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? [x] 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: Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System (TECPDS) updated both the Texas Early Child Education Career Pathways and the Texas Core Competencies. The updated Texas Early Childhood Education Career Pathways support those who identify as Practitioners (those serving as classroom teachers or assistants), Administrators (those serving as multi-site leaders or directors), Trainers (those who provide professional development services) and Coaches (those serving in mentoring roles). Additionally, there are three core competency documents for early childhood education professionals: Texas Core Competencies for Early Childhood Practitioners and Administrators, Texas Core Competencies for Trainers, and Texas Core Competencies for Coaches and Mentors. [ ]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: TECPDS involved the TECPDS Advisory Committee, which is comprised of Board members, institutes of higher education, state agencies, advocacy groups, early childhood education trainers and consultants, and other early childhood organizations. [ ] 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). TECPDS provides a framework for training and professional development in the state. The four components of TECPDS are as follows: Core Competencies; Texas Trainer Registry (TTR); Texas Workforce Registry (TWR); and Early Childhood Career Pathways. The Texas Core Competencies for Early Childhood Practitioners and Administrators define observable skills that, when achieved, demonstrate competency in the concepts, practices, and knowledge that early childhood practitioners and administrators must have to effectively facilitate children's growth and development. Core competencies for practitioners are as follows: Child growth and development; Responsive interactions and guidance; Learning environments, planning framework, curriculum, and standards; Supporting skills development; Observation and assessment; Diversity and dual-language learners; Families and community relationships; Health, safety, and nutrition; and Professionalism and ethics. Levels of practice are as follows: Beginning practitioners support early learning and development through adherence to program and regulatory policies; Intermediate practitioners support early learning and development by increasing independence and effectiveness; and Advanced practitioners support early learning and development through leadership in the development of program policy and practice and through their ability to enhance the knowledge and skills of others in the profession. Core competencies for administrators are the following: Establishing and maintaining an effective organization; Business and operations management; Human resource leadership and development; Maintaining a healthy and safe environment; Implementing developmentally appropriate curriculum and environment; and Instituting family and community-centered programming. Levels of practice are as follows: Beginning administrators lead and support the program by adhering to laws governed by the state and program policies; Intermediate administrators lead and support the program with increasing independence and effectiveness; and Advanced administrators lead and support the program by providing strong leadership and high-quality program components that promote the well-being of children and families. Texas Core Competencies for Practitioners and Administrators Training is designed for use by early childhood professionals to improve the quality of care and education that young children receive. The content and structure of the competencies are a framework for assessing knowledge and skills, guiding training and professional development opportunities, and monitoring progress. ii. Career pathways. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about professional development registries, career ladders, and levels. The Texas Early Childhood Education Career Pathways is a tool within the TECPDS that allows early childhood professionals to relate training hours, education, work experience, and other factors to a position on the career pathway. Based on the level of education, and core competency training, that practitioners have achieved, they are designated as Level 1-6 on the practitioner Career Pathway. TWC and TEA created a document to support Local Education Agencies (LEAs) with Career and Technical Education (CTE) Early Learning programs of study help high school students earn a CDA® Credential before graduation. The document also includes information teachers and administrators can share with students on steps they can take into the early childhood field. The document is posted on the TEA website. 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. Texas has a TECPDS Advisory Council, whose members include representatives from University of Health Science Center at Houston’s Children’s Learning Institute (CLI), TWC, TEA, Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office (THSSCO), CCR, and TXAEYC. The TECPDS Advisory Council members have diverse experience in the Texas early childhood sectors and provide guidance and support to TECPDS. CLI, who oversees and manages TECPDS, also serves on the state’s TELC, and provides periodic updates to the Council on TECPDS. TWC, in collaboration with CLI, is exploring opportunities to continue to improve TECPDS services and solicit feedback from stakeholders. iv. Articulation. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about articulation agreements, and collaborative agreements that support progress in degree acquisition. The TELC developed and published the Higher Education Articulation Agreements Toolkit, which was updated in 2017. The project: Collected and reviewed data on articulation agreements; Analyzed data and developed recommendations on articulation agreements; and Created a higher education articulation agreement toolkit for communities. Many Boards have formed partnerships with local community colleges to implement articulation agreements to move training participants from the CDA® Credential into associate and bachelor’s degree programs. With PDG B-5 funding, TWC is working with a vendor to hold sessions with institutions of higher education (IHEs) and local education agencies (LEAs) to explore different credit pathways they can create or improve to support the education of the child care workforce. TWC will provide public IHEs with funding to develop clear pathways for early childhood professionals that align the CDA® Credential, associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees, or teacher certification options. 