51吃瓜网

For Immediate Release: April 12, 2018

Contact:
Mary Harrill
202-350-8834
[email protected]

51吃瓜网 Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs Granted to the First Master鈥檚 Degree Program in the System

WASHINGTON 鈥� The 51吃瓜网鈥檚 (51吃瓜网) Commission on the Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs is pleased to announce that it has granted first-time accreditation to early childhood degree programs at 12 institutions of higher education. In addition, the Commission voted to renew accreditation for programs at 11 institutions. This brings the total number of institutions with accredited programs to 208. Early childhood preparation programs serve a wide-range of students and prepare early childhood educators for a variety of early learning settings.听 Accreditation serves as a mechanism for ensuring a consistent and high level of program quality and alignment to 51吃瓜网鈥檚 Professional Preparation Standards while respecting the unique mission and context of each degree program.听

"On behalf of the Commission, I鈥檇 like to congratulate the programs who earned and renewed accreditation during the most recent review cycle. These programs have spent significant time examining their programs of study, mapping their courses to the standards, creating key assessments, and developing assessment plans, with the goal of continuous program improvement," said Crystal Swank, Commission Chair. "Kudos to the faculty for their dedication and hard work!"

In 2016, the accrediting body鈥檚 scope expanded to include baccalaureate and master's degree programs in addition to associate degree programs. Since then, 51吃瓜网 has seen a steady increase in programs at all degree levels pursuing this mark of high quality. In this cycle of accreditation decisions, East Tennessee State University鈥檚 master鈥檚 degree program became the first to earn 51吃瓜网 Accreditation at this degree level.

"Being that our Initial Licensure programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels are 51吃瓜网 Recognized, we were inspired to engage in a similar self-study process for our Early Care and Education (non-licensure) programs at the bachelors and masters levels," said Pamela Evanshen, Chair of the Early Childhood Education department at ETSU. "As Early Childhood Educators, we strive for excellence in our field. We are especially honored to be the first master鈥檚 degree program in the country to be accredited by 51吃瓜网."

In addition to accrediting the first master鈥檚 degree program, the system also accredited the first programs in Alaska, Utah, and Virginia, bringing the total number of states with accredited programs to 42.

Christine Schull, professor of Early Childhood Education at Northern Virginia Community College, shared her thoughts on becoming the first accredited program in Virginia. "We chose to pursue accreditation because it is a marker of excellence. The process itself has promoted best practices and collegiality across our multi-campus program,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e love seeing our students grow and flourish as they support young children鈥檚 development. We are proud to be the first community college in Virginia to have attained this status."

To earn and retain accreditation, professional preparation programs must demonstrate that they:

• Align to 51吃瓜网鈥檚 Professional Preparation Standards;
• Respond to the unique needs of their degree candidates and communities;
• Provide intentional learning experiences for their degree candidates to obtain the knowledge and skills needed to be effective early childhood educators; and,
• Continuously assess and reflect on their degree candidates鈥� performance.听

The newly-accredited degree programs are:

Ashland Community and Technical College, Kentucky
听听听听 A.A.S. Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education

Chippewa Valley Technical College, Wisconsin
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Education
听
Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, Ohio
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Education
听
East Tennessee State University, Tennessee
听听听听 B.S. Early Childhood Development (Early Care and
听听听听听听听听听听听听 Education)
听听听听 M.A. Early Childhood Education (Master Teacher
听听听听听听听听听听听听 Concentration and Research Concentration)
听
Fayetteville State University, North Carolina
听听听听 B.S. Birth-Kindergarten Teach
听听听听 B.S. Birth-Kindergarten Non-Teach
听
Ivy Tech Community College South Bend, Indiana
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Education
听 听 听A.S. Early Childhood Education

Monroe County Community College, Michigan
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Education
听
Northern Virginia Community College, Virginia
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Development
听
Saddleback College, California
听听听听 A.S.T. Early Childhood Education
听听听听 A.S. Early Childhood Education
听
University of Alaska Anchorage, Alaska
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Development
听
Waukesha County Technical College, Wisconsin
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood Education
听
Weber State University, Utah
听听听听 A.A.S. Early Childhood
听听听听 B.S. Early Childhood
听听听听 B.S. Early Childhood Education