20 Core Values

#1 = QUALITY

We have 20 Core Values at Children's Choice. The first is quality.

We know that high QUALITY afterschool programs have strong positive effects on the academic, social and emotional development of children. We know that what children do during their out-of-school-time hours has as much influence on their success as what they do during the school day. We know that participation in high-quality afterschool programs is associated with better academic achievement, better work habits, stronger task persistence, better school attendance, better attitudes toward school, more self-confidence, stronger self-esteem, and better social skill development. We know that these benefits continue to grow even after students leave elementary school. 

At Children’s Choice, we value quality. We believe in studying, defining, redefining, and advancing QUALITY. Our mission includes providing a model of quality school-age child care programs. We believe that quality afterschool programs are grounded in safety, enriched learning environments, novel and challenging activities, positive relationships, positive social norms, playfulness, opportunities to belong and develop autonomy and competencies. We believe that a more highly educated and paid staff, high staff retention, small group sizes, small staff-to-child ratios, alignment with school standards, good principal and faculty relationships, and continual program quality assessment and improvement are ALL indicators of QUALITY.

We use the National Afterschool Association's  Quality Standards, the New Mexico Essential Elements of Quality, the School-Age Child Care Environmental Rating Scale, the Council on Accreditation’s Accreditation Standards, and our own research-based book, Best Practices: Guidelines for School-Age Programs to continually assess our QUALITY. It is our goal to provide a model of quality: organizational leadership, family and community relationships, planning, decision making, resource management, risk management, professional development, and afterschool programming.

We believe that QUALITY does not cost, it PAYS! Investing in quality yields significant returns in positive youth development, delinquency prevention, and workforce development.

National School Board Association. (2005). Building and sustaining afterschool programs. Successful practices in school board leadership. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Vandell, D., Reisner, E., Pierce, K., Brown, B., Lee, D., Bolt, D., & Pechman, E. (2006). The study of promising after-school programs: Examination of longer term outcomes after two years of program experiences. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin
– Madison.

Durlak, J., & Weissberg, R. (2007). The impact of after-school programs that promote personal and social skills. Chicago, IL: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning.