Children need support to thrive — and so do the people who care for, educate and guide them at a young age. Thanks to a new $14.4 million grant from the Oregon Department of Education Early Learning Division, Oregon State University is launching the Early Learning Systems Initiative to strengthen the early childhood education workforce statewide.
Located within the university’s Hallie E. Ford Center for Children and Families, the initiative will focus on better serving children from marginalized communities and those who have experienced trauma. This begins with enhanced training that give educators the tools to meet children’s needs, prevent issues like preschool expulsion and reduce teacher burnout.
Megan McClelland, director of the Hallie Ford Center and principal investigator on the grant, says the need for a new training format partially stems from the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic: the current workforce is facing low wages, high turnover and lack of professional development opportunities. In addition, every county in Oregon has now been reported as a child care desert for children between the ages of 3 and 5, with at least three children per available slot.
McClelland adds that federal data (PDF) from 2014 showed Black preschool students were 3.6 times more likely than white students to receive out-of-school suspensions. A 2020 statewide household study (PDF) shows that 6.3% of all children were asked to leave their child care programs, with higher rates among children of color and children with disabilities.
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