Looking Back on 2015
The end of the year is always a good time for reflection – and we at the Council look back on 2015 as another banner year in our service to you – the early care...
Deputy Director of Child Development Services
Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity
Birmingham, Alabama
In 1991, I was a teacher’s aide for the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity in Birmingham, Alabama. Acquiring a CDA was a professional development requirement for the teacher’s aide job – every teacher’s aide had to earn one.
Getting the CDA turned into a lifesaver for me because it was a competency-based credential and it provided me with the opportunity to document what I was doing in the classroom. I then developed a passion for working with young children and that inspired me to continue my education. Today I have a PhD.
I went on to train teachers across the United States and share my own personal insights about education. It marked the beginning of a career that I hadn’t even thought about up until that point. And it all started with the CDA. Acquiring my CDA gave me the confidence to do more — which is so important early in a career.
Recently Posted:
Being a Bilingual Teacher in Early Childhood Education
As the population of young children keeps getting more diverse in this country, many schools and programs are seeking teachers and assistants that speak the languages needed in their classrooms. However, it is not enough...
The First 1,000 Days
Across the globe, in places like Uganda and Dublin, mothers are being made aware that the 1,000 day period from the beginning of pregnancy to a child’s second birthday will, as midwife Susan Ejang says....
It’s Never Been Easier to Renew your CDA Credential
We know how important it is for you to renew your CDA Credential. That’s why the Council for Professional Recognition has been working hard to make the online application process easier for you. It has...
The Voice of the Practitioner
By Dr. Robert Gundling, Deputy Operating Officer, Sunshine Early Learning Center Imagine a world where the voice of early care and education leaders, advocates, administrators and teachers, mainly in community-based programs is represented in articles...
Early Childhood Education as a Profession and the Investments Required
Early childhood education is finally getting its time in the spotlight. It’s great to see more and more funding going into programs that will make a difference for thousands of young children and their families....
Fulfilling the Promise of Early Childhood Education: Advancing Early Childhood Education as a Professional Field of Practice
Early childhood education (ECE) is in the spotlight as never before. Being in the limelight, however, has highlighted the field’s fragmentation and the variability in the quality of children’s formal early learning experiences. This reality...
Meet Dr. Valora Washington – the CEO of the Council for Professional Recognition
How would you like to find out about the life of an exceptional educator and the leader of the Council for Professional Recognition? This post recognizes our CEO, Dr. Valora Washington, who has been in...
Welcome to the Council Blog
Welcome to the Council and thank you for checking out our new blog. It is with great excitement that the Council takes the first step in the world of blogging to communicate with all of...