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The state of Washington is home to more than 566,000 children under the age of six (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017). About 306,000 of these children have all available parents in the workforce and, thus, potentially need child care (Child Care Aware of America, 2017). Like many states in recent years, Washington has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve early care and education services, including early education degree and certification programs, in order to improve the preparation of their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children (Hyson, Horm, & Winton, 2012; Ray, Bowman, & Robbins, 2006; Swartz & Johnson, 2010). Critical to these efforts is the establishment of a well-coordinated, comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare and support an incoming generation of educators, while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are crucial to meeting the evolving and increasing demands identified as improving developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This Technical Report presents detailed findings from the "Washington Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" and the extent to which early care and education (ECE) higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. [For the narrative report, see ED614291. For the highlights, see ED614307.]

This report describes the early childhood degree programs offered in Washington, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics, as well as the extent to which Washington ECE [early care and education] higher education programs are incorporating early math, family engagement, and working with dual language learners. This report is part of our Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory. "The Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory," administered by the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at the University of California at Berkeley, assists policymakers and other stakeholders to develop a more coordinated and comprehensive professional preparation and development system for the early care and education workforce. The Inventory is a mechanism to describe the landscape of a state's early childhood degree program offerings, at the associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels. The Inventory captures variations in program goals, content, child age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics and professional development needs. This information allows policy makers, institutions of higher education and other stakeholders to identify the gaps and opportunities in the available offerings, make informed policy decisions, and assess the capacity of the higher education system over time. [For the highlights, see ED614307. For the technical report, see ED614300.]

The importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to the nation's economic well-being is recognized up to the highest levels of government and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. Stakeholders and advocates in Arkansas remain committed to advancing strategies that improve ECE services, including workforce preparation and development in order to ensure that early educators have what they need to meet the complex needs of young children. Critical to these efforts is the establishment of a well-coordinated, comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare and support an incoming generation of educators, while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are crucial to meeting the evolving and increasing demands identified as improving developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This document highlights findings from the "Arkansas Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" and the extent to which ECE higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. The full report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Arkansas" presents the full findings. [For the full report, see ED614285.]

Oregon is home to more than 275,000 children under the age of six; about 166,500 of these children potentially need child care. Like many states in recent years, Oregon has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve early care and education services, including early education degree and certification programs, in order to improve the preparation of their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children. Critical to these efforts is the establishment of a well-coordinated, comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare and support an incoming generation of educators, while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are critical to meeting the evolving and increasing demands identified to improve developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This document highlights findings from the "Oregon Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" and the extent to which early care and education (ECE) higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. The full narrative report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Oregon," and the accompanying technical report present the full findings. [For the narrative report, see ED614276. For the technical report, see ED614280.]

Oregon is home to more than 275,000 children under the age of six; about 166,498 of these children potentially need child care. Like many states in recent years, Oregon has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve early care and education services, including early education degree and certification programs, in order to improve the preparation of their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children. Critical to these efforts is the establishment of a well-coordinated, comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare and support an incoming generation of educators, while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are critical to meeting the evolving and increasing demands identified to improve developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This technical report presents findings from the "Oregon Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" and the extent to which early care and education (ECE) higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. [For the narrative report, see ED614276. For the Highlights, see ED614283.]

This report describes the early childhood degree programs offered in Oregon, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics, as well as the extent to which Oregon ECE higher education programs are incorporating early math, family engagement, and working with dual language learners. This report is part of our Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory. The "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory," administered by the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at the University of California at Berkeley, assists policymakers and other stakeholders to develop a more coordinated and comprehensive professional preparation and development system for the early care and education workforce. The Inventory is a mechanism to describe the landscape of a state's early childhood degree program offerings, at the associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels. The Inventory captures variations in program goals, content, child age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics and professional development needs. This information allows policy makers, institutions of higher education and other stakeholders to identify the gaps and opportunities in the available offerings, make informed policy decisions, and assess the capacity of the higher education system over time. [For the Highlights, see ED614283. For the technical report, see ED614280.]

Teacher preparation in the field of early childhood education (ECE) has historically included a variety of higher education degree programs in various child-related disciplines, all of which have generally been considered equally acceptable. In Florida, despite progress over the last decade to improve ECE services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children, there remains great variability among associate and bachelor's degree programs regarding what constitutes an appropriate course of study for teachers and administrators serving young children. To address this issue, the "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory II" (Center for the Study of Child Care Employment [CSCCE], 2016) was designed to gain a clearer picture of the early childhood-related offerings in a given state's higher education system. The "Inventory" describes early childhood degree programs offered in the state, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics. The totality of the data collected through the "Inventory" allows stakeholders to identify gaps and opportunities in the available offerings and to assess the capacity of the state's higher education system over time. The "Inventory" was implemented in Florida during the 2016-2017 academic year. This Technical Report presents detailed findings collected by implementing the "Inventory's" mapping, program, and faculty modules. [For the narrative report, see ED614329. For the highlights, see ED614330.]

