6.2 Professional Development Framework

A Lead Agency must have a professional development framework for training, professional development, and post-secondary education for caregivers, teachers, and directors in child care programs that serve children of all ages. The framework must include these components: (1) professional standards and competencies, (2) career pathways, (3) advisory structures, (4) articulation, (5) workforce information, and (6) financing. CCDF provides Lead Agencies flexibility on the strategies, breadth, and depth of the framework. The professional development framework must be developed in consultation with the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care or a similar coordinating body. 6.2.1 Updates and consultation a. Did the Lead Agency make any updates to the professional development framework since the FFY 2022-2024 CCDF Plan was submitted? [ ] Yes. If yes, describe the elements of the framework that were updated and describe if and how the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care (if applicable) or similar coordinating body was consulted: [x]No. b. Did the Lead Agency consult with other key groups in the development of their professional development framework? [x] Yes. If yes, identify the other key groups: During the previous plan period, and as part of the PDG Planning Grant, the Lead Agency's leadership formed a workforce planning sub-group of early childhood stakeholders to discuss and implement the workforce strategies related to the planning grant. The grant items were then aligned with the Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) Birth through Five Strategic Plan and the CCDF State Plan activities related to the ECE workforce. The document provided alignment of activities as well as measurable goals. This document was presented to the ECAC within the previous plan period. The next plan period will continue to review the implementation plan document and revise based on work completed and goals. In addition, T.E.A.C.H. continues bi-annual advisory meetings with early childhood stakeholders to inform and gain feedback of ongoing needs. The SC Early Childhood Institute further provides advisory capacity from the 16-state technical college early childhood system to inform and engage with students and initiatives across the state. [ ] No. 6.2.2 Description of the professional development framework a. Describe how the Lead Agency’s framework for training and professional development addresses the following required elements: i. Professional standards and competencies. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about which roles in early childhood education are included (such as teachers, directors, infant and toddler specialists, mental health consultants, coaches, licensors, QIS assessors, family service workers, home visitors). The SC Workforce Competencies was previously developed in 2012. In 2023-2024, SC Endeavors obtained early childhood experts to contract work for reviewing the competencies to update for a diversity lens as well as better alignment with the Head Start competencies and the SC Technical College coursework. In May, a draft of the competencies review crosswalk was presented to the SC Technical College Early Childhood Department leaders at the 16 state technical colleges and feedback was collected to better inform the new competencies and revision. During the next plan period, SC Endeavors will complete the new workforce competencies and develop a plan for the roll-out to the larger early childhood field. ii. Career pathways. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about professional development registries, career ladders, and levels. The SC Endeavors workforce registry utilizes a career ladder application to document the education levels within the early childhood workforce system. The registry and career ladder is open to any individual working in early childhood including trainers, technical assistance providers, QRIS assessors and coaches, as well as individual teachers in registered, licensing, family child care, group child care, faith-based programs, exempt programs, and family, friend, and neighbor care. The ladder provides 10 levels that begins with level 1, the statewide licensing requirement of High School Diploma, and adds additional academic education through a Doctorate in Early Childhood Education as a level 10. Each level builds on the additional academic coursework and accomplishments of the workforce as they obtain higher levels of education. The credentials are also embedded within the career ladder and aligns with the ABC Quality education component denoting individuals who are considered having education levels related to entry, skilled, or accomplished. In the previous plan period, a Preschool Development Grant initiative provided a $150 bonus to complete the application and receive a career ladder level. The SC BOO$T wage enhancement program includes a requirement for individuals to complete the career ladder process and bonuses are structured based on the levels obtained. Upon implementing the SC BOO$T program in January 2024, career ladder applications increased within the registry by 253% providing much needed data regarding the workforce. iii. Advisory structure. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about how the professional development advisory structure interacts with the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care. SC Endeavors sponsors the annual SC Early Childhood Leadership Institute which brings all 16-state technical college early childhood department leaders together to discuss early childhood workforce initiatives and needs. In addition, the Lead Agency’s state director, Michael Leach, is a member of the State Early Childhood Advisory Council and regularly attends these meetings. ECAC membership includes representatives from the SC Department of Social Services, SC Department of Health & Human Services, SC Department of Education, SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, SC Department of Disabilities and Special Needs, Children’s Trust of SC, SC Department of Mental Health, SC ETV, SC State Library, and the SC Commission on Higher Education. The Lead Agency has also proactively sponsored several town halls related to early childhood initiatives to gather direct feedback from direct care providers in the state. iv. Articulation. