(PRWEB) January 29, 2015
Monroe College, a national leader in urban and international education, and the Council for Professional Recognition, the leading professional development organization for early childhood educators, today announced a new partnership to enable Monroe School of Education students to earn the Council’s Child Development Associate™ (CDA) credential.
“The CDA program is an excellent opportunity for those working with children to enhance the quality of their training and learning, and gain the invaluable experience that will invariably further develop their understanding of children’s learning needs during the formative early years,” said Anne Lillis, Ed. D, Dean of Monroe College’s School of Education. "Offering the CDA is a strong addition to the curriculum at Monroe and a great advantage to the employment appeal of job candidates who earn it."
Recipients of the CDA must complete 120 hours of professional education in early childhood development, undertake 480 hours of relevant work experience, undergo direct observations with a CDA Professional Development Specialist, and successfully complete an examination, all of which demonstrate their effectiveness as an early care and education professional.
"The CDA is intended to build competencies for several types of staff,” said Council Chief Executive Officer Valora Washington, Ph.D., “including the teacher with a degree who needs to build practical competencies, the assistant teacher with experience but limited formal training, and the vocational high school student who wants to pursue a career working with young children.”
Monroe College will offer evening classes for the CDA credential at both its New Rochelle and Bronx campuses, allowing current early care and education professionals to maintain their current roles while pursuing the certification. Individuals do not have to be admitted to Monroe College's education program to take classes toward earning a CDA. Students successfully completing the CDA process will be eligible to transfer six credits toward Monroe’s Bachelor of Science in early childhood education.
"As evidenced locally by New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio's initiative to provide city residents with universal access to early childhood education programs, there is an ever-increasing priority placed nationwide on delivering quality education opportunities to young children before the traditional start of formal education with kindergarten," said Dean Lillis. "Monroe College is excited to offer the CDA credential program to help individuals prepare for successful careers in this sector by offering the education and training they need to be strong candidates to future employers and impactful mentors to the young people whose lives they touch."
Founded in 2011, Monroe’s School of Education provides future teachers with a solid foundation in all areas of child development, focusing in particular on the special needs of urban students and those who come from high-needs areas. Taught by a faculty of active and retired teachers, superintendents and education directors, who bring more than 100 years of service to the classroom, students learn general and advanced principles of cognitive, physical and affective development. Graduates of the school are placed in suburban and city schools, including public, private and parochial institutions. To learn more about Monroe College’s School of Education, please visit here. For more information about its CDA classes, please see here.
ABOUT MONROE COLLEGE
Founded in 1933, New York-based Monroe College is a nationally ranked private institution of higher learning with a real-world learning approach that prioritizes hands-on academic experiences, practical and relevant academic programs, flexible learning schedules, best-in-class instructional technologies, and committed and engaged faculty to ensure that students are well positioned for career success upon graduation. Monroe is among the leading higher education institutions in the country for graduating minority students.
Monroe College offers certificate, associate, bachelor's, and master's degree programs. It has campuses in the Bronx, New Rochelle, as well as in the Caribbean nation of St. Lucia, with programs offered through its Schools of Criminal Justice, Information Technology, Nursing, Education, Business & Accounting, Hospitality Management and Culinary Arts, and Allied Health Professions, as well as through its liberal arts and continuing education programs, and its King Graduate School. For more information and admissions criteria, please visit http://www.monroecollege.edu
ABOUT THE COUNCIL FOR PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION
The Council for Professional Recognition (The Council) promotes improved performance and recognition of professionals in the early childhood education of children ages birth to 5 years old. The Council works to ensure all professional early childhood educators and caregivers meet the developmental, emotional, and educational needs of our nation’s youngest children.
The Council recognizes and credentials professionals who work in all types of early care and education programs – Head Start, pre-K, infant-toddler, family child care, and home visitor programs.
About the Child Development Associate (CDA) Credentialing Program™:
In keeping with its goal to meet the growing need for qualified early child care and education staff, the Council administers a unique teacher credentialing process which results in the award of the Child Development Associate (CDA) Credential™. The program uses a specific set of time-tested, research-based tools to determine early childhood teacher competency, based on multiple sources of evidence.
Having the CDA credential from the Council for Professional Recognition verifies that teachers have the ability to put the Council’s nationally recognized CDA Competency Standards into practice. Having a CDA demonstrates a commitment to a career in early childhood education and an understanding of how the developmental context of the Standards can help teachers support children’s early care experiences.