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Early Childhood Facilities Design Institute Approved for Graduate Credit

The Early Childhood Facilities Design Institute got off to a great start in June with 40 participants from all over the US and a few friends from Canada. The group included early childhood administrators, Head Start staff, architects, students and one general contractor. It was a good opportunity for sharing information across disciplines.

Since the feedback was so positive and we believe in educating early childhood staff about design issues, we have decided to offer the course three times a year. Our next Institute will take place October 16-17, 2003 to be followed by one January 15-16, 2004. Our June 2004 date will be announced later. Additional information about the October Institute, including the registration form, is located here.

The two-day course has been approved with a fee for one hour of graduate credit from National Louis University Early Childhood Education Program in Wheeling, IL. National Louis University is the home of the Center for Early Childhood Leadership. The course meets the criteria for the Illinois Director Credential. More information about the program can be found at

http://www3.nl.edu/academics/nce/degreecert.cfm

The course will be called ECE 544 Early Childhood Environments: Design and Facilities Management. There are very few schools that offer this type of coursework for early childhood practitioners, so we are proud to join National Louis University in making this option available to those who want course credit.

The ECE 544 course also meets the criteria for coursework approved for the Illinois Director Credential (IDC). The IDC is recognized as the standard by which to measure the management and leadership capabilities of early child care and education directors and serves as a symbol of individual professional achievement. The purpose of the IDC is to validate the achievement of competencies necessary for effective leadership and management of center-based early care and education programs.

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