“It’s what I do, and I enjoy it,” says the owner of Susie’s Friends Daycare in Albemarle. “And their such wonderful children.”

Bowers’ hard work has paid off. Just recently, the state issued her home-care facility four-stars — one star away from the highest rating — for the excellent care she provides to children.

Susie’s Friends Daycare is among the first eight centers across the state to receive a rating under a new state licensing system. By Sept. 1, 2000, however, all child-care and home-care centers will receive a license with a rating of one to five stars, replacing the old A & AA license.

Officials from the State Division of Child Development say they understand choosing a child-care center is one of the most important decisions a parent can make. They hope the new state rating system will make it a lot simpler.

“When you go into a restaurant, you know how well that facility is doing in meeting health standards because we have a rating system,” explained Stephanie Fanjul, director of Division of Child Development. “Parents deserve a similar rating for child-care centers.”

Thanks to this new system, parents now can get a good picture of the kind of quality their child receives, Fanjul said.

The new licenses use stars to show parents how well the center is doing in program standards, staff education and compliance history. Centers can receive up to five points in each of the three areas. The total number of points earned determines how many stars a center gets.

One star means the provider meets basic licensing requirements for a child-care center or home. More stars will mean the provider meets higher standards for better quality child care. A one star rating is the minimum required by the state.

The higher ratings may qualify a local center for more state and local monies.

“This is going to make things a whole lot easier for consumers facing what could well be one of the most important decisions they make for their families,” Fanjul said.

Bowers agrees.

“The current system is good because parents can decide what facility they would like to use,” she said. “Rather than just a license, they can see the facility offers more advanced programs with the number of stars issued.”

“... I was honored to be able to get everything done and be approved early,” Bowers said. ” My state consultant, Sharon Balfrey, has been the biggest help. I’m floating on a cloud now because I was able to get the four stars.”

Bowers’ would have to enlarge the size of her center or drop one student to receive the highest rating issued. “When I look at my 10 little faces, I could not drop one,” Bowers said. “It’s just not what I want to do right now.

But six years ago, the former sewing floor supervisor knew operating a day care is exactly what she wanted to do after she was laid off. Bowers said she knew she wanted to do something to make a difference in young lives. So she went back to school to further her education.

Two years later, she had an associate degree in early education, closed in the garage of her home and opened her own day care.

Now she offers a full curriculum for youngsters ages 2-5, including regular story time, math, science and music.

“If you have a daily schedule and a lot of teacher activities, children learn by doing.Their play is their work,” Bowers said. “We do a lot of exploring.I try my best not to have the children wandering around idle, wondering what they will do next. Every part of our day, I make a learning experience.”

Bowers says she may pursue that five-star rating in the future. With the start of school next fall, she will lose four of her children to kindergarten and says that may be the time she’ll decide not to take as many, so she can qualify for the highest rating.

But for now, the owner of the small daycare, nestled in the quaint Palestine community, is satisfied.