ECE Profession FAQs

Real questions from Vermont early childhood educators about the ECE Profession.

Why a profession, and what is the process?

The Unifying Framework for the Early Childhood Education Profession is designed to be implemented across the nation. Each state has a different process. These are questions about the process to create an ECE Profession in Vermont. Answers will be updated as the process unfolds.

See Our Recommendations, Leadership, Timeline, and Resources for background about this workforce-led initiative.

Being professional is one thing. Being in a profession is another. These are the things professions have in common, according to national researcher Stacie Goffin:

  • Professions have a well-defined, distinct purpose
  • Professionals require specialized knowledge and  skills
  • Professions have systems for preparation and accountability, and those systems are led, decided, created, and managed by the profession itself.
  • In preparation systems, professionals are prepared for their role before they practice.
  • In accountability systems, everyone served by a professional receives competent care according to standards of practice.

The single most important element of high-quality experiences for young children is the qualifications of the person who works with those children and their families. Elevating early childhood educators as professionals is the key to doing our best for young children and their families, and to creating our best future as a state.

Professional compensation requires public recognition and funding of early childhood education as a public good. The national Unifying Framework for the Early Childhood Education Profession describes three necessary and connected components for sustainability: significant public financing, supports and resources, and professional accountability.

In Vermont, there are two paths toward professional recognition. The first is to make a proposal directly to the Legislature. The other is to submit an application to the Office of Professional Regulation, in the Secretary of State’s office.

We think the strongest request will go through both pathways: most likely starting with the Office of Professional Recognition, followed by a request to the state legislature.

There are two timelines: one for setup, and one for implementation.

For setup: We have been advised that the shortest possible timeline, if all of our recommendations to policymakers are followed, is about a year from approval. It may take longer.

For implementation, we advocate for a phased-in transition period for our current early childhood educators, with flexible supports and that honors work experience.

We can not control state processes. Our recommendations are nationally-aligned, evidence-based, and workforce-endorsed: the best request we can make. We don’t know what the Office of Professional Regulation or the legislature will decide to do with our recommendations. As the process unfolds we will advocate for the strongest, most workforce-informed, workforce-supporting, Unifying Framework-aligned request we can.

Individual licensure ensures that everyone in professional practice is ready to practice.

Practice readiness means:

  • Having the required specialized knowledge and skills
  • Showing professional judgment and ethics
  • Holding a position of trust, given the potential risk of harm

Along with ensuring practice readiness, licensure:

  • Grants authority to an individual to practice
  • Communicates to employers, families, and the public that the individual is competent, safe to practice, and has oversight and accountability.

Several states are engaged, but no other state has done the kind of workforce engagement Vermont has, and no state has yet proposed legislation. 

States are all working from the Unifying Framework, and the Commission on Professional Excellence in Early Childhood Education is working on model legislation each state can adapt. But each state’s process is different. The Commission has asked Vermont and fellow states to present our work so we can learn from each other.

I'm an early childhood educator. How will this affect me?

We envision a well-prepared, well-compensated, professional early childhood education workforce. We recommend an implementation process that respects and supports our current workforce.

Your teaching experience matters. So does all your professional development. Many members of the current workforce may not have credentials, but have great expertise.

As a new profession is implemented, we recommend a phased-in timeline, flexible ways for educators to show what they know, and robust supports, to honor current educators’ knowledge and create a smooth transition to licensure.

The Unifying Framework recommendations for qualifications by professional designation:

  • ECE I: Preparation program of minimum 120 clock hours
  • ECE II: Associate degree in early childhood education
  • ECE III: Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education

Stay tuned! Work is ongoing to align the different credentials and accomplishments of our current workforce with these recommendations. Northern Lights is a partner in designing recommendations for how Career Ladder credentials will mesh with the national recommendations for licensure qualifications.

For early childhood educators who do not yet qualify, or who would like to qualify for a different designation, many supports and resources are already in place:

VTAEYC administers scholarships, student loan repayment assistance, grants, career advancement resources, and other incentives to help early childhood educators earn qualifications at no or low cost.

There are innovative and flexible pathways for early childhood educators at all career stages to earn transferable, stackable credentials. See our Career Advancement page to get started.

If you are pursuing additional education right now, you should absolutely continue it.

If you are considering additional education but have not started, see Career Advancement to learn about grants and resources available. There are a lot of resources available for early childhood educators pursuing  credit-bearing, stackable coursework.

A design team incorporated feedback from our workforce surveys and ecosystem research to design a model minimum compensation standard we can recommend for ECE I, II, and III. Here is a chart reflecting 2022 numbers: these will be updated.

A minimum standard defines the floor, not the ceiling, for compensation. It’s a framework to raise compensation quickly and fairly. See our video from 2022.

This work was included in the RAND Corporation financing study commissionedby the Vermont legislature to determine the cost of transforming early childhood education.

We don’t have a clear answer yet. The Commission on Professional Excellence in Early Childhood Education is looking at national assessment options. They have said assessments must be unbiased, accessible, affordable, and transparent—both in how they are designed as well as in the pass rate results. 