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about articulation agreements, and collaborative agreements that support progress in degree acquisition. SC Endeavors continues to work with the SC state technical colleges to maintain articulation agreements and form new agreements to advance degrees for the child care workforce. Current agreements include University of South Carolina Columbia, Columbia College, Southern Wesleyan University, University of South Carolina Upstate, University of South Carolina Aiken, North Greenville University, and Lander University. Two new agreements were added within this plan period including a non-certificate early childhood program with Lander University as well as North Greenville University. University of South Carolina Columbia is working on a 2+2 articulation agreement (2 year technical college articulates to a 4 year institute to complete 2 years) for a non- certification early childhood program as well. During the next plan period, SC Endeavors will continue to review agreements and work with the technical colleges to determine additional articulation agreement options for students. v. Workforce information. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about workforce demographics, educator well-being, retention/turnover surveys, actual wage scales, and/or access to benefits. In 2018, the Lead Agency conducted a statewide workforce survey with the in collaboration with University of South Carolina researchers. Survey results can be found here: https://sc.edu/study/colleges_schools/education/research/units/cdrc/projects/cc rt/documents/ece_workforce_study.pdf. To maintain ongoing, comprehensive, and up-to-date data and reporting on demographics, retention/turnover, wages, benefits, education and training, the Lead Agency funds the Child Care Research Team (CCRT) at the University of South Carolina to produce an annual report on the state of the ECE workforce in South Carolina, using data from the SC Endeavors registry database. For the past few years, CCRT has analyzed data from this system to respond to survey questions regarding the ECE workforce in South Carolina from the Bipartisan Policy Center in partnership with the National Workforce Registry Alliance (NWRA). Direction and questions from these sources, new developments in research, as well as the needs of South Carolina’s ECE workforce, drive data collection and analysis efforts. With the implementation of a wage supplement pilot program in 2024, researchers are analyzing registry participation, workforce characteristics, and retention/turnover to evaluate program effectiveness in the 2025-2027 period. vi. Financing. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about strategies including scholarships, apprenticeships, wage enhancements, etc. SC Endeavors maintains the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood Scholarship program to increase the education of the early childhood workforce. During the previous plan period, the lead agency began working with the National Center on Early Childhood Quality Assurance (NCECQA) to explore apprenticeship opportunities. A stakeholder group has been created and will continue to meet to research and discuss the potential for adding this option for the ECE workforce. CCDF funding will continue to be used to support this initiative. The SC BOO$T wage enhancement program began in January 2024 and includes a bonus structure to increase wages and increase retention within programs. ABC Quality provided scholarships for providers to attend one of the statewide early childhood conferences. These scholarships provided registration and travel costs to allow for an increased professional develop opportunity and connection to statewide initiatives. b. Does the Lead Agency use additional elements? [x] Yes. If yes, describe the element(s). Check all that apply. i. [x] Continuing education unit trainings and credit-bearing professional development. Describe: SC Endeavors documents all training hours within the registry system through an approval process. A variety of college courses have been approved for professional development hours within the system. The registry includes many national training providers that are International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) accredited and provide CEU credit. These trainings are displayed on the statewide training calendar. The Lead Agency has implemented several free Pro-Solutions training courses that offer CEU hours, including the statewide Health & Safety Pre-Services Certificate courses. The statewide Champions for Children conference, hosted by the SC Inclusion Collaborative, provides CEU hours for attendees. Through the career ladder process, individuals are able to earn professional development training hours for courses that include early childhood content. Each 1.0 academic credit hour will receive 15 contact hours of training in the system. This allows individuals who are completing academic coursework in ECE to also meet the annual training hour requirements for child care licensing. There are robust choices for online training which include Pro-Solution’s library. The 15-hour Pre-Service Health and Safety Course required for new program’s ABC Quality staff and new program staff satisfies the federal basic health and safety course requirements as well as child care licensing’s 15-hour annual training hours followed by the second phase of 12 hours of training available in the second year of employment. All 27 hours are available for ABC Quality program staff and available to non-ABC programs when taken as a package. No credit is given for partial completion. Additional courses available to programs at no charge from Pro-Solutions include: stand-alone training on Blood borne pathogens, Introduction to the South Carolina Early Learning Standards, Overview of ABC Quality, An Introduction to Structural Elements, An Introduction of ABC Quality’s Process Quality, course modules from ABC Quality and Communication with Families About Developmental Concerns, Developmental Screening Using the ASQ-3, Trauma Informed Care & The Pyramid Model, ADA Basics for Child Care Providers, ADA Basics for Families just to name a few from our partnership with SC Inclusion Collaborative. All coursework through Pro-Solutions earns CEU credit. This library of online training is updated and expanded annually as a resource for program staff. Credit-bearing professional development courses available to Lead Agency leadership staff and contractor staff include a summer graduate course offered every other year by either SC PITC and/or SC Inclusion Collaborative to provide continued professional development for those persons providing technical assistance or training to child care program staff. Five cohorts of students pursuing a master’s degree in early education