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Kendrick Robertson, 1, right, and Bre’el Reine, 1, attend the YMCA Child Care Center. Sen. Charlie Shields wants Missouri daycares to be part of a voluntary rating system.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A system with local roots designed to increase quality in early child care centers has put a St. Joseph small businesswoman on edge.

Jennifer Jaques served as director of the YMCA’s Y’s Kids World two years ago in St. Joseph when the University of Missouri piloted a five-star rating system, which a local senator used as a model he’s trying to implement statewide.

Now Ms. Jaques directs her own day care center and wants no part of the program the Missouri Senate approved Thursday.

“It will bring out the worst in us,” she said of the competition among early childhood centers. “And the ones being affected will be the parents.”

In a close 19-14 vote, senators gave the go-ahead to a bill from Sen. Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, who for two years has argued the system would bring accountability to providers and improve children’s chances for success later in school and life.

Mr. Shields’ SB 726 would make the voluntary rating system available to all Missouri centers, with one star starting at the basic licensing level up to five stars, which would require accreditation among other targets.

Ms. Jaques explained that the system rewards more stars to centers with employees who have college degrees, pursue other certifications and undergo curriculum training, in addition to other factors.

The United Way of Greater St. Joseph captured a grant to help local centers pay for their instructors to seek more education, but Ms. Jaques said as a private business owner she can’t afford to foot a similar bill. And as employees gain education, their salaries must increase, as well.

“I can’t always pay my staff what everyone else does. That could affect me in getting quality teachers,” said Ms. Jaques, who started Enchanted Learning Child Care at Eighth and Messanie streets in September.

Sen. Scott Rupp, R-St. Charles, contended Thursday the system would artificially inflate prices.

“This will raise the cost of day care for every person in the state of Missouri,” Mr. Rupp said. “… We are interjecting government into the private market.”

Centers that participate in the rating system would be eligible for additional quality improvement dollars.

“I believe we shouldn’t pay for inferior … early childhood education,” Mr. Shields said.

Sen. Brad Lager, R-Savannah, said he wouldn’t have voted for the bill if it hadn’t been for the recent birth of his daughter and his own subsequent search for a suitable day care.

“It was one of the most difficult challenges we’ve worked through,” Mr. Lager said. “… A quality rating system of some kind would have been very helpful.”

If the program is built into state law, it would cost $883,000 in its first year, $3.7 million in its second and $5 million in its third.

If centers opted not to participate in the program, they wouldn’t receive improvement funds, but they’d continue to receive state child care subsidies for children who meet certain income guidelines.

Ms. Jaques said she wouldn’t sign onto the program in fear of having to increase class sizes and fees in order to financially meet rating system requirements. The center employs five instructors with two shifts of 19 children.

“That’s a huge concern for me. If I have to trade all that, I’m just becoming a corporate day care,” she said.

The bill needs successful consideration in the House of Representatives before the governor can sign it into law.

Alyson E. Raletz can be reached at

alysonraletz@npgco.com.