• Lead teachers have attained at minimum a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, an Associate’s and/or Bachelor’s Degree in early childhood education, child development, special education, elementary education, or human services field.
  
  
• All Teaching Staff (Lead Teachers, Assistant Teachers, & Aides) participate in annual trainings selected from the eight “core knowledge areas” of the PA Core Body of Knowledge and maintain a Professional Development Record documenting their growth in knowledge areas and skills indicative of early childhood educators providing quality care. Every YDN educator participates in 24 hours of state approved trainings every year.
  
  
• Teaching staff provide a supervised work-study environment for students enrolled in the York County School of Technology’s Child Care Academy. Students are able to apply skills learned in the child care classrooms under the guidance of professionals while gaining valuable experience.
  
  
• YDN teaching staff and directors participated in the 12 session “Mind in the Making” program developed by the Families and Work Institute.
  
  
• Every year the YDN educators and directors participate in the Week of the Young Child events. Three YDN teachers have received $1,000 scholarships through the Child Care Professional Awards.

AN UPDATE ON THE STATE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS

• A child in full-time child care through age 5 will spend more time with caregivers than he/she will spend in school between kindergarten and 12th grade.
  
  
• Although high quality child care is determined largely by the amount and quality of training received by early childhood educators, Pennsylvania requires more training and monitoring of hairdressers and manicurists than of child care providers.