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. The Child Care Workforce Strategic Plan included a director’s survey for data collection specific to workforce demographics, retention, wage scales and benefits. The survey results show that, in Texas, women comprise the vast majority (96 percent) of early childhood educators in Texas. At child care centers, most educators are Hispanic (43 percent), followed by White (30 percent) and Black (19 percent) educators. Compared to child care centers, more home-based educators (those who do not own the child care business) are Black (28 percent) and fewer are Hispanic (35 percent); a similar proportion are White (29 percent). Among home-based child care owners, fewer are Hispanic (23 percent), and more are White (43 percent), with a similar percentage of Black owners as educators (27 percent). The survey also looked at job experience. Almost half (46 percent) of home-based owners have 21 or more years of experience in early childhood, and less than five percent have five or fewer years of experience. Experience among center-based and home-based educators varies widely. More than half of the early childhood educator workforce has less than six years of experience, and one-quarter has six to 15 years of experience. Fourteen percent of early childhood educators have 16 or more years of experience. According to the Director’s Survey, most early childhood educators in Texas have no degree or certification beyond high school (58 percent). Child care business owners are typically high school educated (39 percent) or have a CDA or associate degree (39 percent). Overall, only 17 percent of the Texas ECE workforce holds a bachelor’s degree or higher, including 22 percent of owners, 17 percent of home- based educators, and 14 percent of center-based educators. Approximately 17 percent, of all early childhood educators and owners attended some college but have not completed a degree. Similarly, 15 percent of the total early childhood education workforce have completed a CDA or similar credential that directly aligns with evidence-based competencies for early childhood educators. Patterns in center-based and home-based educator compensation show small increases with more educational attainment and years of experience. According to the Director Survey, the median wage of an early childhood educator in Texas is $12.00 per hour or $24,000 a year, which is the equivalent of 52 percent of the SMI for a single individual and 40 percent of SMI for a family of two. In Texas’ ECE workforce, an early childhood educator’s compensation differs based on characteristics of the child care provider for which they work, as well the characteristics of the individual educator. Educators who work for a child care provider located in an urban-metropolitan county earn $2.50 (25 percent) more an hour than educators who work in rural counties. Educators who work for child care provider that employs more than 10 educators earn $2.00 (18 percent) more an hour than educators who work for child care providers that employ 10 or fewer educators. And in Texas, educators who work for child care providers that do not accept CCS earn $1.00 (8 percent) more an hour than educators who work for child care providers that do. Of the 431 directors surveyed, approximately 31 percent of center-based directors had access to health, dental and vision insurance, compared to six percent of home-based directs having access to health insurance and even fewer (3.5 percent) with access to dental and vision insurance. All directors surveyed were more likely to have paid vacation/holiday time (center-based 82.2 percent, home- based 43.4 percent) and paid sick leave (center-based 56.6 percent, home-based 25.8 percent). Only 2.7 percent of home-based directors had a retirement account, compared to 28.4 percent of center-based directors. TWR is a web-based application that early childhood professionals may use to store and access their education and employment history, as well as the professional development hours that they have completed. Professionals with an account on TWR may also access the new Find My Career Lattice tool on TECPDS. As of January 2024, 115,263 practitioners had registered in TWR. Effective October 2021, at least one Texas Rising Star program administrator from each participating program is required to join TWR. In 2024, TWC invested in a Usability Study for the TWR. The recommendations from the study support more efficiency in TWR usage, thus leading to better data and user experience. TTR is a statewide system that approves early childhood trainers and their trainings. Trainers listed on TTR have undergone an approval process defined by qualifications that include early childhood expertise and experience, as well as knowledge of adult learning theories and principles. The training approval process is linked to core competencies, principles of adult learning, and other standards, such as early learning guidelines. As of January 2024, 753 trainers had registered in TTR. In 2020 TWC began to require new statewide grantees providing CCDF-funded professional development activities to utilize TECPDS. This data collection will help TWC, Boards, and the grantees to better understand the reach and impact of these activities. vi. Financing. For example, Lead Agencies can include information about strategies including scholarships, apprenticeships, wage enhancements, etc. TECPDS is currently jointly financed with funds from TWC, TEA, THSSCO, and additional smaller partners such as TXAEYC’s. In 2019- 2020, TWC also directed $800,000 to CLI for statewide training and implementation activities to bring all Board areas and all Texas Rising Star programs on to TWR. In 2022-2023, TWC funded $946,005 for continued work. In 2023, TWC directed an additional $950,000. TWC uses CCDF quality funds for a variety of professional development activities that align with statewide system goals. For example, TWC funds the Texas Early Childhood Professional Development Scholarship program, which offers financial assistance to help child care providers and educators earn a CDA® Credential™ or enroll in college credit courses to obtain an associate or bachelor’s degree. It also includes the ECEA scholarship. This model will support ECEAs with on-the-job training, tuition, or course fees for students enrolled in a