over the past 15 years have been funded to build a core leadership group throughout the state with a common foundational background. An evaluation study of the program’s impact is underway before continued funding will be considered. ii. [x] Engagement of training and professional development providers, including higher education, in aligning training and educational opportunities with the Lead Agency's framework. Describe: Professional development providers are able to add their training organization within the registry system and add courses and events for child care providers to take courses and earn credit hours. Through the career ladder process, individuals are able to earn professional development training hours for courses that include early childhood content. Each 1.0 academic credit hour will receive 15 contact hours of training in the system. This allows individuals who are completing academic coursework in ECE to also meet the annual training hour requirements for child care licensing. The introductory course and level 1 credential, ECD 101, was developed in coordination with the 16 state technical colleges. This course is the foundation course for the additional credentials. Levels 2 and 3 credentials are also taught at the 16 technical colleges and allow individuals to advance their content knowledge, career ladder level, and includes a bonus for completing these additional courses. The Lead Agency will work with major training and professional development providers to assure consistency of messaging about the revised ABC Quality assessment tool. These providers include SC CCR&R, SC PITC, SCIC, Impact, Early Child Health Outdoors of the National Wildlife Federation, Quality Care By Design. Once the initial review period is completed and data gathered, there should be a clearer picture of the results, gaps, inconsistencies, etc. SC Endeavors manages South Carolina’s trainer approval system which was designed to support trainers who provide professional development to early childhood and school-age practitioners. This system was developed with input from numerous statewide sources including professionals involved in the training of early childhood and school-age practitioners. The goal of the system is to improve the quality of learning experiences received by early childhood and school-age practitioners in the state of South Carolina. https://www.scendeavors.org/professional-development/trainer/. iii. [x] Other. Describe: ABC Quality will continue to support the conference scholarship program. The Lead Agency provides scholarship opportunities to ABC Quality providers to attend statewide conferences for 4 early childhood associations annually. These associations include South Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children (SCAEYC), South Carolina Early Childhood Association (SCECA), South Carolina Association for Early Care and Education (SCAECE), and most recently, the South Carolina Montessori Alliance. The Lead Agency supports the opportunity for early childhood educators to attend professional development conferences to meet annual training requirements, to network with other early childhood professionals and uses this strategy to professionalize the field of early care and education in South Carolina. These conferences provide training credit through SC Endeavors for annual required licensing training hours and provide a wider range of professional development opportunities for program staff to choose from and encourage more programs to attend one of the four choices. To date, 2,165 early childhood educators have received conference scholarships to meet their annual required professional development hours. This strategy continues to be popular with ABC Quality providers as a strategy to assure staff earn their required annual training hours as a cohort group. To further support early childhood educators, an increase in the availability of conference scholarships to early childhood educators employed at early childhood programs participating in the ABC Quality program will be made available, multiple conference sessions focused on the ABC Quality standards will be offered, and the Lead Agency will explore the feasibility of providing an opportunity for a cohort of early childhood educators to attend a national early childhood association conference. Additionally, Lead Agency contractors providing training at no charge to program staff include: Child Care Resource and Referral, SC Program for Infant and Toddler Care (SC PITC), and SC Inclusion Collaborative. CPR and First Aid training is also provided at no charge for all ABC Quality program staff by National Safety Council. These conferences provide training credit through SC Endeavors for annual required licensing training hours. A new strategy under development includes: Micro-credentials under development by the University of South Carolina’s CarolinaCrEd program funded by the Preschool Development Grant (PDG). CarolinaCrEd offers a comprehensive personalized professional learning experience in the state featuring mirco- credentials that apply to practice, achieve skill, and document mastery. The micro-credentials recognize a specific skill of an educator that is related to their practice, based on evidence that demonstrates competency of that specific skill. Further the micro-credential provides competency in employment related specific skills early childhood educators needs. The micro-credential model is responsive to personal schedules, job-embedded learning, not one size fits all and not seat time-based. The micro-credential model recognizes the mastery of job- related skill through gathering evidence of skill, reflection, documentation, and articulation as well as competency development of skill which included development of new skill. The exploration of this new strategy includes the development of micro-credential topics focused on the skills of early childhood educators (e.g. supervision, infant safe sleep, health/safety) and skills for technical assistance providers (e.g. active listening, reflective practice). Technical assistance providers and early childhood educators will be recruited to participate in cohort groups to successfully complete a micro-credential. In addition, the Lead Agency will explore the feasibility of two micro-credential coordinator positions to support a system wide implementation of micro-credentials throughout the Division of Early Care and Education. During the next plan period, SC Endeavors will work with the University of South Carolina and stakeholder group on the possibility of offering micro-credentials to