This report describes the early childhood degree programs offered in Florida, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics, as well as the extent to which Florida ECE higher education programs are incorporating early math, family engagement, and working with dual language learners. This report is part of our Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory. The "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory," administered by the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at the University of California at Berkeley, assists policymakers and other stakeholders to develop a more coordinated and comprehensive professional preparation and development system for the early care and education workforce. The Inventory is a mechanism to describe the landscape of a state's early childhood degree program offerings, at the associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels. The Inventory captures variations in program goals, content, child age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics and professional development needs. This information allows policymakers, institutions of higher education and other stakeholders to identify the gaps and opportunities in the available offerings, make informed policy decisions, and assess the capacity of the higher education system over time. [For the highlights, see ED614330. For the technical report, see ED614347.]

The importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to our nation's economic well-being is recognized up to the highest levels of government and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. Florida is home to more than 1 million children under the age of five, nearly 70 percent of whom attend some type of early care and education program. Like many states in recent years, Florida has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve early care and education services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children. Critical to these efforts is the establishment of a well-coordinated, comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare an incoming generation of educators while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are critical to meeting the evolving and increasing demands identified to improve developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This document highlights findings from the "Florida Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" and the extent to which ECE higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. The full narrative report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Florida," and the accompanying technical report present the full findings. [For the narrative report, see ED614329. For the technical report, see ED614347.]

In light of the changing landscape of state-funded public education and changing expectations for principals in elementary schools, researchers examined the status of New Jersey principal certification programs in order to allow policymakers, institutions of higher education, and other stakeholders to assess the capacity of the state's higher education system and inform policy, practice, and investment related to the pre-K-3 continuum. The New Jersey Department of Education commissioned the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE) to implement the Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory: Principal Certification Programs (CSCCE, 2016), a research tool used to assess the inclusion of early education in required course content and internships. Across New Jersey, 23 institutions of higher education offer a program of study that leads to principal certification. The findings in this report represent the majority of these programs and include the current state of principal certification programs in New Jersey with regard to: (1) The format in which the certification program is offered; (2) The extent to which New Jersey principal certification programs require principal candidates to attain the knowledge, skills, and experiences associated with effective school leadership; (3) The extent to which programs provide opportunities for principal candidates to engage in internship experiences in schools with pre-K-3 classrooms; and (4) The challenges facing programs associated with preparing principal candidates to lead schools with pre-K-3 classrooms.

Midway through the second decade of this century, the importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to the nation's economic well-being is recognized up to the highest levels of government, and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. This understanding represents a dramatic shift from earlier decades, and carries with it heightened expectations for what teachers of young children should know and be able to do, in light of mounting evidence about inadequate and unequal educational quality, particularly for children of color and those living in low-income families. In recent years, California and other states have committed many public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve educational services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children of all ages. Concern remains about the capacity of California's institutions of higher education to meet the evolving and increasing demands identified as critical to improving developmental and learning outcomes for the state's ethnically, racially, linguistically, and economically diverse young child population. This report looks at the status of early childhood higher education offerings in California and how programs have evolved over the last decade. The report examines the extent to which California's early childhood preparation programs at colleges and universities are able to effectively prepare teachers and adapt to emerging research and changes in the policy environment, and calls for aligning the current system with the 21st-century expectations for teachers of young children. [For the highlights to this report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in California, 2015. Highlights," see ED574292. For the technical report, "The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in California. Technical Report," see ED574293.]

Teacher preparation in the field of early childhood education (ECE) has historically included a variety of higher education degree programs, in various child-related disciplines, all of which have generally been considered equally acceptable. And too often, these highly diverse degree programs are assumed to produce equivalent results. In contrast, programs to prepare teachers and administrators to work with older children reflect far greater uniformity and stringency related to specific preparation standards and certification requirements. In recent years, however, rising expectations about the knowledge and skills that early childhood practitioners need in order to work effectively with young children before kindergarten, along with the introduction of new ECE programs and standards, have led many to question whether the current wide array of ECE-related degree programs can be assumed to produce equivalent results. In California, despite progress over the last decade in aligning early childhood education courses at the community college level, there remains great variability among upper-division and graduate degree programs regarding what constitutes an appropriate course of study for teachers and administrators serving young children. To address this issue, the "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory" was designed to gain a clearer picture of the early childhood-related offerings in a given state's higher education system. The Inventory describes early childhood degree programs offered in the state, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics. The Inventory was implemented in California during the 2013-2014 academic year. This Technical Report presents detailed findings collected by implementing the Inventory's mapping, program, and faculty modules. The report also includes a full discussion of the findings, and offers recommendations for policy and practice. Tables are appended. [For the full report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in California, 2015," see ED574291. For the highlights to the full report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in California, 2015. Highlights," see ED574292.]

