Advancing the Early Care and Education Workforce: A State-based Cross-sector Approach

This paper summarizes the challenges associated with expanding and enhancing the skills of the early care and education workforce to attract and retain qualified early childhood professionals. Strategies are presented for establishing an effective and efficient cross-sector system. Research suggests that collaboration and coordination should be modeled and promoted at a national level, and planning, implementation, and evaluation should be conducted at State and local levels to build a sustainable community-based foundation for more effective professional development. Three recommendations are addressed: (1) increase access to and efficiently utilize a comprehensive system of training and onsite technical assistance (TA) that supports high-quality services for children and families, regardless of the program that serves them; (2) promote, fund, and support State-administered professional development systems for early care and education that are integrated across all relevant sectors, including U.S. Department of Education, institutions, the Child Care Bureau, and Maternal Child Health; and (3) provide Federal leadership and guidance to articulate separate but overlapping community-based and higher education offerings and certifications of various early care and education sectors. Professional development is critical for increasing the knowledge and skills of the early care and education workforce to ensure quality programs.