III. EXPLORING POSITIONS
Description: A director or an administrator of an early childhood program oversees all aspects or the program including overseeing staff, curriculum and facilities. The director is responsible for compliance with state and local regulations and program policies.
Knowledge, Skills and Dispositions: The director has a knowledge of educational process, management, communication skills, personnel management, sales, marketing and media. A director uses skills such as speaking, reading and writing, organization, critical thinking, social perceptiveness, coordinating others' actions, and information management. A director has the ability to communicate, motivate, maintain confidentiality, and create a healthy environment for children and adults.
Employment Settings:
Public Schools - Supervisor of specific programs such as prekindergarten
(See SECTION II, SETTINGS F)
Private Schools (See SECTION II,
SETTINGS E)
Head Start (See SECTION II, SETTINGS
II C)
Child Care and Education programs (See
SECTION II, SETTINGS A,B,D)
Residential Programs (See SECTION
II, SETTINGS E)
Required Qualifications: Qualifications for Directors vary with individual settings and the federal, the state, and local regulations. These include:
Public Schools - Teacher certification and experience
Private Schools - Teacher certification and experience
Head Start - Education requirement is locally determined and experience
Child Care and Education programs
- Child Care Centers (in areas of the state outside of
New York City) - Bachelor's degree including or in addition to,
12 credits in Early Childhood, Child Development or related field
and one year full-time teaching experience in a child day care
center, family or day care home or other early childhood program
AND one year of experience supervising staff. New York
State Children's Program Administrator Credential AND one
year full-time teaching experience in a child day care center,
family or group family day care home or other early childhood
program AND one year of experience supervising staff. OR
associates degree in early childhood or related field with a plan
of study leading to a bachelor's degree AND two years full-time
teaching experience in a child day care center, family or group
family day care OR a Child Development Associate Credential
with a plan of study leading to a bachelor's degree AND
two year full-time experience in a child care center, family or
group family child care home or other early childhood program
AND two years of experience supervising staff (NYSOCFS
418-1.13(g)).
- Child Care Centers, Head Start (NYC), School Age Child Care
- Educational Director (in charge of the program of service) licensed
by the City Board of Education as a teacher in early childhood
classes and has completed at least one hundred and fifty (150)
clock hours of observation and supervised field experience/practicum
at the prekindergarten level. OR NYS Early Childhood Certification
OR NYS Childhood Prekindergarten-6 or Childhood Certification
with 300 clock hours of observation and supervised practice teaching
with at least (150) in prekindergarten or kindergarten levels
and 30 semester hours of study in professional education including
one semester in sociological, philosophical or historical foundations
of education, and two one-semester courses in educational developmental
psychology, at least one of which will be in child development
and three one-semester courses in instructional methods and materials
including instruction in teaching the basic skills at least one
of which shall be on the kindergarten or kindergarten level and
a one semester course in parent education and community relations.
OR has a plan for meeting the requirements specified in
the first three options limited above within a reasonable time,
submitted to the Department (NYC DOH 47.13).
- School-Age Child Care Center: Associates degree in child development, elementary education, physical education, recreation or a related field AND two years direct experience working with children under the age of 13 years, including at least one year in a supervisory capacity OR two years of college with 18 credits in the above listed areas of concentration AND two years direct experience working with children under the age of 13 years, including at least one year in a supervisory capacity. (NYSOCFS 414.13(g)).
All persons holding this position must be cleared through the NYS Central Registry of Child Abuse and their fingerprints submitted to required authorities.
Preparation: Bachelor degrees or associate degrees may be obtained from accredited colleges by meeting that college's degree requirements. Typical courses include general education, and additionally, courses in curriculum development, parent education, community resources, administration, human resources and business practices. The New York State Children's Program Administrators Credential (CPAC) has been developed to meet the educational needs of directors of NYS OCFS licensed centers and registered school age programs. CPAC is an 18 credit-hour program that includes course work in child development, administration, financial planning, operations management, external environments, and program design. (See SECTION V, PREPARING TO LEARN for more specifics on the content.) The credential is granted pending a portfolio evaluation performed by NYS Association for the Education of Young Children.
Continuing Education: Varies according to setting.
Alternate Pathways: Directors usually have classroom experience as a background but they may have a business background with education in and additional training in child development and programming.
Continuing Education: Varies according to setting.
Alternate Pathways: Directors usually have classroom experience as a background but they may have a business background with education in and additional training in child development and programming.
Job Outlook: There is a continuing need for directors in New York State to fill positions in new programs, replace retirees, and those leaving the position for other employment opportunities.
Earnings: New York State wages range between $29,411 and $46,134
Opportunity for Advancement: Directors of early childhood programs can advance to become the Executive Director or CEO of their sponsoring organization. In large multi-site or multi-program organizations, there is an overall early childhood director who oversees other directors and programs or with required education may become a public school principal (see POSITION 13).
Related Careers:
Serving Children Directly – A director usually does not serve children directly
Serving Families Directly – Coordinate child care referral services for families, coordinate community services, direct community outreach, family life counselor
Providing Information Goods and Services – Training and development specialists or managers, develop instructional material, research and develop management technology, organizational analyst, grant writer, and college faculty.