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History 1878-The New Day Nursery opens on Hancock St. in Beacon Hill as the first New England day program for children in Boston. 1882-The Ward 16 Nursery, located on Green Street in the South End, opens as a daycare for the children of working mothers. The children participating range in age from 6 months to 6 years old. 1885-The New Day Nursery changes its name to the Sunnyside Day Nursery. 1896- The Ward 16 Day Nursery moves to 82 Carver Street in Boston's South End and the name is formally changed to South End Day Nursery. 1922-Dr. Abigail Eliot opens the Ruggles Nursery School, the first educational nursery in the United States. Originally, the program started as a nursery in a Ruggles neighborhood house. 1926- Dr. Abigail Eliot and Patty Smith Hill found NANE-the National Association of Nursery Educators-the precursor to the National Association for the Education of Young Children. 1942-Federal Government passes the Lanham Act, providing federal funding for child care across the country as part of the war effort because women were needed in the workforce. Sunnyside, Ruggles, and South End Day Nursery all participate. 1948-Last Lanham Act funding disappears. Boston leaders including Dr. Abigail Eliot and Lucy Miller Mitchell form committee to plan for the future of these programs. 1951-As a result of the committee's work, the Board of the United Community Services of Metropolitan Boston (forerunner to the United Way) creates Associated Day Care Services of Metropolitan Boston. Associated opens with six charter programs: The South End Day Nursery, The Ruggles St. Nursery, the Sunnyside Day Nursery, the Robert Gould Shaw House, the Trinity Neighborhood House and the Elizabeth Peabody House. 1952-Associated incorporates with eight member programs, five settlement houses (Dorchester House, Robert Gould Shaw House, Oliver James House, Trinity House and the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood House) and three day nurseries (South End Day Nursery, Ruggles St. Nursery and Sunnyside Day Nursery). 1956- The South End Day Nursery moves to the Bromley-Heath Housing project in Jamaica Plain. 1962-Pressed by Lucy Miller Mitchell and the Associated Board, Governor John Volpe signs the first basic Child Care Standards law in Massachusetts, making Massachusetts eligible for federal funds. Associated opens federally funded pilot preschool project in the Columbia Point Housing Development. By 1964, the pilot project becomes Head Start. 1968-Associated accepts the first state contract for child care services in the Commonwealth from the Department of Public Welfare. 1971-Associated Day Care Services opens the Children Community Corner Day Care Center in Chelsea. 1972-Associated opens the Gilday Center for 12 Trauma X (abused and neglected) infants and toddlers placed by the inflicted injury unit of the Department of Public Welfare. 1973-Associated takes over the operations of the Children's Day Care Center of Cambridge. 1981-The Family Day Care program (FDC) begins contracting with family child care providers to serve four children through funding from the Department of Social Services. The program serves children younger than pre-school age. 1987-Associated expands Family Child Care to serve 80 children and adds services in Jamaica Plain. 1988-The federal Family Support Act (FSA) passes. The bill guarantees child care for twelve months to families leaving the federal Aid To Families with Dependent Children program (AFDC.) The FSA is later amended in 1990 to include low-income 'at risk' families not on AFDC. 1989-Associated Day Care Services launches the first court affiliated drop-in day care center in New England, the Roxbury District Court Child Care Center. The program offers day care for children, infants to age twelve, of families involved in court related business. Associated takes over The Central School, Cambridge's first parent co-op child care program. Children's Day Care of Cambridge becomes accredited by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs. 1990-The Child Care and Development Block Grant passes in the U.S Congress. It has broad eligibility, requires no matching funds from states and is administered by the states. The CCDBG includes working and non-working families with incomes falling below 75% of the state's median income level. 1994-Associated launches a research and policy office and becomes the managing agency for Boston EQUIP, a citywide initiative, funded by AT&T, to evaluate and enhance quality in early childhood education. 1995-Associated establishes Boston's first accreditation facilitation project to assist programs throughout Eastern Massachusetts with becoming accredited. 1999-Ruggles and Gilday merge into a new 136-child facility in the new Mission Main Housing Development. Associated establishes the first child care Quality Assurance Department in the country. 1999-Associated Research and Policy Department launches Facts In Action-a project designed to develop the capacity of early education advocates and practitioners to use research and data to plan, advocate, and develop for high quality early education programs. 2001-Associated Day Care Services changes its name to Associated Early Care & Education. 2003-All six of Associated's center-based programs are accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). 20??-Associated Early Care & Education celebrates adoption of universal access to Early Childhood Education for all children in Massachusetts. |
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