Six students are participating in the first U.S. Department of Labor Registered Apprenticeship program in early childhood education in Evansville. Ivy Tech Community College’s Evansville campus is working with Evansville-based Carver Community Organization on the initiative to expand access to post-secondary education and build a stronger early childhood education workforce.
“It’s hard to find experienced early childhood educators,” said Deiona Clayton, executive director of Carver Community Organization. “The apprenticeship program will allow the students to receive high-quality and culturally diverse training to help with the clientele that we all serve, as well as get ahead on the newest, latest and greatest research on early childhood education.”
Upon completion of the program, the apprentices will receive several high-quality credentials, including a Classroom Support Specialist micro-credential, a Child Development Associate (CDA) certificate from the Council for Professional Recognition, an Ivy Tech Early Childhood Child Development Associate Certificate in Early Childhood Education and a U.S. Department of Labor Journeyperson certificate.
“Having quality care and education for young children is just as essential to our workforce as roads, bridges and technology,” said Andrea Boberg, program chair at Ivy Tech Evansville. “People can’t go to work in these high-demand, high-wage positions if they don’t have staff some place that they feel comfortable leaving their children.”
The program’s instructor, Davida Johnson, who also works at the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp., said early childhood education is a vital part of development, and the need for this type of instruction is great right now.
“Especially after COVID, there has been an emphasis on mental health and the impacts of it and how it’s affecting everybody,” she said. “Families, we believe, are children’s first teachers. But we can be their first experiences with school. And if we can bring those children in and give them the head start that they need, it’s not just for kindergarten, but for them to be productive, amazing members of society.”
About the program
The Ivy Tech adult-based apprenticeships are being funded by the Indiana Association for the Education of Young Children (INAEYC), Teacher Education and Compensation Helps (TEACH) Early Childhood Indiana and Carver Community Organization.
“By supporting this apprenticeship program, we are helping individuals build rewarding careers in early childhood education while addressing the growing demand for qualified professionals in the field,” said Hanan Osman, executive director of INAEYC, in a press release.
The one-year program, which started in June, includes six courses and 2,000 hours of on-the-job learning. After the first two courses, students earn the Classroom Support Specialist micro-credential and become eligible for a wage increase.
“Then, they take another three classes, and at that time, they will participate in a verification visit and also take an exam for the nationally recognized credential, the CDA, through the Council of Professional Recognition. At that point, they would get another bump in pay, and their final class would complete the Ivy Tech CDA [certificate],” Boberg said.
Once all six courses are finished, the apprentices may pursue a technical certificate or associate degree at Ivy Tech and transfer credits to a bachelor’s degree program.
“If they chose not to go on for their associate degree, then they would already have the renewal training that they needed in place to renew their CDA for another three years. So they would be good for six years on maintaining a current CDA,” said Boberg.
Feedback so far
The Ivy Tech apprentices meet once a week with Johnson at Carver Community Organization to study early childhood education, which ranges from infancy to eight years old.
“We’re building relationships, we’re talking about real scenarios and we are encouraging each other to do better,” she said.
The students enjoy the face-to-face interactions and collaboration opportunities the program provides, according to Johnson.
“It’s for the non-traditional student. It’s for moms. It’s for people who work full-time. They’re thankful that we get to meet in person. A lot of the work that we do, we try to do together,” she said. “I talk about the importance of the quality of the assignment versus the quantity of assignments, and if they understand what we’re doing and if they can take something away and implement it in their classroom, it’s amazing.”
Johnson appreciates the opportunity to teach like-minded adults about early childhood education and strives to improve the field with them.
“We can’t do better unless we know better,” she said. “They are a group of hard-working individuals. They get their work done, they turn it in on time and they come to class on time. So that shows me that they value it, and that they want to be there.”
Further expansion
Ivy Tech Evansville is already extending the Early Childhood Educator Apprenticeship opportunity to other Hoosier communities. In July, the college launched a similar program in Jasper.
“Industry partners [in] different areas of workforce development have identified a need for more quality child care offerings in Dubois County,” Boberg told Inside INdiana Business. “There’s not enough to go around.”
A high school version of the program is also in progress and expected to debut in the 2026-27 academic year. The ongoing expansion is part of Ivy Tech’s goal to more than double the number of early childhood education graduates over the next three years.
“There will always be a demand for an early childhood workforce. There’s been a lot of information shared, and people are realizing that there is a difference between quality care and education and just babysitting,” said Boberg.
“The kids are learning, even if they’re just playing in the block area,” added Clayton. “They’re learning social skills, physics, math and problem solving.”
Though early childhood education isn’t a high-wage sector, Johnson said earning these accreditations will help professionals advance in the field.
“They will have a credential where if they wanted to potentially be a lead teacher in a certain site, they could. It can take them further in early childhood education, potentially get them paid more money and let them raise higher up in position,” said Johnson.