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The Skagit Valley Family YMCA has two exciting reasons to celebrate: our Burlington Early Learning Center earned a Level 5 Early Achievers rating, the highest possible, and the Skagit Y won for childcare in the 2026 Best of the Best – Skagit Valley awards!
These recognitions reflect the dedication of our childcare teams and the trust of the families and community we serve.
Burlington Earns Highest Early Achievers Rating
Early Achievers is Washington’s quality recognition and improvement system for early learning programs. It helps providers strengthen the care and learning experiences they offer while giving families information to help them choose childcare.
The program considers areas including learning environments, teacher-child interactions, curriculum, child outcomes, family engagement, and professional development.
Burlington’s Level 5 rating recognizes the care, professionalism, and commitment our staff brings to children and families every day.
Throughout the process, the Burlington team recorded classroom videos, reflected on teaching practices, strengthened family engagement, and supported one another as they worked toward this milestone. Their achievement reflects a shared commitment to learning and continuous improvement.
For families, that work translates into nurturing classrooms, meaningful learning experiences, and strong partnerships with the people caring for their children.
Building on LaVenture’s Success
Burlington’s achievement follows another milestone for the Y: our LaVenture Early Learning Center in Mount Vernon earned a Level 4 during its first-ever Early Achievers rating process in May 2026.
As we shared in our earlier story about LaVenture’s achievement, that recognition followed more than a year of preparation, assessment, and reflection. Lessons from that process helped support Burlington as its team worked toward its own rating.
We are incredibly proud of both teams and the environments they create for children to learn, grow, and feel cared for.
“A rating like this doesn’t happen because of one great day or one strong evaluation,” shared Dean, CEO of the Skagit Valley Family YMCA. “It reflects the work of a team, day after day, in creating environments where children can learn, grow, and feel cared for.”
These achievements belong to the entire staff at our LaVenture and Burlington Early Learning Centers. Every team member plays a part in supporting children’s development, building relationships with families, and helping children prepare for kindergarten.
Congratulations to both teams, and thank you for the extraordinary work you do for children and families in our community!
Recognized by Our Community for Childcare
The celebration continues with our childcare win in the 2026 Best of the Best – Skagit Valley awards! Through community nominations and voting, this program recognizes favorite local businesses and organizations.
To everyone who nominated us, voted, or recommended our programs to another family: thank you. Your support means so much to our staff and celebrates the relationships they build with children and families every day.
Choosing childcare is an important decision, and we are grateful to the families who trust us to be part of their children’s lives. These recognitions inspire us to keep learning, growing, and creating welcoming places where children can thrive.
Explore our Early Learning programs to learn more.
