EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP & ADVOCACY
Let me introduce myself and some exciting online program options for early childhood teachers, leaders and advocates.
My name is Dr. Shauna Adams, and I coordinate an exciting online program designed by and for early childhood teachers, leaders and advocates. After working with busy early childhood professionals for more than a decade, it became clear to me and my colleagues that many existing bachelor's and master's degree programs do not meet the needs of the working professional. To address the demand for a responsive program, we brought our early care and education partners together to identify the needs of the field and to design a program that meets those needs.
The University of Dayton is a leader in the field of early childhood education, providing outstanding, cutting-edge preservice and inservice programs. This part-time online degree program:
- Gives credit for work-related training.
- Supports the Early Childhood Career Lattice by building on an associate's degree and earning credit toward a bachelor's and/or master's degree.
- Is stackable, lean and affordable.
- Comes from a university with a tradition of excellence. According to the U.S. News and World Report, the University of Dayton is one of the ten best Catholic universities in the nation.
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WHAT CAN YOU ACHIEVE WITH THIS PROGRAM?
Through our online Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy program, you can earn the following non-licensure degrees and certificate:
- B.S. in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy
- M.S. in Education, with a Concentration in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy
- University-issued undergraduate certificate in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy (pdf)
- University-issued graduate certificate in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy
Important note: The degree and certificate programs in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy are non-licensure programs. To learn more about teaching licensure degrees, please review the Department of Teacher Education's Licensure Programs.
Is ONLINE LEARNING FOR YOU?
Test out the quality of our online offerings by taking one of our online trainings, offered through the Bombeck Institute. These trainings require only five contact hours to complete, and are informative, engaging, affordable. Credits from these trainings can apply toward your degree should you decide that the University of Dayton Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy Program is for you.
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B.S. in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy
Download undergraduate program brochure (pdf) >>
This part-time online program is designed for the early childhood professional who has an associate's degree in early childhood education or a related field. As a "stackable" program, the B.S. in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy builds on an associate's degree and allows students to apply up to 12 semester hours of reduced tuition workshop credit based on job-embedded professional development. We know that quality early childhood programming requires quality professional development—and lots of it. We value the professional experience that you bring to the program and provide a vehicle for you to apply your professional development toward your degree.
COURSEWORK
EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP COURSEWORK
21 semester hours
- EDT 460E Early Childhood Program and Personnel Management with lab*
- EDT 461E Supporting Quality Curriculum and Instruction in Early Care and Education
- EDT 462E Regulations, Licensing and the Law in Early Care and Education with lab*
- EDT 463E Managing Finances and Marketing in Early Care and Education with lab*
- EDT 464E Advocacy in Early Care and Education
- EDT 465E Internship and Seminar in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy
*Most labs can be completed in the student's work environment as long as leadership opportunities are available.
DEPARTMENT COURSEWORK
9 semester hours
- EDT 305 Philosophy and History of Education
- EDT 340 Educating Diverse Learners in Inclusive Settings with lab**
- EDT 344 Collaborating with Families, Professionals and Agencies
**The EDT 340 lab requires that students be able to work directly with children for 20 hours over the course of the term.
WORKSHOP CREDITS
12 semester hours
To earn 1 workshop credit, submit certificates of attendance for approved* workshops, totaling 15 contact hours, with your completed registration form to:
Workshop Credit Coordinator
Bombeck Family Learning Center
University of Dayton
941 Alberta Street
Dayton, OH 45409
(937)229-2158
Workshop credit is University of Dayton transcripted credit. The cost is 25% of the undergraduate tuition rate. Professional development trainings eligible for workshop credit are state approved, county sponsored, Head Start sponsored, NAEYC or affiliate sponsored and others, depending on the approval of the program advisor.
GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
16 semester hours
The University of Dayton is committed to educating the whole person, which means a rigorous liberal arts program is required. This coursework typically exceeds what is required in most associate's degree programs. Typically, students need to take 16 additional semester hours from an institution in your area. Most of this additional general education coursework can be taken at a two-year degree granting college. However, 9 semester hours must be taken from a four-year institution.
The required general education coursework comprises:
- western civilization
- physical science
- life science
- introduction to philosophy
- introduction to religion
- college composition I
- college composition II
- introduction to communication
- contemporary mathematics
- upper level historical study
- upper level art study
- upper level religion or philosophy study
- upper level social science
- other elective coursework
Altogether, the general education semester hours, when combined with your associate's degree credits, should equal at least 76 semester hours.
