DECAL and QCC Provide Summer Camp Search Help
ATLANTA, GA (March 4, 2024) – The Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) is again collaborating with Quality Care for Children (QCC) on a multimedia campaign to help families across the state find safe, affordable, high-quality summer camp programs.
Summer camps are popular in Georgia and families have many choices. Yet it isn’t always easy to know how to evaluate those options. The free resources DECAL provides include a Call Center where families can get referrals to camps that meet their needs and a checklist of questions to ask to fully assess programs and make informed decisions.
“A child can learn many valuable lessons and skills at a good summer camp,” says DECAL Commissioner Amy M. Jacobs. “We want to help families find safe, affordable, and engaging summer camps operated by properly trained leaders so that children can have the best possible experience.”
DECAL’s summer camp campaign features a colorful ad telling families where they can find assistance to make the best choice for their children: “Need Help Finding a Summer Camp? Call 1-877-ALL-GA- KIDS(1-877-255-4254).” The ad will appear on the websites of newspapers and magazines throughout Georgia, as well as on wsbtv.com, radio station V-103 FM, and the DECAL and QCC social media channels. The ads include a link to English and Spanish versions of the Summer Camp Search Checklist that are posted on the DECAL website here. Videos promoting the resources are also posted to DECAL’s YouTube channel here and here.
The 1-877-ALL-GA-KIDS Call Center is funded by DECAL and operated by QCC. Families calling 1-877-255-4254, or using the online chat at QCCga.org, can get information and referrals tailored to their needs from a QCC specialist Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. and on Fridays from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. “Our child care referral specialists, who speak Spanish and English, help remove the stress from planning summer child care by working with families to deliver a list of summer camp options that meet their unique financial, transportation, and other needs,” said Ellyn Cochran, president and CEO of QCC.
To get the best choices, DECAL Deputy Commissioner for Quality Innovations and Partnerships Bentley Ponder, PhD, encourages families to start their search early. “Some camps offer scholarships, sliding scale fees, and discounts for registering multiple children and space fills up quickly at high-quality camps,” he says.
Contact:
Reg Griffin
DECAL Communications Director
404-656-0239
reg.griffin@decal.ga.gov
Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning is responsible for meeting the child care and early education needs of Georgia’s children and their families. It administers the nationally recognized Georgia’s Pre-K Program, licenses child care centers and home-based child care, administers Georgia’s Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program, federal nutrition programs, and manages Quality Rated, Georgia’s community powered child care rating system. The department also houses the Head Start State Collaboration Office, distributes federal funding to enhance the quality and availability of child care, and works collaboratively with Georgia child care resource and referral agencies and organizations throughout the state to enhance early care and education.