The Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) is committed to increasing access to quality child care for young learners in the District of Columbia. In an ongoing effort to continue to improve access to quality care and education, OSSE increased the minimum education requirements for the early childhood workforce.
Along with the change in requirements, OSSE is providing support and resources to ensure that current and prospective child development staff have the tools they need to meet the education requirements. On this page, child development staff, including center directors, teachers, assistant teachers, home caregivers, associate home caregivers, and expanded home caregivers can find information about the education requirements and available resources to supports.
To view available resources by position, please choose the position that describes your current role or the position in which you are most interested.
Other Resources
- Education Requirements FAQ for Early Childhood Staff
- Education Requirements FAQ for Child Development Facility Leaders
- Qualifications for Family Child Care Home and Expanded Family Child Care Home Staff by Position
- Qualifications for Center-Based Teachers and Assistant Teachers
- Qualifications for Director in a DC Child Development Facility
- Quorum: Online Professional Development Resource
- Quorum: CDA Guidebook: English | Español
- First Step Overview
- DC Tuition Assistance Grant (DCTAG)
- DC Mayor’s Scholars Undergraduate Program
- Introduction to the CDA Training Scholarship and Promotion Program One-Pager
- Early Childhood Education (ECE) Help Desk
- Request for Waiver
- Professional Development - Early Learning Course Catalog
- DC Leading Educators toward Advanced Degrees (DC LEAD) Grant
- Quarterly Report: Current Early Childhood Educators Meeting Education Requirements
- March 22, 2023 Virtual Information Session
New Education Requirements
DC’s licensing regulations (effective as of Dec. 2, 2016) seek to improve the quality of the early childhood workforce by ensuring that staff meet the necessary qualifications and credentials to educate young children. Please see below for the licensing education requirements and compliance deadlines for each position. In June 2018, OSSE extended the deadline for various child care facility positions.
| Position | Minimum Education Credential Required | New Date |
|---|---|---|
| Center Director | Bachelor’s degree (BA) in early childhood education (including early childhood development, early childhood education, elementary education, or early special education) or a bachelor’s degree in any subject area with at least 15 semester credit hours in early childhood education. | December 2022 |
| Teacher | Associate degree (AA) in early childhood education (or early childhood development, child and family studies, or a closely related field) or an associate degree (or higher) in any subject area with at least 24 semester credit hours in early childhood. | December 2023 |
| Assistant Teacher | Child Development Associate (CDA) or an associate degree (or higher) in any subject area. | December 2023 |
| Expanded Home Caregiver | Associate degree in early childhood education (or early childhood development, child and family studies or a closely related field) or an associate degree (or higher) in any subject area with at least 24 semester credit hours in early childhood. |
December 2023 |
| Home Caregiver and Associate Home Caregiver | Child Development Associate (CDA) | December 2023 |
*All information is as of February 2021. OSSE will update the information when new resources and programs become available.