Key Resources for Early Childhood Education

Center for Public Policy Priorities (CPPP)
CPPP is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) policy institute committed to improving public policies to better the economic and social conditions of low- and moderate-income Texans. CPPP is the Texas home of Texas KIDS COUNT , a national and state-by-state effort to track the status of children in the U.S. In addition to publishing annual reports, the Center also offers access to an interactive, comprehensive database of county-by-county and state data on child well-being.

Children's Learning Institute (CLI)
The University of Texas Health Science Center's Children's Learning Institute combines data and studies from the fields of psychology, neurodevelopment, education and child development to provide proven learning solutions derived from, and supported by, documented research. The goal of CLI is to be the pre-eminent source for proven clinical and educational programs covering early childhood through late teens. Services include clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment of learning disorders, and cutting-edge research on techniques to enhance a child's home and learning environment. CLI's staff includes experts in the fields of child development, education, medicine, neurodevelopment and research analysis.

Collaborative for Children's Online Training Modules for Early Childhood Professionals

Collaborative for Children has partnered with Texas A&M's Agrilife Extension Service to provide 20 online, self-paced training modules for early childhood professionals. The 82nd Texas Legislature has mandated additional training hours for early education directors and staff; these flexible, accessible, and affordable online trainings are a great way to obtain high quality training. The training modules cover a wide variety of early childhood and leadership topics, including classroom best practices, child development and professionalism. Early childhood education professionals are encouraged to share this information with colleagues seeking high quality training.

Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center (ECLKC)
ECLKC is an online service provided by the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start. It offers information on a wide array of topics in English and in Spanish as well as key areas for professional development. It aims to communicate best practices and provide practical resources and information to the Head Start and Early Head Start communities.

First Focus
First Focus is a bipartisan advocacy organization dedicated to making children and families a priority in federal policy and budget decisions. First Focus takes a unique approach to children's advocacy, engaging both traditional and non-traditional partners in a broad range of efforts to increase federal investments in programs that address the needs of our nation's children. In all of its work First Focus seeks to raise awareness regarding public policies impacting children and families, and to ensure that related programs have the resources necessary to help children grow up in a healthy and nurturing environment.

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
NAEYC has published a new magazine for preschool teachers and an online library of resources for preschool teachers looking for ideas, strategies, and information for enhancing professional practice. NAEYC also has an entire online site dedicated to supports for teachers.

National Association of Child Care Professionals (NACCP)
Visit NACCP's Online Professional Education Center for child care providers and administrators. Courses offered through the center are now eligible for college credit! Visit this website to learn more about how you can turn a CDA National Credential into nine college credits.

Pre-k Now
Pre-K Now, a campaign of the Pew Center on the States, collaborates with advocates and policymakers at the national and state levels to lead a movement toward high-quality, voluntary pre-kindergarten for all three and four year olds.

Raising Texas
Raising Texas, an initiative of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, has developed an Early Childhood Standards Crosswalk that can assist with the varying program standards and regulations that encompass child care, Head Start and public school pre-k. Visit the "Early Care and Education" section of the website to utilize this tool.

Texas Association for the Education of Young Children (TAEYC)
TAEYC works to improve educational opportunities for young children by providing professional development services to early childhood practitioners, offering technical assistance to improve quality, and engaging in advocacy efforts to increase public sector investments in quality early childhood education. Information about upcoming events and current publications is also available.

Texas Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (TACCRRA)
TACCRRA, an association made up of seven local agencies serving the state of Texas, is a clearinghouse for professional development and training opportunities, and offers extensive training, mentoring, consulting, and modeling services.

Texas Education Agency (TEA): Regional Education Service Centers (ESC's)
This link will connect you directly to a list of education service centers for every region of the state. The centers focus on technical assistance, training opportunities, and key staff to connect with, such as the School Readiness Integration Specialist. Together these tools provide a great resource for every early childhood education professional.

Texas Early Care and Education Career Development System (TECECDS)
The goal of the Career Development System is to make the career paths and choices within the profession align with statewide recognition and transferable credit for training and coursework. The system includes a process for trainer registration as well.

Texas Licensed Child Care Association (TLCCA)
This statewide membership association provides an array of services and information to licensed child care providers throughout Texas. Visit this website to learn about relevant professional development opportunities and online training avenues.

Texas Early Learning Council
The Texas Early Learning Council is a 19 member advisory council that was established by Governor Rick Perry in late 2009. The Council aims to improve school readiness in Texas through targeted strategies in the Council's four priority areas:
  • Parental Outreach and Communications
  • Early Childhood Workforce and Professional Development
  • Collaborations and Standards
  • Data Systems and Quality Rating and Improvement Systems

Texas Professional Home Child Care Association (TPHCCA)
The Texas Professional Home Child Care Association is a dynamic organization dedicated to quality home child care in order to best serve the children, parents, and providers in Texas. Visit this website to stay up to date on regional workshops and statewide training opportunities.

ZERO TO THREE
ZERO TO THREE provides multidisciplinary professionals working with very young children and their families with an extensive collection of resources aimed at supporting the work of professionals in a variety of early childhood settings. In addition, ZERO TO THREE offers customized trainings on a variety of topics that you can learn more about by visiting their Center for Training Services. Simply click on "Public Policy" on the home page to lead you to the wide array of resources and information.

Don't see a critical resource that you utilize on a regular basis? Please contact Emily Pyeatt at epyeatt@tecec.org to update this page. Updated 4.4.11