Virginia Quality Website Graduates to Award Winning Design
The Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS) is a state supervised, locally administered social services system. Providing oversight and guidance to 120 local offices across the Commonwealth, VDSS delivers a wide variety of programs, services, and benefits to over 1.6 million Virginians each year.
In the name of establishing a voluntary quality rating system for child care programs, the Virginia Quality program was established by VDSS in 2016. It replaced the outdated Virginia Star Quality Initiative, a less nimble platform formerly serving the same purpose. The new rating system provides a specific and defined path for continuous program improvement – thereby increasing quality of services to some of Virginia's most vulnerable citizens.
The Virginia Department of Social Services and Virginia Early Childhood Foundation have teamed up with Virginia Interactive for a brand new website serving Virginia Quality. With the newly created Virginia Quality program, and the website design, there is now a simple, convenient user interface for child care programs wanting to participate and advance through a five level, quality rating system.
Through the Virginia Interactive powered site, access is provided to links for training, the ability to track goals, track employee educational experience, upload classroom documentation, request technical assistance, and print available certificates. The system includes administration and communication tools for VDSS and the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation to monitor and track programs as they progress through the various levels of certification. There is no fee to participate or to search for quality rated child care and early learning providers.
Since implantation of the Virginia Quality program in June 2016, a 96% increase in participation has occurred, with over 775 early education programs now taking part. High marks have been scored for the new interface, which has already been recognized with eight communication and design awards:
- Gold Winner: AVA Digital Awards (Web-based Production/Website/Government)
- Gold Winner: AVA Digital Award (Websites/government to Business)
- Gold Winner: AVA Digital Award (Websites/government to Citizen)
- Gold Winner: Hermes Creative Award (Government)
- Award of Excellence: Communicator Awards (Government Category)
- Award of Distinction: Communicator Awards (Family and Parenting)
- Gold Winner: DotComm Awards
- Winner: Summit Creative Awards (Government)
With Virginia Interactive's solutions, users from across the commonwealth benefit. In the case of VDSS' Virginia Quality site, those served by the product are especially worthy of the highest level of online services. This is a high grade that VI is especially proud to take home.
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