Quality Care for Children Partners with
Newell Rubbermaid to Help Ensure Georgia’s
Children Receive High-Quality Child Care

Newell Rubbermaid may not be a household name, but you can find the company’s products in millions of households across America – whether it’s a Paper Mate pen, Goody hair barrette, Rubbermaid food storage container or Graco stroller.

The Fortune 500 company is based in Sandy Springs, Ga., and has become an important partner of Quality Care for Children. In fact, QCC is one of the main nonprofits supported by the company’s philanthropy program, Investing in Community, said Jackie Parker, vice president of diversity & inclusion and corporate philanthropy.

“We believe in their mission,” Parker said. “We find their leadership to be very accountable and to have integrity. They have heart and passion.”

Newell Rubbermaid first became interested in becoming a supporter because QCC’s work aligns with two parts of the company’s three-pronged strategy for charitable giving: “Growing Up” and “Getting Ahead.” QCC’s work supports those goals by helping to improve the quality of early childhood education and offering training for caregivers to expand their skills and knowledge, Parker said.

Parker joined with philanthropist Stephanie Blank in April as a spokeswoman in public service announcements for QCC’s new toll-free child care referral line, 1-800-ALL-GA-KIDS – the first of its kind in the nation. The number gives Georgia parents one trusted source to find licensed child care.

“The referral service is a blessing for working parents,” Parker said. “Even at Newell Rubbermaid, we see the need for it. We have so many employees relocating here and not knowing where to place their child.”

Some of those relocating employees work for Graco, one of Newell Rubbermaid’s brands and the maker of baby and toddler products familiar to so many parents. Graco relocated to metro Atlanta in 2009 and as soon as the company got settled, its leadership met with QCC and formed a strategic partnership, Parker said. It’s a natural fit, considering what Graco makes, she said.

Graco’s vice president for human resources, Scott Koenigs, joined the QCC board. Now, Graco is working with QCC to find a child care center that its employees can “adopt” and “do some wonderful hands-on work with,” said Parker. “The Graco partnership is expanding. I believe we are going to see a lot of wonderful things come out of that partnership.”

Newell Rubbermaid also has made it possible for several family child care providers to pursue additional training.

“Some of these providers can’t afford to take courses, so we are helping to pay for scholarships. The more training they receive, the better able they are to provide a good quality environment for the kids,” Parker said.

Too often, she said, child care providers don’t provide an enriching experience for the children – and yet we know the amount of attention given to young children is a key factor in their development. The early years have a direct impact on workforce readiness, especially for children from low-income neighborhoods, Parker noted.

“Improving quality of child care in our state is important,” she added. “That’s why what Quality Care for Children does is so important.”