Supporting Programs Affected by the Hurricane Season

In response to the devastating effects of this year's hurricane season, NAEYC and the NAEYC Academy for Early Childhood Program Accreditation are working on several ways to support early childhood education programs impacted by these storms.

Many currently accredited programs, as well as programs actively pursuing accreditation, have been affected to varying degrees by the aftermath of the recent hurricanes. While some programs are facing severe physical damage, others are experiencing a sudden increase in enrollment because families have relocated throughout the region. Some programs which were not directly impacted by the storms may still be forced to deviate from their normal compliance with certain accreditation criteria, particularly group size and staff-child ratio requirements.

Due to the extreme hardships faced by programs in the affected areas, the NAEYC Academy will offer a six month accreditation grace period to all programs which have been significantly impacted by the hurricane season, both directly and indirectly.* We cannot determine at this stage whether this timeframe will be lengthened, but will continue to review and monitor the situation and will announce any further decisions.

The following accommodations will be offered to programs in the various stages of the accreditation process. In order to request any of the extensions listed below, please fill out the attached Hurricane Extension Request Form(.pdf or .doc) and return it to the Academy as soon as possible. If you would like to submit this information by phone, or have any questions about this process, please contact an Academy staff member at 800-424-2460 ext.2022.

• Currently accredited programs:
  • If your program has an upcoming Annual Report due date, and was affected by the hurricane season in ways that impact your ability to file this document, you may request an extension for any necessary length of time between one and six months.
  • If your program is awaiting a Verification Visit due to self-reported changes or changes noted in your Annual Report, you may choose to take a six month extension on the scheduling of that visit.
  • Programs receiving a random unannounced Verification Visit over the course of the next six months will be evaluated in light of the impact of the hurricanes. As mentioned above, a grace period for certain non-compliances with the criteria will be granted.
• Programs waiting for a Validation Visit:
• If your program has submitted a Program Description and is currently awaiting a Validation Visit, you may request a six month extension on the scheduling of that visit.
• If your program chooses not to take this extension and continues with its Validation Visit at this time, your program must be in substantial compliance with the criteria in order to achieve accreditation.
• Programs with Program Descriptions due:
• If your program chose a submission date of September 2005 or October 1, 2005 on your Notification of Intent (NOI), you may choose to delay the submission of your Program Description by up to six months.
• If your program is currently accredited, with an expiration date in November 2005 or December 2005, and you are unable to submit your Program Description for reaccreditation within the 90 day timeframe, you may choose to delay this submission by up to six months and will maintain your accreditation during that time. (NOTE: All currently accredited programs that expire in 2006 have already been granted a one year or six month extension due to the transition into the new system.)
• Deferred Programs:
• If your program is currently awaiting a Verification Visit following a deferral, or is in the Criteria Compliance period, you may delay the visit or the Program Description submission by up to six months.

* NOTE: These extensions will be granted to programs significantly affected by the hurricane season, as determined by the NAEYC Academy.