Regional Center for the Advancement of Children

 

The Regional Center for the Advancement of Children (RCAC) is the childcare facility located on the campus of Haywood Community College, open to any child in our service area offering both Part-Time (M-F, 7:30am - 12:30pm) and Full-Time care options (M-F, 7:30am - 5:30pm) for ages three and up. 

Our Mission is to provide a safe, nurturing, challenging, teaching and learning environment that instills and fosters a desire for learning among children, families, and students. 

We consider ourselves a Lab School and work collaboratively with HCC's Early Childhood Education program to allow students the opportunity to conduct observations in relation to their course of study with the parental consent of our youngest students.

The Regional Center for Children gives enrollment priority to HCC employees and students, Foster Families, Military families, Law Enforcement families and Haywood County School’s Teachers as a way for us to give back to our community.

Five-Star Licensed

RCAC is a 5-star North Carolina State licensed child care and NC Pre-K facility. Licensure is received through the North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education (DCDEE) https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/.

To meet the criteria to receive a 5-star rated license, the center must have a certain percentage of staff with college credits and/or degrees in an Early Childhood related field of study. We must score highly on an intensive Environmental Rating scale which is administered and scored by the North Carolina Rated License Assessment Project (NCRLAP) https://www.ncrlap.org/. This includes classroom observations of teacher and child interactions, teacher education along with close reviews of the daily program structure and practices.

On-going teacher training goes into preparing for these rigorous assessments and in effect the children receive much deserved high-quality care in a closely monitored high quality environment with educated and highly trained teachers and staff.

Careers

Our employees make us who we are. We are able to provide quality care with excellent teacher-to-student rations. If you’re interested in working with us, view job opportunities on our careers page.

Enriched Environment

We believe that children learn best through quality experiences, a literature enriched environment, exciting daily adventures, imaginative play and emotional validation; to help them feel seen and heard, not to change or minimize their emotions, and to help them recognize those same emotions in others. We believe that we are educating HCC’s youngest students and we strive to give them the best start possible in an ever-changing world; to build self-confidence and to foster a confident self-esteem. RCAC provides both full time and part time child care as well as half-day care.  

Parent Handbook

 

Infant care is specialized care. We are a Breast-Feeding friendly facility with a private room and accommodations to help mom and baby feel welcome and comfortable.

RCAC is a highly secure facility with extensive security measures in place including on campus security and a SRO officer as well as a secured front entrance and a second interior secured entrance. Each of our 10 classrooms as well as the hallways, lobby and playgrounds have multiple video/audio cameras with recording capabilities. Cameras are frequently monitored by the RCAC Program Director and Education Coordinator as well as by the HCC Safety and Security team. All of our teachers and staff must complete a Criminal Record Check both through The North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education, and a second one is conducted by HCC. The center also offers meals including a morning snack, lunch, and an afternoon snack. We also provide baby formula and baby foods with milk substitutes available for children of all ages.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

NC Pre-K

RCAC is an approved NC Pre-K Site Facility with North Carolina Licensed teachers.

The NC Pre-K Program is a free child care opportunity for rising Kindergarteners that qualify and is administered by the Division of Child Development and Early Education in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Detailed information for the NC Pre-K Program can be found on the Division of Child Development and Early Education website located at https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/Home/DCDEE-Sections/North-Carolina-Pre-Kindergarten-NC-Pre-K

The NC Pre-K program is designed to provide high-quality educational experiences to enhance school readiness for eligible four-year-old children. The program requirements are built on the premise that to be successful academically in school, children need to be prepared in all five of the developmental domains outlined by the National Education Goals Panel and the North Carolina Foundations for Early Learning and Development. Each of these domains is critical to children's well-being and school success. Research shows that children who experience high quality care and education, and who enter school well prepared, are more successful in school and later in their lives.
The five domains, as reflected in the North Carolina Foundations for Early Learning and Development standards are:

• Approaches to play and learning
• Emotional and social development
• Health and physical development
• Language development and communication
• Cognitive development

The requirements are designed to ensure that a high-quality pre-kindergarten classroom experience is provided for eligible four-year-old children in each local NC Pre-K Program and that, to the extent possible, uniformity exists across the state. Our center also offers wrap-around care for thie NC Pre-K Program.

Request Pre-K Info

Resources

Child care inquiries and wait list inquiries along with tour scheduling can be arranged by calling the front desk receptionist at 828-565-4050. Family discounts are available of a $25 discount for children living in the same home.

Learning more about Licensed Child Care in North Carolina:

NC Child Care Rules and Requirements for licensed NC Child care facilities: https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/Services/Child-Care-Rules-Law-and-Public-Information

Choosing a high quality, NC State licensed child care center: https://ncchildcare.ncdhhs.gov/Parent/Choosing-Quality-Child-Care

Available financial assistance to help pay for the cost of care: https://www.swcdcinc.org/subsidy

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