Senate Employees' Child Care Center

The SECCC is a registered not for profit 501(c)(3) organization and is governed by a Board of Directors, primarily parents who work for the U.S. Senate. It serves as a model for parents and employers interested in working together to solve their childcare concerns. The Center maintains a cooperative relationship with the Senate. This relationship gives parents responsibility and control, and relies on the Senate to provide critical support to ensure the Center’s successful operation. Because the Center is nonprofit and parent-run, it is very much community oriented. The goal of this community of parents, professionals and children is to assure children daily exposure to a safe, nurturing, enriching, and age-appropriate environment. To assure we meet those goals, we use as our guidepost the guidelines provided by our accrediting body, the National Academy of Early Childhood Program, a division of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The SECCC originally became accredited in 1989. We were the first center in Washington DC to receive accreditation and we have maintained continuous accreditation since that time. Because the SECCC occupies a United States Senate building, we are an unlicensed program that voluntarily follows all District of Columbia licensing standards. Our program philosophy, curriculum, staff, structure, and governance are critical components in the quality of the program. However, that is not our only resource. We turn to each other– professionals with varying levels of experience and varied talents, and to the parents with their extensive array of experiences – to continually evaluate and enrich our program. Program Philosophy The Center is designed to provide a comprehensive and highly individualized program to foster the physical, social, emotional, and intellectual growth of the young children enrolled. Children are offered age-appropriate learning opportunities as described in the Creative Curriculum. Parents are expected to participate in the ongoing activities of the Center and to collaborate with the staff in the operation of the Center.