RAP. The program assists educators in achieving progressive educational and career advancement by helping them attain stackable credentials in early childhood development and education. Additionally, the program assists child care providers in retaining well- qualified staff and meeting Texas Rising Star staff qualifications. Each year Boards must use at least four percent of their annual CCDF allocation for quality activities, and many fund professional development opportunities that leverage the state’s framework through grants, contracts, and direct services. TWC publishes the Child Care Quality Strategic Planning and Expenditures Guide which includes information on using child care quality improvement funding for scholarships, apprenticeships, and wage supplementation including recruitment/retention bonuses. TWC partners with TEA and other stakeholders in leveraging statewide resources to achieve professional development system goals. Boards have the option to partner with local independent school districts, regional education service centers, community colleges, and universities to jointly design professional development programs for practitioners. In 2022, TWC awarded three planning grants for entities to expand existing or create new RAPs that helped early childhood educators earn a minimum of a CDA® Credential but could lead to associate or bachelor’s degrees. Each grantee was required to register their RAP with the U.S. DOL before the end of the grant period. In 2023, TWC awarded six grants for entities to plan and/or implement RAPs with the same requirements of getting apprentices to a minimum of a CDA® Credential, including the original three grantees. TWC is planning to fund more planning and implementation grants that will start in 2025. 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: TWC and Boards offer continuing education units through conference sessions and other professional development opportunities. Approximately 20 Boards offer scholarships to providers and educators to assist them in receiving CDA® Credentials or completing early education courses. Boards also deliver CDA training modules directly to educators and directors. 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: Boards are encouraged to work with local education and training providers to align professional development opportunities with Texas' framework. The TTR requires that trainers demonstrate how their offerings align to the core competencies for practitioners and/or administrators. iii. [ ] Other. Describe: [ ] No. 6.2.3 Impact of the Professional Development Framework Describe how the framework improves the quality, 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 range of providers across role, child care setting, or age of children served? The Texas Core Competencies are individualized for four different roles in the early education profession: teacher, administrators, trainers, and coaches/mentors. For teachers and administrators, there are three levels of practice: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. For coaches and mentors, coaching skills are defined at three levels: foundational, supportive, and change-oriented. 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? TWC and TEA created a document to support LEAs with CTE Early Learning programs of study that help high school students earn a CDA® Credential before graduation. The document also includes information that teachers and administrators can share with students on steps they can take upon entering the early childhood field. The document is posted to the TEA website. The practitioner career pathway is designed for those serving in roles that directly support young children in early childhood education classrooms. Typically identified as classroom teachers, assistants, or paraprofessionals, these individuals provide direct care and instruction to children ages 0 to 8. Available in 2024, the administrator pathway is uniquely designed for those who serve in a role as directors, multi-site leaders, or other administrative personnel. This pathway is currently being developed to meet the needs of state licensing requirements and professional best practices when it comes to leading a team of early childhood educators. The TTR offers an advancement pathway for those who specialize in delivering training to early childhood education professionals. Trainers may have a specific expertise in a specialized area such as literacy development, social emotional behaviors, or more. This pathway is currently being developed to allow those who deliver professional development to see how they can advance their own training skills and certificates. The coach pathway is designed for early childhood specialists who serve as coaches or mentors to provide direct support to teachers, assistants, and administrators who support children. This pathway is currently being developed to allow coaches to advance in their practice as it will consider factors such as their number of years of experience, their education, and the number of competencies they have demonstrated. 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? In 2023, the ECIA Workgroup partnered with the TELC to update the Texas Early Learning Strategic Plan. Through PDG B-5 funding, TWC contracted with the Texas Institute for Child & Family Wellbeing at The Steve Hicks School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin to facilitate the process. One of the goals set through the process is that the early learning workforce is well-paid, trained and supported; can reach and obtain the professional development resources they need throughout their careers; and is large enough to meet Texans’ needs. To reach this goal, the TELC and ECIA developed four strategies and 24 actions to be taken with the plan period of 2024 to 2026. Strategy 2.1: Increase financial support of the early learning workforce, which includes taking the following actions to support child care educators: TWC will continue to fund scholarships and RAPs to cover the cost of CDA, associates, and bachelors’ credentials or degrees; TELC will develop and publish messaging that elevates the importance of the early learning workers as important members of the workforce and business owners who drive the Texas economy; and TELC will explore forming public/private partnerships to support the workforce, including support for the workforce, through philanthropy and corporate support. 