ACF
Administration for Children and Families |
U.S. DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES |
1. Log No. ACF-IM-HS-08-12 |
2. Issuance Date: 08/19/2008 |
3. Originating Office: Office of Head Start |
4. Key Word: Classroom staff qualifications |
INFORMATION MEMORANDUM
TO: Head Start and Early Head Start Grantees and Delegate Agencies
SUBJECT:
Statutory Degree and Credentialing Requirements for Head Start
Teaching
Staff
INFORMATION:
Attached is a discussion of those statutory requirements related
to the qualifications for center-based Head Start and Early Head
Start teaching staff. Please direct any questions on this
Information Memorandum to your OHS Regional Office.
/Patricia E. Brown/
Patricia E. Brown
Acting Director
Office
of Head Start
Head Start
What are the current requirements
for Head Start teacher qualifications?
Each Head Start classroom in center-based programs must have a
teacher who has at least one of the following qualifications:
- A Child Development Associate (CDA) credential that is
appropriate to the age of the children being served;
- A State-awarded certificate for preschool teachers that meets
or exceeds the requirements for a Child Development Associate
(CDA) credential; (Please contact your regional office to
determine if your state’s certificate meets the requirements for a
CDA.)
- An associate, baccalaureate or advanced degree in early
childhood education;
- An associate degree in a field related to early childhood
education and coursework equivalent to a major relating to early
childhood education with experience teaching preschool-age
children;
- A baccalaureate or advanced degree in any field and coursework
equivalent to a major relating to early childhood education with
experience teaching preschool-age children or;
- A baccalaureate degree in any field and has been admitted into
the Teach For America program, passed a rigorous early childhood
content exam, such as the Praxis II, participated in a Teach For
America summer training institute that includes teaching preschool
children, and is receiving ongoing professional development and
support from Teach For America’s professional staff.
However, a 180-day waiver may be granted to the above requirement
if a Head Start agency can demonstrate it has attempted
unsuccessfully to recruit a qualified candidate and the individual
for whom the waiver is being requested is enrolled in a program that
will award that individual a qualifying credential, certificate or
degree within 180 days of being hired as a teacher.
What will the requirements for Head Start Teachers be as
of October 1, 2011?
By October 1, 2011, each Head Start classroom in center-based
programs must have a teacher who has at least one of the
following:
- An associate, baccalaureate or advanced degree in early
childhood education;
- An associate degree in a field related to early childhood
education and coursework equivalent to a major relating to early
childhood education, with experience teaching preschool-age
children;
- A baccalaureate or advanced degree in any field and coursework
equivalent to a major relating to early childhood education, with
experience teaching preschool-age children or;
- A baccalaureate degree in any field and has been admitted into
the Teach For America program, passed a rigorous early childhood
content exam, such as the Praxis II, participated in a Teach For
America summer training institute that includes teaching preschool
children and is receiving ongoing professional development and
support from Teach For America’s professional staff.
However, a 3-year waiver can be granted to the above requirement
if a Head Start agency can demonstrate it has attempted
unsuccessfully to recruit a qualified candidate and the individual
for whom the waiver is being requested is enrolled in a program that
will grant that individual a qualifying degree in a reasonable time
period. If such a waiver is granted, there must be, in that
individual’s classroom, a teacher with a CDA credential appropriate
to the age of the children being served or an individual with a
State awarded certificate for preschool teachers that meets or
exceeds the requirements of a CDA credential.
What will the requirements for Head Start Teachers be as
of September 30, 2013?
By September 30, 2013 at least 50% of Head Start teachers
nation-wide must have a baccalaureate or advanced degree in Early
Childhood Education or a baccalaureate or advanced degree in any
subject, and coursework equivalent to a major relating to early
childhood education with experience teaching preschool-age children.
OHS expects every grantee to make reasonable progress in
increasing its numbers of teachers with qualifying BA degrees but
there is not a requirement for each grantee to assure that at least
50% of its teachers have such degrees. The requirements established
in 2011 for every Head Start teacher will continue to
apply.
