Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: identify key considerations for developing a child care center philosophy and mission and vision statements; recognize elements of a developmentally appropriate classroom and effective curriculum practices; identify practices that ensure safe and healthy food service and promote healthy eating habits in young children; identify common hazards throughout the school facility and strategies for maintaining a safe and healthy environment; recognize leadership practices that promote efficiency, teamwork, collaboration and effective communication; identify strategies, requirements and best practices for hiring, training, and retaining employees; identify effective communication strategies with employees and families; identify elements of leadership that build employee morale, promote continuous quality improvement, and prevent turnover; identify recommended safe practices and policies for responding to various types of disasters and security threats; identify and analyze center procedures for developing risk management policies and training employees; identify best practices pertaining to social media and technology use in a child care environment; identify strategies for responding to challenging behaviors in the child care environment; identify various forms of child advocacy; recognize recommended strategies for building relationships with families and promoting family involvement; identify regulations and legal requirements that relate to operating a child care center; and use key elements of child care center management.