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 Texas Early Learning Strategic Plan, developed with the state’s advisor council, TELC, contains strategies to support the child care workforce. One of the goals is that the early learning workforce is well-paid, trained and supported; can reach and obtain the professional development resources they need throughout their careers; and is large enough to meet Texans’ needs. To reach this goal, the TELC and ECIA developed four strategies and 24 actions to be taken with the plan period of 2024-2026. The two strategies and applicable actions to align training and education opportunities are as follows: Strategy 2.3: Expand the number of people entering the early learning workforce. TWC and TEA will connect high schools throughout the state to child care providers and offer work-based learning opportunities to students; TWC will conduct and publish a landscape analysis of Institutions of Higher Education IHEs offering early childhood degrees and LEAs offering Early Learning CTE programs of study; and TWC will publish guidance resulting from work sessions with IHEs on credit transfer. Strategy 2.4: Retain early learning workforce professionals in the field by providing educational and social support as follows: CLI will continue to improve the TECPDS system based on usability study findings; TELC will provide support for workforce preparedness and skill by promoting: Existing early learning competencies and skill sets (e.g., Texas Core Competencies for Early Childhood, Texas Home Visiting Core Competencies); Existing everyday leadership and supportive supervision resources to early learning workforce managers and supervisors by current training, coursework, and opportunities (e.g., McCormick Early Childhood Leadership modules available at Texas colleges and universities); TELC will identify and promote current training and coursework that provide professional development around behavioral problems, mental health, parent engagement, and inclusivity, leveraging existing inventories; TWC and TEA will offer trainings for early learning professionals to address challenging behaviors, children with special health care needs, and child development and brain development; TELC will publish, promote, and maintain a list of all statewide early learning conferences and events for providers; TELC will leverage current peer-to-peer mentoring programs (such as ECI PEER Network, Texas Infant-Toddler Specialist Network) to expand peer mentoring opportunities for the early learning workforce; and LEAs will explore networking with local child care providers to assess professional learning needs within their communities and provide professional learning opportunities for child care providers to attend, targeting those needs. 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)? TWC publishes median, mean, entry, and experienced wages for all major industries and occupations, including child care. TWC publishes these data annually by Workforce Development Area and Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Child Care Workforce Strategic Plan included a director’s survey for data collection specific to workforce wage scales and benefits. According to the Director’s Survey, most early childhood educators in Texas have no degree or certification beyond high school (58 percent). Child care business owners are typically high school educated (39 percent) or have a CDA or associate degree (39 percent). Overall, only 17 percent of the Texas ECE workforce holds a bachelor’s degree or higher, including 22 percent of owners, 17 percent of home-based educators, and 14 percent of center-based educators. Approximately 17 percent, of all early childhood educators and owners attended some college but have not completed a degree. Similarly, 15 percent of the total ECE workforce have completed a CDA or similar credential that directly aligns with evidence-based competencies for early childhood educators. The survey also looked at job experience. Almost half (46%) of home-based owners have 21 or more years of experience in early childhood, and less than five percent have five or fewer years of experience. Experience among center-based and home-based educators varies widely. More than half of the early childhood educator workforce has less than six years of experience, and one-quarter has six to 15 years of experience. Fourteen percent of early childhood educators have 16 or more years of experience. Patterns in center-based and home-based educator compensation show small increases with more educational attainment and years of experience. According to the Director Survey, the median wage of an early childhood educator in Texas is $12.00 per hour or $24,000 a year, which is the equivalent of 52 percent of the SMI for a single individual and 40 percent of SMI for a family of two. In Texas’ early childhood education workforce, an early childhood educator’s compensation differs based on characteristics of the child care provider for which they work, as well the characteristics of the individual educator. Educators who work for a child care provider located in an urban-metropolitan county earn $2.50 (25 percent) more an hour than educators who work in rural counties. Educators who work for child care provider that employs more than 10 educators earn $2.00 (18 percent) more an hour than educators who work for child care providers that employ 10 or fewer educators. And in Texas, educators who work for child care providers that do not accept CCS earn $1.00 (8 percent) more an hour than educators who work for child care providers that do. Of the 431 directors surveyed, approximately 31 percent of center-based directors had access to health, dental and vision insurance, compared to six percent of home-based directs having access to health insurance and even fewer (3.5 percent) with access to dental and vision insurance. All directors surveyed were more likely to have paid vacation/holiday time (center-based 82.2 percent, home-based 43.4 percent) and paid sick leave (center-based 56.6 percent, home-based 25.8 percent). Only 2.7 percent of home-based directors had a retirement account, compared to 28.4 percent of center- based directors. 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? TWC does not set minimum wage requirements for private businesses outside of the state minimum wage. TWC allows Boards to provide child care program-level wage supports or stipends directly to staff. Currently, 13 Boards (as listed in 6.1.2) are administering some type of local wage supplement program for Texas Rising Star-certified providers.