|
Dear Colleagues,
Reflection is essential for growth in the early learning field, as you likely know. So did John Dewey, the great education reformer, who once observed that “we do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience.” And the end of the year is a perfect time for early learning professionals to take stock of their successes, explore ways to serve children even better and think about what inspires them most. When we reflect, we look back to the past and ahead to the future, as the Council has done in a productive year marked by both nostalgia and innovation.
As we explore new ways to serve the early learning field, we draw impetus and inspiration from how far along we’ve come. This year, we marked the 50th anniversary of the Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™, our tenth Early Educators Leadership Conference and the Council’s 40th anniversary since its founding under the leadership of Dr. Carol Brunson Day, our CEO for 20 years.
Dr. Day recalls her experiences in the Council’s new book, The First Two Decades, released just a few months ago. In it, she reflects on how the CDA® has changed from a small federal program to a pillar of the early learning profession nationwide. It’s gained recognition in the regulations and licensing laws of nearly all states, along with widespread renown as the best first step toward success in our early childhood settings. And more than a million early childhood teachers have shown that they agree by earning a CDA.
The Council issued the millionth CDA under our current CEO, Dr. Calvin Moore, who attributes this milestone to Dr. Day’s legacy and pioneering steps. “Her work laid the foundation for the advances we see today, including the ongoing refinement of the CDA to meet the changing needs of educators and families,” as Dr. Moore writes in his foreword to The First Two Decades. “She envisioned a future where every educator is equipped with the tools, knowledge and support necessary to excel in their roles, and this vision continues to guide our efforts at the Council.”
We’re still exploring ways to serve educators even better, and this year we made several innovations. We have new digital CDA credentials that make it easier for educators to highlight their expertise in ECE. We’ve streamlined our CDA renewal process. We have a new Birth to Five CDA® Credential that allows educators to broaden their professional scope, and we have a new podcast, The Council Table. It brings you inside the discussions that are shaping our field, and we hope it will inspire you to help move ECE ahead.
The Council will also be moving ahead by taking new steps to support our educators next year. We will be partnering with the National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC) to boost the number of family providers who earn a CDA, so they can gain more credit for the vital service they provide to nearly three million children nationwide. Millions more need qualified educators, so the Council will also enhance the CDA decision-making process by no longer requiring a verification visit for candidates who achieve a qualifying level on the CDA® exam. This expedited process will preserve our credential’s high standards while more quickly producing the qualified educators that all children deserve, whatever their challenges or special needs. Inclusion, as you’ll read in a new blog, remains one of the central values that we champion at the Council.
Values are also among the issues Dr. Moore explores when he reviews the news about ECE in 2025. He covers recent surveys that point to the demand for child care and the impact of the child care shortage on families. He also describes how states are addressing the problem as birth rates plummet and gender pay gaps soar. But policy changes aren’t enough, Dr. Moore points out. Instead, we must reframe child care as a social value that makes communities strong and helps families put down roots. As we prepare to mark a new year, he urges us to reflect on how we can all make quality child care part of the American way.
Looking forward to fresh changes in 2026,
The Council for Professional Recognition
| 
