February 2026

Celebrating Colorado Shines Success!

We are proud to recognize three local preschool programs for earning Colorado Shines quality ratings. Centennial Preschool achieved a Level 5, while Sierra Grand Preschool and Haskin Preschool each earned a Level 4 rating.

These ratings reflect the hard work, dedication, and commitment of staff who support children and families every day. Congratulations to all three teams on this well-earned achievement.

Working ahead on a career after high school

Alamosa High School has launched a new Early Childhood Education Club that gives students a head start on careers working with young children.

Through a partnership with Trinidad State College, students can earn a college certificate while still in high school, opening doors to immediate employment or future teaching credentials.

The program supports Colorado’s career readiness goals and helps grow a much-needed local early childhood workforce.

Click here for the Alamosa Citizen article!

Introducing Nurturing Connections Colorado

Colorado’s Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation program has a new name: Nurturing Connections Colorado. The updated name reflects the program’s growth, evidence-based success, and focus on supporting children’s mental health from birth. Nurturing Connections Colorado helps caregivers and early childhood professionals build the skills needed to support healthy social and emotional development, with the guiding message that Mental Health Starts Early.

Click here for more details!

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Luis Valley has broken ground on a $10.8 million childcare facility!

The new center will expand access to licensed, high-quality early learning, support working families, and strengthen the local workforce and economy. Backed by broad community investment, the project highlights how critical childcare is to the Valley’s growth, with licensed spots currently available for only a fraction of local children.

Important Note: The Early Childhood Council is not in charge of the new facility or the hiring process, but we are keeping an eye out for updates. As the center’s director shares information with us, we’ll be happy to pass it along to help keep the community informed.

Click here for the full article from Alamosa Citizen!

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Luis Valley also hosts tours of the Little Learners Academy building on the first Tuesday of every month from 1:00–2:00 PM. No RSVP is required.

Health and Safety

Evenflo All4One Car Seat Recall

What Parents Need To Know

Evenflo has issued a voluntary recall for select All4One 4-in-1 convertible car seats manufactured January 2022–June 2024 in the U.S. and Canada.

Why the recall?

During rear-facing testing, some seats could shift recline positions, and there’s a risk of finger pinching if someone is sitting next to the seat. No injuries reported, and the seat still protects in a crash.

Can you keep using it?

Yes. It’s safe to use. Just avoid placing fingers near the recline mechanism when used rear-facing.

Who’s affected?

Only specific model numbers of the All4One (not EveryFit, EveryKid, or All4Stages). Affected families will receive a free replacement car seat.

Next steps for parents:

• Check your model number

• Register your seat if you haven’t already

• Await replacement instructions from Evenflo

For full recall details click here!

Winter Coats and Carseats: What's Safe for Babies

The image below shows the correct and incorrect ways to dress babies in car seats during winter.

On the correct side, a baby is secured in a car seat wearing thin, well-fitted clothing, with snug harness straps and the chest clip positioned properly at armpit level. A blanket is placed over the baby after buckling for warmth.

On the incorrect side, the baby is shown wearing a thick winter coat under the harness, which can prevent the straps from fitting tightly and increase the risk of injury. The graphic highlights that bulky coats, loose straps, blankets under the harness, added accessories, and improperly placed chest clips are unsafe.

The key message: dress babies in thin layers, tighten the harness correctly, and add warmth after buckling to keep them safe in the car.

Abrigos de invierno y asientos de seguridad para el auto: ¿qué es seguro para los bebés?

La imagen muestra las formas correctas e incorrectas de vestir a los bebés en los asientos de seguridad del automóvil durante el invierno.

En el lado correcto, el bebé está asegurado en el asiento del auto usando ropa delgada y bien ajustada, con las correas del arnés bien apretadas y el broche del pecho colocado correctamente a la altura de las axilas. Para mayor abrigo, se coloca una manta sobre el bebé después de abrochar el arnés.

En el lado incorrecto, se muestra al bebé usando un abrigo grueso de invierno debajo del arnés, lo cual puede impedir que las correas queden bien ajustadas y aumentar el riesgo de lesiones. El gráfico destaca que los abrigos voluminosos, las correas sueltas, las mantas colocadas debajo del arnés, los accesorios adicionales y los broches del pecho mal colocados no son seguros.

El mensaje clave es: vista a los bebés con capas delgadas, ajuste correctamente el arnés y agregue abrigo después de abrocharlos para mantenerlos seguros en el automóvil.

Coaching

Interactions

Daily interactions with infants and toddlers are the foundation of quality care. It is within the context of secure, nurturing relationships with parents, family members, and other caring adults that healthy infant and toddler development and learning happen

Infants and toddlers communicate their feelings, interests, and intentions through their behavior. Discovering what their behavior means is an important part of responsive, individualized interactions. Petersen and Wittmer suggested some questions that education staﬀ can use to reﬂect on what children’s behaviors might mean:[3]

What is the child experiencing? What is the child thinking?
What is the behavior and when, where, and with whom does it occur?
What wants or needs is the child communicating? What is the purpose of the child’s behavior? What is the meaning of the child’s behavior?
What do her family and I want the child to do, learn, and feel?

Staﬀ can share these questions with families to help deepen their understanding of children. As staﬀ and families answer these questions, they gain insights into how to interact with each child. There are many ways adults can interact with children, such as:

Verbal language
Sign language
Nonverbal communication (e.g., gestures, facial expressions)
Physical touch
Gentle or active movement
Use of space between the adult and child

Interactions that are respectful and responsive to each child’s individual needs let children know their feelings, interests, and intentions are recognized and valued.

