National Child Care Association

08/31/2026

Farm to CACFP is more than gardening.

It also includes serving local foods, offering taste tests, visiting farmers markets, reading farm-themed books, cooking with children and teaching where food comes from. Every activity helps connect children with healthy foods in meaningful ways.

No matter your budget or program size, there are simple ways to get involved. Explore the Rooted in Community resource at https://www.cacfp.org/assets/pdf/Rooted+in+Community+cacfp.org/ for even more Farm to CACFP ideas, then learn more at cacfp.org/farmtocacfpweek.

Which Farm to CACFP activity have you tried?

08/19/2026

Don’t wait for a citation to reveal the gaps. Come learn how to find them first! 🔍

Join NCCA and Ronnae Williams, The State Lady®, today at 1 PM EST/ 12 PM CST for a practical session focused on identifying hidden compliance risks before they become licensing findings.

Attendees will learn how to:
✅ Identify common compliance gaps in otherwise high-quality programs
✅ Recognize how communication, training, supervision, and documentation impact compliance
✅ Spot areas where assumptions may be creating risk
✅ Strengthen systems and accountability before issues become licensing findings

Register now and join us TODAY! 👉 https://bit.ly/3Sk47uX

08/12/2026

Join our friends at Teaching Strategies for their 2nd Annual Private Child Care Leadership Summit on August 19th!

This FREE virtual event has been created for child care owners and directors who want to strengthen program quality, grow enrollment, and build long-term sustainability.

The afternoon will feature practical insights from industry leaders, including:

🔥 The Quality Advantage — a fireside chat with Marquita Davis, former Chief Academic Officer at KinderCare, and Mike Derezin, CEO of Teaching Strategies.
👨‍👩‍👧 What Families Look For (and How to Stand Out) with Laura Bilbrey, Teaching Strategies.
💛 Building a Program Teachers Don’t Leave with Beth Cannon, Early Education Leadership Coach & Strategist
📈 Sharpening Your Competitive Edge with Tuscany Strategy Consulting
⭐ The Return on Investing in Quality — a closing panel featuring private child care leaders

Whether you’re focused on quality, staffing, enrollment, or strengthening your competitive edge, this summit is packed with ideas you can put into action.

Register now to reserve your spot and explore the full agenda:
👉 https://bit.ly/4i5KocW

08/07/2026

Even experienced directors and dedicated teams can unknowingly create compliance risks when assumptions replace accountability or when written processes no longer match what is actually happening in the classroom.

Join NCCA and Ronnae Williams, The State Lady®, for a practical session focused on identifying hidden compliance risks before they become licensing findings.

Attendees will learn how to:
✅ Identify common compliance gaps in otherwise high-quality programs
✅ Recognize how communication, training, supervision, and documentation impact compliance
✅ Spot areas where assumptions may be creating risk
✅ Strengthen systems and accountability before issues become licensing findings

Don’t wait for a citation to reveal the gaps. Come learn how to find them first! 🔍

Register today and join us live! 👉 https://bit.ly/3Sk47uX

08/07/2026

Join ​o​ur friends at the Child Care Directors Chair for the The Early Education Empowerment Conference Virtual Summit, September 16, 2026!

​This will be a FREE, fully virtual day of learning, connection, and inspiration created specifically for early education leaders.

We’re especially excited that NCCA Director​, Cindy Lehnhoff will be among the outstanding national speakers sharing their expertise, practical strategies, and encouragement to help owners and directors begin the year with greater clarity, confidence, and strong systems in place​!

Tag a director, owner, or early education leader who should join us​ and register today​!

👉 https://eceempowermentconference.com/

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08/07/2026

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), formally titled “Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs,” was released this morning and is expected to be formally published in the Federal Register tomorrow, August 7, 2026: https://hubs.la/Q04s9Y630

Today, NHSA set out the principles by which we will judge the proposed rewrite of the Head Start Program Performance Standards, one of the most significant revisions of the program’s governing regulations in its 61-year history: https://hubs.la/Q04s9P960

Note: If you have any issues accessing the link, please try copying and pasting it into a separate browser window.

08/05/2026

A National Platform for the Child and Adult Care Food Program Community What’s New? News Next Event calendar Find a Sponsor Sponsors Certification Certification Anniversary Access to healthy meals and snacks for over 4.5 million children and adults The National CACFP Association (NCA) has been the...

08/05/2026

07/28/2026

Join NCCA and Kate Woodward Young with Childcare Conversations tomorrow for a session designed to help child care owners and directors better understand the financial and operational story behind their data.

In this webinar, attendees will learn how to:
→ Connect enrollment, staffing, capacity, pricing, and daily operations
→ Spot hidden pressure points and opportunities
→ Ask stronger questions about program data
→ Use numbers with more confidence to support quality, stability, and decision-making

Register now and join us! https://bit.ly/4pciNIt

07/16/2026

🎉 Please join us in welcoming Famly as NCCA’s newest Business Affiliate Member!

Famly is an all-in-one childcare management software designed to help early childhood programs reduce administrative load, stay connected with families, and bring more joy back to childcare. With tools for communication, daily reports, observations, lesson planning, enrollment, attendance, staffing, billing, and subsidy management, Famly helps providers spend more time focused on children.

We’re excited to partner with Famly as a preferred partner of NCCA and NECPA to support providers through aligned tools, professional development opportunities, advocacy connections, and more!

✨ Check out Famly’s NCCA benefits: https://bit.ly/4b4blcX
💻 Learn more about Famly: https://www.famly.co/us