What is the Program? In November 2004, ELC began implementing Community for Quality Early Learning and Literacy (C-QuELL), an innovative project that promotes early learning and literacy by strengthening the relationships between elementary school and child care providers in addition to involving the community to support the education of young children.  Community partners for this program include: FCI, School Board of Broward County, Children’s Service Council, A.D. Henderson Foundation, and Nova Southeastern University. 

What’s Involved in the program? There are six core goals for C-QuELL (the C-QuELL Six).  They are:

1. To enhance early childhood literacy within the child care classroom, the home, and the community so children will be ready for kindergarten when they enter school.
2. To increase access to early learning opportunities in the natural environment for your children with special needs.
3. To develop common language, expectations and systems of communication between public schools and community-based child care programs around early learning and literacy.
4. To foster partnerships between public schools and community-based child care sites to promote the sharing of resources and learning opportunities.
5. To involve business and community organizations; and to engage local government in the creation of events, activities, and coordinated efforts to build community partnerships, support, excitement, and celebrations around early learning and literacy.
6. To strengthen the role of parents in the early education of their children.

Central to the C-QuELL program is a strong focus on the quality of education children receive in their child care program.  Child care teachers are helped to enhance their own language and communication abilities.  Staff in community-based child care programs are able to access training, resources and technical assistance provide by the School Board. 

Using the 21^st Century School (21C) model developed by Dr. Ed Zeigler at Yale University, C-QuELL strives to meet the diverse and complex needs of Broward County.  In this paradigm, the neighborhood feeder school serves as the hub for many of the early childhood community’s learning activities.  Important social service, transition and other resource supports that the schools can provide will be brought to the participating child care providers.

Who’s Involved? Elementary Schools and child care programs in Broward County cities (Lauderhill and Pompano Beach) were identified to pilot the project and city officials proclaimed their respective cities as Cities of Early Learning and Early Literacy in support of the project.  These are the first of their kind in the country and hopefully the model will be replicated and cities of early literacy will soon become a nationwide theme.  Overall, the program will serve approximately 1,400 children.

The program, which was initially funded through the time limited Early Learning Opportunities Act grant, targets children ages 3-5 in Broward County communities of Pompano Beach and Lauderhill.  The program evaluation conducted by the University of Miami indicated that C-QuELL has a positive effect on both the children’s and parent’s literacy skills in the program, as well as the classroom environment support of literacy.  The report also shows that at the end of the program more newspapers were delivered to homes, less television was being watched by the young children, and more children were being read to everyday, with more books available in the home.  Findings denote that the C-QuELL program was successful in promoting early literacy outcomes show children in the program are more ready to read, then if they had not participated.  The positive outcomes form the C-QuELL program invited not only a continuation for the Pompano Beach and Lauderhill programs, but a recommendation to expand its reach into the future to students in other Broward County communities.  The program has received funding for continuation from the ELC, Children’s Services Council, and the A.D. Henderson Foundation.