Just as children and families are getting ready to jump into a new school year of learning, so are our teachers! Teachers working as Early Childhood Educator Apprentices are dedicated to furthering their own education as educators – pursuing higher degrees in early childhood while working full-time in the classroom with children. 

Child Care Services Association launched the apprenticeship program one year ago as a key component of our workforce development efforts for Durham PreK.  One year later, we are happy to provide an update on the successful pilot program, which has quickly grown to become the largest registered apprenticeship for early childhood educators in North Carolina.

Apprentices receive a full scholarship towards their Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education, and complete online courses at Durham Tech while building skills on-the-job under the supervision of a mentor teacher. The program partners with 19 employers in 22 combined locations, training mentor teachers at each site to support their apprentices with on-the-job learning and higher education goals. In our first cohort, 43 apprentices registered as apprentices, working in early childhood centers all across Durham County. We are currently recruiting participants for our second cohort, and will be registering a new group of apprentices in August 2024. 

The apprenticeship program is built with the early childhood workforce at the center. Key program components include:

• Full scholarship covering tuition, textbooks, and technology for online learning
• Flexible resources through statewide partners to help with additional needs, like transportation and child care costs while working and going to school
• On-the-job mentoring to offer encouragement in the rough spots and to support apprentices applying what they are learning in their Durham Tech courses to their day-to-day duties with children
• College courses offered in an online format, allowing assignments to be completed at flexible times outside the workday
• Early childhood courses offered in a bilingual format (English and Spanish), making the content more accessible to English Language Learners
• 3 hours of paid release time every week of the semester, supporting apprentices with the time needed to complete college course while working full-time
• Biweekly Zoom sessions offering community, homework help, and resources
• Bonuses and progressive wage increases based on achievement of milestones

“One of the biggest successes in my apprenticeship has been becoming a lead teacher and managing school and work simultaneously. It was a bit stressful, but with the support of my co-workers and mentor, I was able to overcome the challenges. Working in a classroom has greatly enhanced my ability to apply my learning to my work assignments.” Durham Early Childhood Apprentice

We have learned a lot in our first year that will help us to continuously improve this new program as we enter our second year.  We invite current and aspiring early educators interested in joining the program to submit an interest form!

Child Care Services Association is deeply grateful to our partners for making this impactful work possible through collaboration, including Durham Tech, Durham County, ApprenticeshipNC, T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood Scholarship, Building Bright Futures, and Early Care and Education Pathways to Success.