Melanie Porter
Owner/Educator at Porter Family Childcare
Being an educator is in Melanie Porter’s blood – her mother was a pre-K teacher for 25 years. However, when Melanie first started her career, she decided to take a different path and worked as a healthcare auditor. Soon enough, though, she realized her true calling was to follow in her mother’s footsteps.
With two young children at home, Melanie and her husband decided it would be best for their family if she was able to look after her own children and the children of the local community in their home. With the support of her family and friends, Melanie thrived in her new career and found that the root of her success was love – “everybody has to feel loved, accepted, appreciated, and valued.”
Appreciated and valued is exactly how Quality Start Riverside County (QSRC) makes her feel, too. Although, she acknowledges that participation in the program can be challenging and requires participants to keep an open mind when it comes to making changes for improvement.
When Porter Family Childcare was first rated in 2017, the program scored at tier 2. Melanie reflected, “I got a tier 2 and I kinda felt bad, like ‘no, I need to do better.’”
With the help of her QSRC Coach, Melanie and her team got to work improving the quality of their program. “We took classes; we went through the ERS book–everything we had to do to make sure that the parents are getting absolutely what they deserve, which is high quality, so their children are ready for the next step in their lives.”
In 2018, Melanie was excited to be re-rated. She had just accomplished a major professional and personal goal she had set for herself: earning a Master’s Degree in Human Development and Leadership. She had also been working hard to implement new screening tools and other elements of high-quality education services.
When her QSRC Coach shared that Porter Family Childcare had earned a tier 4, Melanie was elated. “I was so excited, I took my team out! It was a great accomplishment; I didn’t think that I would jump two tiers above what I had. It means a whole lot to me!” 
The personal satisfaction of a job well done, and knowing that she is investing in children’s futures, is what drives Melanie’s continued success. “At the end of the day, every parent wants their child to be their best, and that’s what we are doing, investing in our future, for our next generation.”
In fact, the next generation of Melanie’s own family is now benefiting from the high-quality care QSRC helps her to provide. Now, her grandchildren join other children at Porter Family Childcare to learn new skills to prepare them for school and beyond. Who knows, maybe one day they will grow up to be educators too!
