Last month, Community Action Partnership of Ramsey & Washington Counties launched the Child Development Associate Credential Training Program. This pilot program, which was recently highlighted on the MinnCAP website, is designed not only to train and recruit more Head Start professionals, but also provide a pathway to employment for our Head Start parents and caregivers. Executive Director, Catherine Fair, explains that the program “was born out of our multi-year initiative to implement the Whole Family Approach across our organization. In alignment with our newly refined continuum of care philosophy, we are partnering with people seeking to move from crisis toward prosperity.”
The Child Development Associate Credential Training Program pairs two Community Action departments, Head Start and Financial Opportunity Programs, in partnership with the YWCA of St. Paul, whose role will help to deliver the program curriculum. Participants in the initial cohort are receiving 32 hours of paid training per week for a total of six months. Pamela Maldonado, director of Financial Opportunity Programs at Community Action, notes that this “cohort kicked off in early October and will continue through March of 2022.” Program graduates will earn their Child Development Associate® – Preschool Credential from the CDA Council for Professional Recognition, qualifying them to begin a career in Head Start as well as other center-based preschool programs.
For more information on Community Action Head Start, please visit us online or call 651-603-5977. And, for additional details on the suite of programs and services available through our Financial Opportunity Department, call 651-603-5880 or visit us online.