[2]U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start , Early Head Start National Resource Center (EHS NRC), News You Can Use: Developmentally Appropriate Practice (Washington, DC, 2011).

EQIT

We would like to give a HUGE Congratulations to the following 18 participants for completing the Fall 2025 48-Hour Expanding Quality in Infant and Toddler Care Course and their Trainers and Coaches.

Participants:

Linda Altamirano
Nancy Duran
Amanda Garcia
Ana Gonsalez
Luz Heredia
Darlene Jimenez
Faith Maestas
Nicole Mahan
Erica Maldonado
Karla Maltos
Tiffany Quintana
Jazmin Santillano
Nicole Silva
Ursula Nelson
James (JD) Pazen
Benita (Alex) Vialpando
Amanda Vigil
Kodie Barr

Trainers:

Amy Bolt

Ramona Silva

Coaches:

Beverlee Keilman

Tina Esquibel

We would also like to give a HEARTFELT THANK YOU to Erica Maldonado for providing translation services during the course.

This wonderful work could not happen without the support, participation, and collaboration from early childhood program directors and staff.

The impact this course has on anyone choosing to join this Early Childhood Infant and Toddler Initiative is life long and life changing in the ways we see babies.

Immediate Child Care Openings (Toddlers 12–30 Months)

🚨 Immediate Child Care Openings in Alamosa! 🚨

Ages: 1–3 years (must be walking)

Early Head Start has FREE childcare spots available now for qualifying families—but spots are limited! Don’t wait—secure your child’s spot today.

📞 Call Alex or Erica at 719-937-4010 for more info.

📝 Apply now by filling out the interest form Here to complete the interest form.

Act fast spaces won’t last!

Are you in need of trusted, high-quality childcare?

Our licensed Family Child Care Home Providers are now accepting new enrollments!

✅ Small group settings

✅ Individualized attention

✅ Safe, nurturing environments

✅ Flexible availability

We currently have multiple openings in:

Rio Grande County
Alamosa County
Conejos County

Let us connect you with a provider who fits your family's needs!

Contact Amanda Atencio at ecresource@ecclsv.org

Resource and Referral-New Funding for Rural Child Care Providers

The Child Care Capital & Infrastructure Fund is now available to support child care providers in rural Colorado. Offered by First Southwest Bank with support from Gary Community Ventures, the fund provides low-interest loans to help start, expand, or improve child care programs.

Funds may be used for equipment, building purchase or renovation, refinancing, or expansion. Licensed family child care homes, centers, and FFN providers may be eligible. Loans of up to $2 million are available.

Learn more and apply click here.

Raising Colorado Kids Resources

Raising Colorado Kids is a website full of resources for Colorado families. It is designed as a central hub to help families locate resources, information, and supports related to early childhood, child development, childcare, and family services in Colorado.

What can you find at this website?

Guidelines and expectations for children’s growth (from birth to age 8)

Help identifying and evaluating childcare options

Resources for families in need of assistance

Information and application guidance

What are you waiting for?! Check this website out today!

Visit our Website

Professional Development

Scholarships Available for Early Childhood Professionals!

Are you currently working in early childhood education or pursuing a career in the field? Great news—scholarship opportunities are available to help you continue your education and professional growth!

These scholarships can support coursework, credential programs, and degree pathways designed to strengthen the early childhood workforce.

Investing in your education not only benefits your career but also enhances the quality of care and learning experiences for young children in our community.

For those interested, please reach out to Lcoresource@eccslv.org for local scholarship information.

For those working towards their master's or doctorate in Early Childhood take a look at this scholarship from The Denver Foundation.

Family Affordability Tax Credit Reminder

It's tax time! Many residents of Colorado are eligible for thousands of dollars in tax credits, including the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). However, nearly a quarter of those eligible miss out on these benefits. You don't need to earn a high income to qualify for the CTC or EITC, but it is necessary to file a state of Colorado tax return for this credit. Starting in 2025, Colorado families with children will be able to access the Family Affordability Tax Credit (FATC).

Here’s how it works:

Up to $3,200 for each eligible child aged 5 years old and younger as of Dec 31, 2025
Up to $2,400 for each eligible child ages 6 to 16 as of Dec 31, 2025

Additionally, parents with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) can qualify for the credit if their children have a Social Security Number (SSN), which can also be up to $3,200 per young child. To receive this credit, you must file a State of Colorado tax return. File your taxes securely and for free at https://www.getaheadcolorado.org/

Stay Updated on Local Resources

This time of year, there are lots of community supports and opportunities popping up and we know it can be hard to keep track of them all.

While our newsletter goes out once a month, we often come across helpful resources online that we share on our Facebook page to keep things streamlined and easy to find.

https://www.facebook.com/eccslv

Community Bulletin Board

Saguache County Social Services

How to Apply and Full Job Description details

Interested candidates should submit their resume, cover letter, and references to the Saguache County Social Services Department at miracle.gomez@state.co.us or deliver to Saguache County Department of Social Services, 605 Christy Avenue, Saguache, CO 81149. You may also find the job application online at https://saguachecounty.colorado.gov/employment-opportunities Applications will be accepted until position is filled. Saguache County is an equal-opportunity employer. We encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds and experiences.

Do you have something you would like to share in our newsletter?

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ECCSLV considers requests based on relevance, capacity, and timeliness. We do not guarantee that all information will be shared.