Midway through the second decade of this century, the importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to our nation's economic well-being is recognized up to the highest levels of government, and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. This understanding represents a dramatic shift from earlier decades, and carries with it heightened expectations for what teachers of young children should know and be able to do particularly in light of mounting evidence about inadequate and unequal educational quality for many children, particularly those of color and those living in low-income families. In recent years, Nebraska, like many states, has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve educational services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children of all ages. Critical to responding to this need is the establishment of a well-coordinated and comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can prepare an incoming generation of professionals while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are critical to meeting these evolving and increasing demands for improving developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. In light of the changing expectations for effective preparation recommended by the Institute of Medicine/National Research Council, and the workforce needs of the state, now seemed the appropriate time to examine the status of early childhood higher education offerings in Nebraska, in order to allow policy makers, institutions of higher education, and other stakeholders to assess the capacity of the state's higher education system and inform policy, practice, and investment. To undertake this assessment, the Institute commissioned the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE) to implement the Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory (Kipnis, Ryan, Austin, Whitebook, & Sakai, 2012a), a research tool used to describe the landscape of a state's early childhood degree program offerings at the associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels, and to provide a portrait of early childhood faculty members. The Inventory findings are presented in two sections. The first section, "Early Childhood Higher Education Today", examines program offerings, faculty characteristics, student supports, and institutional challenges. The second section of this report, "Early Childhood Higher Education, An Evolving Landscape", examines how institutions of higher education are adapting to emerging research related to family engagement and early mathematical development. Each of the recommendations outlined in this report addresses a critical component of a coordinated effort to attain a strong preparation system for Nebraska's early childhood teachers and administrators, central to ensuring that all young children in Nebraska have access to effective early learning experiences. [This report was commissioned by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska. For "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Nebraska. Highlights," see ED574310. For "The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Nebraska. Technical Report," see ED574311.]

Today, the importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to our nation's economic well being is recognized up to the highest levels of government, and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. This understanding represents a dramatic shift from earlier decades, and carries with it heightened expectations for what teachers of young children should know and be able to do, in light of mounting evidence about inadequate and unequal educational quality, particularly for children of color and those living in low-income families. In recent years, Indiana, like many states, has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve educational services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children of all ages. Yet there remains a demand for thousands of new early childhood professionals to provide quality care and education to Indiana's most at-risk children. Critical to responding to this need is the establishment of a well-coordinated and comprehensive professional preparation and development system that can ready an incoming generation of professionals, while also strengthening the skills of the existing early education workforce. Institutions of higher education are key to meeting these evolving and increasing demands for improving developmental and learning outcomes for the state's young child population. This report highlights findings from the "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory," and the extent to which Indiana ECE higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. [This report was commissioned by the Indiana Association for the Education of Young Children, Inc. For the full report, "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Indiana, 2015," see ED574294. For the technical report, "The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Indiana. Technical Report," see ED574298.]

Today, the importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to our nation's economic well being is recognized up to the highest levels of government, and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. This understanding represents a dramatic shift from earlier decades, and carries with it heightened expectations for what teachers of young children should know and be able to do, in light of mounting evidence about inadequate and unequal educational quality, particularly for children of color and those living in low-income families. In recent years, Nebraska, like many states, has committed public and private resources toward multiple efforts to improve educational services and to ensure that teacher education degree and certification programs can better prepare their graduates to meet the complex needs of young children of all ages. There still remains a demand for more than 7,000 new early childhood professionals to provide quality care and education to Nebraska's most at-risk children. This report highlights findings from the "Early Childhood Higher Education Inventory", and the extent to which Nebraska ECE higher education programs offer course content and learning experiences that are associated with effective teacher preparation. [This report was commissioned by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska. For "Teaching the Teachers of Our Youngest Children: The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Nebraska, 2015," see ED574308. For "The State of Early Childhood Higher Education in Nebraska. Technical Report," see ED574311.]