What counts as “coursework equivalent to a major relating
to early childhood education”?
Coursework equivalent to a major relating to early childhood
education includes but is not limited to courses that focus on child
development, early childhood education and curriculum, early
childhood teaching and assessment, psychology, family development,
health and physical development, mathematics, science, and
children’s literature. Such courses may be offered in various
departments, such as Education, Home Economics, Music, Art, Library
Sciences, Physical Education and Recreation, Psychology, Family
Studies, and others. It is up to each prospective employee to
provide the Head Start program with information on the college
credit courses taken and to demonstrate that the courses address
early childhood education or child development with a focus on
children ages 3 to 5. Programs must examine the college transcripts
and review course descriptions or syllabi to determine the relevance
of the courses to the Head Start program.
Head Start agencies in states that license or certify state Pre-K
teachers may also choose to accept the type(s) and number(s) of
courses recognized by the local school district or state education
agency as qualifying teachers to teach pre-school aged children in
that school district or state as “coursework equivalent to a major
relating to early childhood education” as long as they also have
experience teaching pre-school aged children.
Does a person with an associate, baccalaureate,
or advanced degree in a field other than early childhood education
need experience teaching preschool-age children in addition to the
courses equivalent to a major relating to early childhood
education?
Yes. An individual who has a degree in
another field must have experience in an early childhood setting
with children ages 3 to 5 in addition to courses equivalent to a
major relating to early childhood education to meet the
qualifications mandate for Head Start teachers. The Act does not
prescribe either the kind or duration of qualifying experience; each
grantee should establish its own criteria.
Does a person with an early childhood degree need
additional experience in working with children to be qualified as a
Head Start teacher?
No. A teacher who has an associate, baccalaureate or advanced
degree does not need additional work experience with children to be
qualified as a preschool Head Start teacher.
What are the qualification requirements for Teacher
aides/assistants?
By September 30, 2013 all teaching assistants in center-based
programs must:
• Have a child development associate (CDA) credential;
• Be enrolled in a CDA credential program that will be
completed within 2 years; or
• Have an associate or baccalaureate degree (in any area) or
be enrolled in a program leading to such a degree.
What are the qualification requirements for education
coordinators?
By September 30, 2013 all education coordinators (including those
that serve as curriculum specialists), nationwide in center-based
programs must have:
• A baccalaureate or advanced degree in early childhood
education; or
• A baccalaureate or advanced degree in any subject and
coursework equivalent to a major relating to early childhood
education with experience teaching preschool-age children.
Early Head Start
What are the current requirements for Early Head
Start teacher qualifications?
Current Head Start regulations require Early Head Start teachers
to have a CDA credential for Infant and Toddler Caregivers, or an
equivalent credential that addresses comparable competencies within
one year of hire as a teacher of infants and toddlers.
What will be the requirements for Early Head Start
Teachers as of September 30, 2010?
By September 30, 2010, all Early Head Start teachers must have,
at a minimum, a CDA credential and have been trained (or have
equivalent coursework) in early childhood development.
What will be the requirements for Early Head Start
Teachers as of September 30, 2012?
By September 30, 2012 all Early Head Start teachers must meet the
above requirement and be trained (or have equivalent coursework) in
early childhood development with a focus on infant and toddler
development.
Additional Information
Head Start agencies are encouraged to maintain—in the personnel
files of all teachers, teaching assistants, and education
coordinators—a statement identifying which documents were examined
to determine that the relevant qualification requirements were
met.
Each Head Start agency is required to submit an annual report on
its progress in meeting the requirements discussed in this
memorandum. OHS will provide more information on this report in the
near future.
Section 648A(2)(C)(i)(III) precludes OHS from imposing any
penalties or sanctions for any agency failing to meet either the
requirement that all education coordinators must have a BA degree or
the requirement that all teaching assistants must have a CDA. OHS
will provide additional information on this in the future.
See PDF version:
Statutory Degree and Credentialing Requirements for Head Start Teaching Staff [PDF, 68KB]