ISU College of Technology Early Childhood Care and Education Program earns NAEYC associate degree accreditation

Early childhood education is among the fastest growing occupations in the nation. At the heart of high-quality early childhood programs are educated teachers. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) wants to ensure that teachers are given the kind of foundation that will make them successful in classrooms and programs. NAEYC’s Commission on Early Childhood Associate Degree Accreditation has granted Idaho State University’s College of Technology Early Childhood Care and Education Associate Degree program full accreditation. The ISU program is one of nine associate degree programs sponsored by eight institutions of higher education to receive this status.

Federal Head Start regulations call for an associate’s degree or higher for teachers, and many states include early childhood associate degrees in their Quality Rating and Improvement Systems for child care and preschool programs. NAEYC’s professional standards for early childhood degree programs provide a high measure of quality by which teacher education programs can be evaluated.

The ISU Early Childhood Care and Education program prepares, supports, and empowers early childhood educators to become the foundation of high-quality education for today’s children. Early childhood care and education providers advocate for children and conduct themselves as members of the early childhood profession by upholding ethical and professional standards.

The Early Childhood Care and Education Associate Degree program is four semesters in length. Students are accepted in August each fall. The program has a 100% placement rate.

Founded in 1926, the National Association for the Education of Young Children has nearly 90,000 members worldwide. The association is the largest and most influential voice for early childhood education professionals and the field of early childhood education in the United States.

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