Credits
We have designed this program to be lean, which means that transferring credits that apply to the degree is easy. Here is how the B.S. in Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy stacks up:
| 45 | semester hours in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy from the University of Dayton (including 12 semester hours of reduced rate workshop credit) |
| + 60 | semester hours from your associate's degree program (from anywhere in the country) |
| + 16 | semester hours of additional general education coursework (9 semester hours from a four-year institution) |
| = 121 | semester hours required for graduation |
Important Note: This program does not lead to a teaching license or certificate. It recognizes that many professional in the field of early care and education either have a Pre-K credential or do not need a teaching credential to do their job effectively. Student teaching is not required, so it is not necessary to take a leave from work to complete student teaching.
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M.S.Ed. WITH A CONCENTRATION IN EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP & ADVOCACY
Download graduate program brochure (pdf) >>
The graduate Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy program is designed for experienced early childhood professionals who wish to advance the knowledge and skills required to be effective leaders and advocates in the field of early care and education. The program content can be applied by program administrators, supervisors, teacher leaders and advocates in a variety of settings where professionals work with and advocate for young children and their families. All candidates in this concentration must complete the graduate leadership core sequence and either the administration strand or the advocacy strand. All coursework is available online and is designed for individuals who seek a part-time, web-based program.
LEADERSHIP CORE SEQUENCE
All students must take the following graduate leadership coursework AND master's core coursework.
GRADUATE LEADERSHIP COURSEWORK
12 semester hours
- EDA 505 Educational Leadership
- EDA 509 Supervision and Professional Development
- EDA 556 Leadership in Diverse Communities
- EDT 565E Internship and Seminar in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy
MASTER'S CORE COURSEWORK
12 semester hours
- EDT 500 Models of Teaching
- EDT 502 Philosophy of Education
- EDT 660 Introduction to Research
- EDT 667 Research Study
PROGRAM FOCUS OPTIONS
Students must complete coursework in ONE of the following strands.
EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP COURSEWORK
12 semester hours
- EDT 560E Early Childhood Program and Personnel Management
- EDT 561E Supporting Quality Curriculum and Instruction
- EDT 562E Regulations, Licensing, and the Law in Early Childhood Education
- EDT 563E Managing Finances in Early Childhood Education
EARLY CHILDHOOD ADVOCACY COURSEWORK
11 semester hours
- EDT 510 Introduction to Transdisciplinary Early Childhood Education
- EDT 561E Supporting Quality Curriculum and Instruction
- EDT 564E Advocacy in Early Care and Education
- EDT 573 Working with Families, Professionals and Agencies
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Graduate & Undergraduate Options
The Early Childhood Leadership & Advocacy program offers two professional certificates, one at the undergraduate level and one at the graduate level, issued by the University of Dayton.
UNDERGRADUATE CERTIFICATE
COURSEWORK LEADING TO THE UNDERGRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP
21 semester hours
- EDT 460E Early Childhood Program and Personnel Management with lab
- EDT 461E Supporting Quality Curriculum and Instruction in Early Care and Education
- EDT 462E Regulations, Licensing and the Law in Early Care and Education with lab
- EDT 463E Managing Finances and Marketing in Early Care and Education with lab
- EDT 464E Advocacy in Early Care and Education
- EDT 465E Internship and Seminar in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy
Download undergraduate program brochure (pdf) >>
GRADUATE CERTIFICATE
COURSEWORK LEADING TO THE GRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP
21 semester hours
- EDT 560E Early Childhood Program and Personnel Management
- EDT 561E Supporting Quality Curriculum and Instruction in Early Care and Education
- EDT 562E Regulations, Licensing and the Law in Early Care and Education
- EDT 563E Managing Finances and Marketing in Early Care and Education
- EDT 564E Advocacy in Early Care and Education Leadership
- EDT 565E Internship and Seminar in Early Childhood Administration and Advocacy
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When to take what
Sample Undergraduate Timeline
The proposed timeline is based on a student who enters the program with an associate's degree, has completed the general education requirements, and attends part time.
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Sample Graduate Timeline
The proposed timeline is based on a student who plans to attend part time for two years and one summer.
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What else should you know?
REDUCED TUITION
Students who are 24 years of age and older and who wish to attend the University of Dayton as part-time students can apply to take coursework through the Adult Degree Advancement Program (ADAP). Tuition for ADAP eligible students is discounted by 40 percent off the regular undergraduate tuition rate. Students who are ADAP eligible should make sure to indicate an interest in ADAP during the admissions process.
Partner Schools
The following schools have approved associate's degree programs in early childhood education:
Chatfield College
St. Martin or Cincinnati, Ohio
Sinclair Community College
Dayton, Ohio
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