When military members and DoD personnel are confident that their children are safe and in good care, they can concentrate better on fulfilling their military and defense support responsibilities. That’s why our nationally recognized Child and Youth Program is here to make sure high quality and affordable child care is readily available for military and Department of Defense families worldwide. We set the standard and we’re leading the change in child care reform.

We aggressively responded to the requirements of the 1989 Military Child Care Act (MCCA) by raising the bar for quality expectations, increasing performance and outcomes criteria, and investing in critical resources including personnel, professional development, facilities, and technology. Today, we’re known and well-respected for a tremendous impact on the entire early childhood and youth services landscape—not just for military child care, but also for children and families who participate in non-military operated programs.

We stay at the forefront and serve as a role model by consistently implementing program quality standards and requiring national accreditation in all Child Development Centers (CDC) and School Age Care (SAC) programs. While national accreditation is not required for Child Development Home (CDH) Providers, it is strongly encouraged, and it’s our goal to increase the number of accredited CDH Providers. 24/7 Centers are also not required to obtain accreditation, but they are required to follow the guidance of two national accrediting bodies.

The Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC) and CNIC (N926) invest in professionals. With more than 6,000 early childhood development professionals, we’re not only equipped to provide high quality care, but we’re able to offer a vast array of long-term career opportunities.