The Iowa Family Support Credential is public recognition by the Early Childhood Iowa office and the Iowa Department of Public Health that a family support program follows evidence-based practice standards.

Why does credentialing matter?

Better for families. Programs that adhere to high quality standards also provide higher quality support for kids and families.

Better for professionals. Affordable credentialing helps even the smallest program gain access to high quality evaluation, build their strengths, and better position them for future funding.

Better for taxpayers.  Investments in high quality early childhood programs mean savings for communities, reducing the need for future services, and improving high school graduation rates.

What does Iowa’s family support programs say?

Credentialing sets the bar for our counterparts in neighboring counties and the state overall.  Iowa families unquestionably benefit first from this process and because credentialing ensures quality and effective programming, any allocation of staff or dollars is money well spent.

-Harrison County Home and Public Health, Learning for Life program

We are very proud that Iowa is a national leader in ensuring high quality services for families and recognizes the importance of early childhood programs. We appreciate being recognized as one of those programs.

-Prairie Lakes AEA 8, K.I.D.S. program

We were inspired to go deeper  in our vision for our program.  In many areas we wet far below the surface and found the diamonds of true family support work.  We believe IFSTAN launched us into a higher level of service that must and will remain.

-Greene County HOPES Family Support Program