increase professional development opportunities in the state. These micro- credentials will be tracked within the registry system. [ ] No. 6.2.3 Impact of the Professional Development Framework Describe how the framework improves the quality, diversity, stability, and retention of caregivers, teachers, and directors and identify what data are available to assess the impact. a. Professional standards and competencies. For example, do the professional standards and competencies reflect the diversity of providers across role, child care setting, or age of children served? SC Endeavors is contracting the revision of the 2012 statewide early childhood competencies to include a diversity lens as well as alignment with the Head Start performance standards, working with children with disabilities, and the technical college coursework. During the next plan period, the revision will be completed to roll-out this new resource. b. Career pathways. For example, has the Lead Agency developed a wage ladder that provides progressively higher wages as early educators gain more experience and credentials? What types of child care settings and staff roles are addressed in career pathways, such as licensed centers and family child care homes? The Lead Agency is exploring the idea of a salary scale to help support child care providers. The career ladder application, within the SC Endeavors registry system, is open to all early childhood users of the system. Direct care staff as well as non-direct care staff such as trainers and TA providers are encouraged to participate and obtain a level. The SC BOO$T wage enhancement program requires career ladder placement as an eligibility component and based the bonus amounts on the level of education. Individuals with a level 1 are able to earn $1,100. The amounts build upon the previous level and increases as individuals increase career ladder levels. Supplemental bonuses were also added to the SC BOO$T for directors/owners and for staff working with infants/toddlers. c. Advisory structure. For example, has the advisory structure identified goals for child care workforce compensation, including types of staff and target compensation levels? Does the Lead Agency have a Preschool Development Birth-to-Five grant and is part of its scope of work child care compensation activities? Are they represented in the advisory structure? The PDG workforce sub-group stakeholders helped align the workforce initiatives with the ECAC Birth to Five Strategic plan. The alignment provided a detailed workforce implementation plan that is used as a method of goal setting and tracking initiatives. This plan will continue to be reviewed and assessed within the next plan period. PDG meetings and updates continue to provide information related to completing goals and timelines. In addition, with the implementation of SC BOO$T, the data from this program will be analyzed to determine effectiveness in workforce compensation as well as retention within programs. The goal within this next plan period is the develop a salary scale for the early childhood workforce. Prior to implementing SC BOO$T, a group of child care programs were identified to be a focus group for the wage enhancement program. This group met to discuss eligibility requirements as well as any potential questions or pitfalls of the implementation. This group also piloted the application process within the SC Endeavors system prior to the full launch. This group will continue to provide necessary feedback as we seek to examine the effectiveness of the program and discuss barriers/challenges with existing requirements. d. Articulation. For example, how does the advisory structure include training and professional development for providers, including higher education, to assist in aligning training and education opportunities? The T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship program within SC Endeavors has an advisory board that helps inform the work and strategies of the program. In addition, the state technical college leadership convenes annually to ensure the ongoing needs of the faculty and workforce is met. The technical colleges offer the credential courses as well as the transfer pathways to the 4 year universities. This relationship and support is critical to ensuring the workforce is informed of critical early childhood content, as well as the resource opportunities that exist for the early childhood workforce. e. Workforce information. For example, does the Lead Agency have data on the existing wages and benefits available to the child care workforce? Do any partners such as the Quality Improvement System, child care resource and referral agencies, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and universities and research organizations collect compensation and benefits data? Does the Lead Agency monitor child care workforce wages and access to benefits through ongoing data collection and evaluation? Can the data identify any disparities in the existing compensation and benefits (by geography, role, child care setting, race, ethnicity, gender, or age of children served)? The SC Endeavors Workforce Registry and Credentialing System maintains the most comprehensive ECE workforce data in the state of South Carolina. The Child Care Research Team analyzes wage data from this system and compares it with data from Bureau of Labor Statistics and any other available sources. Wage data are analyzed by program and position type, as well as program participation in the ABC Quality Program. These data will be analyzed by geography, race, gender, and self-reported data on the ages of children served in the annual workforce report prepared by the Child Care Research Team at the University of South Carolina during the 2025-2027 CCDF Plan period. In addition, CCRT has planned and started a formal evaluation of the SC Boost Wage Supplement Program, to include program reach (program types, counties, QRIS participation), workforce retention, compensation, and work schedules, and access to infant/toddler care. f. Financing. For example, has the Lead Agency set a minimum or living wage as a floor for all child care staff? Do Lead Agency-provider subsidy agreements contain requirements for staff compensation levels? Do Lead Agencies provide program-level compensation grants to support staff base salaries and benefits? Does the Lead Agency administer bonuses or stipends directly to workers? The Lead Agency is collecting data from the SC BOO$T initiative. Data will be analyzed and used to make the case for funding support to initiative to continue to support the child care teachers.