March 9, 2000

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The Alabama Consortium for Child Care Quality Enhancement — a collaborative effort of the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR), the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), and other state, community and business organizations — has been recognized by the Administration for Children and Families in Atlanta, Georgia, for its efforts to improve the quality of childcare in Alabama.

"The award recognizes the consortium as an innovative, effective program to improve the quality of childcare in our state," says Craig Ramey, Ph.D., director of UAB's Civitan International Research Center and co-director of the consortium. "DHR should be celebrated for having the foresight to create this."

The consortium, established in April 1999, aims to ensure childcare providers have access to needed assistance, training and information through activities such as satellite-based learning, on-site training, and workshops and conferences. "The intent is to offer much more than what has typically been provided," says Ramey.

Improvements in childcare will translate into better developmental — learning, communication and social — outcomes for children. "Many, perhaps 75 percent, of children in special education programs would not be there if they had received a quality preschool education," says Ramey.

"The consortium's proposed plan will no doubt show positive results for Alabama's children," says Kenneth Jackson, acting southeast region director for the Administration for Children and Families. "Alabama's success so far and future plans for the consortium are commendable."

Ramey and his wife, Sharon Ramey, Ph.D., director of the Civitan International Research Center at UAB, direct the activities of the consortium for the state. "It is a privilege to have this opportunity to serve families and children of Alabama," says Craig Ramey.