Resources for Finding Quality Child Care in the Philadelphia Region

Welcome to the Child Care Resources page. This page provides resources to help you decide what type of child care is best for your family, and how to evaluate and locate child care providers. It includes links to some current research in child development, links to articles about how to evaluate child care options, and links to websites that help you find specific providers in this geographic region.

In Section I you will find a listing of referral resources for child care in this region, as well as information about how to decide what type of child care is best for your family.
In Section II you will find important information about how to evaluate child care and what types of accreditation are important for various types of providers. In addition, some of the latest research comparing child care arrangements is included to help you sort through the many options.

This page is intended only to function as a clearinghouse of publicly-available information. Drexel has not itself investigated any of these agencies or providers and is not endorsing or encouraging you to use any of them. The information has been obtained from the web only through a preliminary search; as a result, we do not guarantee the accuracy of the information that is provided. You should be sure to conduct your own investigation to ensure the quality and bona fides of the provider and the program it offers and the appropriateness for your child.

In addition to the resources we list below, Drexel University partners with Health Advocate, which offers the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Work/Life Program to all full-time and part-time benefit eligible faculty members of Drexel University as well as their families. The EAP and Work/Life Program provide free, confidential work-life consultation services that identify solutions for a wide range of family and personal needs. The Work/Life Program offers resources on parenting skills, adoption, camps, after-school care, and education, including resources for children with special needs. For further information on these services, contact Health Advocate at 1-866-799-2728 or go to www.HealthAdvocate.com/drexel and click “EAP+Work/Life."

Please also note that Drexel’s benefit program for employees includes a “Dependent Care Spending Account.” For information about this program, visit the Human Resources webpage.

I. Making Choices: How to Find Quality Child Care In This Region

Family Care Solutions, Inc. (FCS,) a nonprofit community service agency, was established in 1992 to provide innovative childcare resources and services to low-income families in Southeastern Pennsylvania. FCS collaborates with public and private organizations to advocate for increasing access to quality childcare and childcare services to low-income student-parents.

Superpages offers lists of babysitters and child care resources, some with ratings by users. Site includes maps for locating resources and descriptions. 

National Association for the Education of Young Children. The website has various resources for families and specific referrals to care providers by zip code that have met NAEYC’s accreditation standards. Go to the section marked “Information” and click on “Families” then click on the link to the search engine.  

Child Care Information Services of Philadelphia (CCIS). The CCIS Parent Resource and Referral (R&R) Department maintains information on local child care facilities and community resources to help parents search for an appropriate arrangement for their child. This includes child care facilities that offer full-time, part-time, after-school, overnight, weekend care or summer camp programs.

II. Deciding What Kind of Childcare is Right for You & Your Child

Cochran E., Cochran M., Thorpe N., “Child Care Resources: Deciding What Type of Care and Selecting the Caregiver.” A Cornell Cooperative Education Publication, Sept. 2000. An excellent monograph containing sections on:

• Choosing High Quality Child Care
• Visiting and Interviewing Center-Based Child Care Providers
• Visiting and Interviewing Family Child Care Providers
• Visiting and Interviewing School-Age Child Care Providers
• Paying for Child Care

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is dedicated to improving the well-being of all young children, with particular focus on the quality of educational and developmental services for all children from birth through age 8. Founded in 1926, NAEYC is the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children with nearly 100,000 members, a national network of over 300 local, state, and regional Affiliates, and a growing global alliance of like-minded organizations. The website has various resources for families and referral to care providers that have met NAEYC’s accreditation standards.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The NICHD, established by Congress in 1962, conducts and supports research on topics related to the health of children, adults, families, and populations. It has sponsored key studies on the affects of various child care arrangements on children’s growth and development.

One of their major research studies, the “NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD): Findings for Children up to Age 4 1/2 Years”, compares various non-maternal child care arrangements and is summarized in a recent booklet available free from the Government Printing Office. The 62-page booklet describes the findings from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD). The NICHD started the SECCYD in 1991 to collect information about different non-maternal child care arrangements, about children and families who use these arrangements and those who do not, and child outcomes. This booklet explains the Study's findings for children from birth to age 4 1/2 years. Published 2006.

McCartney K. “Current Research on Child Care Effects,” Centre of Excellence for Early Child Development. Harvard University, 2004. Article reviews current research on various forms of child care and their effect on child development.

MedlinePlus is a service of the U.S National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. It provides extensive information about assessing, paying for, and choosing child care, as well as links to current research on the effects of various types of child care. It provides information for men, a glossary, legal issues, and other information. Some materials are from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Some materials are available in Spanish.