WKU News

The Vickie and Dan Renshaw Early Childhood Center, located in the Suzanne Vitale Clinical Education Complex at Western Kentucky University, has earned reaccreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)—the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children.

NAEYC accreditation is a rigorous and transformative quality-improvement system that uses a set of 10 research-based standards to collaborate with early education programs to recognize and drive quality-improvement in high-quality early learning environments.  

“We’re proud to have earned the mark of quality from NAEYC, and to be recognized for our commitment to reaching the highest professional standards,” said Beth Schaeffer, Director of the Renshaw Early Childhood Center.  “We strive to advance the development and learning potential of young children of all abilities through developmentally appropriate, high-quality early learning experiences while providing onsite instruction for Western Kentucky University students.”

To earn NAEYC reaccreditation, Renshaw Early Childhood Center went through an extensive self-study and quality-improvement process, followed by an on-site visit by NAEYC Assessors to verify and ensure that the program met each of the 10 program standards, and hundreds of corresponding individual criteria. NAEYC-accredited programs are always prepared for unannounced quality-assurance visits during their accreditation term, which lasts for five years.

In the 30 years since NAEYC accreditation was established, it has become a widely recognized sign of high-quality early childhood education. More than 6,000 programs are currently accredited by NAEYC — less than 10 percent of all child care centers, preschools, and kindergartens nationally achieve this recognition. 

“NAEYC-Accredited programs have committed to a process that takes time, energy and dedication to complete,” said Alissa Mwenelupembe, Senior Director Early Learning Program Accreditation. “Renshaw Early Childhood Center has demonstrated their commitment to young children and their families.”

For more about NAEYC Accreditation, visit the NAEYC website.

Contact: Beth Schaeffer, (270) 745-4125 or beth.schaeffer@wku.edu