Paths to QUALITY™ Program for Families

Family

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Your Path to Choosing Quality Care for Your Family

With so many different options for your child, how do you know which is the best for you? Start with Paths to QUALITY™ (PTQ), Indiana’s quality rating improvement rating system for child care providers. Participation in the program is voluntary, but all participating programs must meet a minimum of health and safety standards. When programs demonstrate environments that support learning, planned curriculum, and national accreditation, they achieve a higher level rating.

Find a PTQ Program

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What is Paths to QUALITY?

Learn more about Paths to QUALITY, Indiana's child care quality rating system. Take a short tour of each level, understanding how health & safety, learning environments, curricula, and accreditation play into a program's rating.

Parents like you are having success with Paths to QUALITY™

"I never knew about Paths to QUALITY and I was very impressed with their services. I got the list of providers within 24 hours of my contact with their office. My child is placed with a referred provider, he is doing well and I am very pleased."
-Parent working with Brighter Futures Indiana

Learn More

Level 1 Programs

Level 1 Programs have voluntarily chosen to be part of the Paths to QUALITY program. This means they care about providing quality early care and education. These programs meet all basic health and safety standards.

View Level 1 Programs Video

Level 2 Programs

Level 2 Programs demonstrate a commitment to improving the program quality. They offer environments that support children’s growth, development and learning. They have a consistent daily schedule, planned activities and share program information with families.

Video Level 2 Programs Video

Level 3 Programs

Level 3 Programs use a curriculum that supports children’s learning and school readiness. They focus on the professional development of their staff. Additionally, they incorporate family and staff input into their program.

Video Level 3 Programs Video

Level 4 Programs

Level 4 Programs have achieved the highest rating on Paths to QUALITY. They demonstrate a the highest commitment to professionalism and in quality early care and education by achieving a nationally recognized accreditation.

View Level 4 Programs Video

PTQ

Paths to QUALITY™ helps families.

Provides a simple system to help you identify the level of care a program offers, from basic health and safety standards at Level 1 to the highest standards for early care and education with National Accreditation at Level 4
Assures you that your child will be healthy, safe, and learning
Helps you locate the right program for your child

Searching for Child Care

Recognizing Quality

With so many different options for your child, how do you find the best fit for you?

Start with Paths to QUALITY, Indiana’s quality rating and improvement system for child care. It is a free resource that helps families make informed decisions — and helps early education providers improve program quality. Check out our Choosing Child Care page to learn more about narrowing down your search to find the right fit for your family.

Choosing Child Care

Quality Standards

All programs participating in Paths to QUALITY:

Have made a voluntary commitment to improve the quality of child care and early education they provide
Meet standards designed to support your child’s healthy growth and development
Are visited annually to verify the level of care and education they are providing
Receive coaching and incentives as they advance through the levels of Quality

Brighter Futures Indiana

Statewide Partners