-hand any center that doesn’t attain the highest rating.
Meanwhile, child care providers are nervously awaiting word on a centerpiece of the rating system — additional taxpayer money for high-quality centers that care for low-income children.