In the meantime, the Commission has indicated early-adopter states like Vermont can proceed with recommendations that work for our state and workforce. In these cases, the Commission recommends a waiver of the national assessment process, if the state decides on a method for early childhood educators to demonstrate their competencies. So there is a lot to be determined, both nationally and at the state level.

The Commission suggests a five-year schedule. Most Vermont professions are on a two-year renewal schedule with a $250 fee. We don’t know yet what license renewal schedules and costs will look like. What we can do is advocate for adequate compensation to come first so that license fees do not create financial burdens.

I'm a program director or program owner. How will this affect my program?

Our vision is that every child has the opportunity to benefit from high quality, affordable early childhood education. We believe individual licensure of qualified, accountable early childhood educators can reduce programs’ regulatory burdens, and support the case for the public investment necessary for professional compensation.

Early childhood educators with family child care home programs helped design this project. Three current (and several former) family child care home educators are founding members of our Task Force and are experienced with the barriers specific to educators in this setting. The Task Force is committed to ensuring early childhood educators with family child care home programs are included, considered, and valued in our recommendations.

We recommend phasing in requirements for new qualifications, and we don’t recommend adding new requirements—for individuals or programs—until funding to increase compensation is in place. We recognize how important compensation is for recruitment and retention.

As compensation and respect increase, we anticipate the workforce will increase as more people return to or begin careers in early childhood education.

An individually licensed hiring pool simplifies hiring. Programs will have a clear understanding of the qualifications of each licensed applicant for a given position. A system of individual regulation helps protect your program against the risks involved with hiring people who are not qualified to practice.

In addition, the Unifying Framework suggests that in the future, once the profession is established, some existing regulatory systems, including those programs are responsible for meeting, may be unwound.
We don’t recommend implementing new requirements without funding. This is to prevent undue cost burden on both programs and individual educators. The implementation of Act 76 over more than a year is one example of how funding can flow to stabilize a system before requirements take effect.

The Unifying Framework says “Family child care and self-employed early childhood educators may benefit from additional supports such as peer learning networks or innovations in supervision. These innovations and other revised and realigned structures and specializations will also be necessary to support educators working in family child care who are working non-traditional hours to support working families and serving children in mixed age groups.”

Vermont has already built up these support systems. Learn more about SPARQS (the System for Program Access to Resources for Quality Supports). A component of SPARQS is Vermont Early Childhood Networks, or VECNs, which specifically support family child care home early childhood educators.

How is the ECE Profession going to work with the current early childhood education system?

Our recommendations align with the recommendations in the Unifying Framework and the future national profession without duplicating current systems.

ECE I, II, and  III are part of a national framework for professional licensure that bridges system gaps and increases equity for infants and toddlers and their families, and for educators in private settings and Head Start. For details, see the explainer The Need for a Comprehensive Range of Licenses to Practice ECE.

No. Educators licensed by the Vermont AOE with an early childhood education endorsement are already licensed for the work they do with young children. They would not also need an ECE III license.
If an AOE-licensed educator did decide to also hold an ECE III license, we recommend that licensure steps for ECE III be waived, to avoid a duplicative process. See more in the explainer.

Small community based programs, family child care home programs, and Head Start are important components of Vermont’s mixed-delivery system.

ECE III offers an avenue to professional recognition
for educators in these settings who have a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, regardless of the ages they teach. The existing AOE licensure pathway carries some barriers for these early childhood educators: time and expense, in addition to exam and portfolio requirement. See more in the explainer.

Northern Lights is a partner in designing recommendations for how Career Ladder credentials will mesh with the national recommendations for licensure qualifications. We plan to continue this partnership.

The Child Development Associate credential (CDA) is a well-known national qualification held by many early childhood educators. How it fits into professional recommendations is something the national Commission on Professional Excellence in ECE, and our Task Force and partners in Vermont, are still considering.

The Unifying Framework recommends a cohesive, profession-led governance structure. At the national level, the Commission on Professional Excellence in ECE was created to serve this purpose.

The Unifying Framework recommends a professional governing body will designate the profession’s guidelines, set parameters for quality assurance of individuals and professional preparation programs, and serve as a liaison and collaborator with state and federal agencies and regulatory bodies. Additionally, a significant number of its members should be early childhood educators with each setting represented.

We recommend creating a Vermont governing board of early childhood educators to serve this purpose at the state level.

 

The Commission on Professional Excellence in ECE released a summary of the Early Childhood Education Professional Recognition Act. This licensure legislation and regulations is intended to serve as a model for states considering moving towards professional licensure for early childhood educators.

Vermont is one of a handful of states taking steps to implement the recommendations of the Unifying Framework.  The Commission considers Vermont’s workforce-led efforts a model. We have been asked to meet with fellow states to share with and learn from each other.

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See our Resource Page for toolkits, explainers, Consensus Documents, videos, publications, and more.

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