Maryland's Funding
for CDA Programs

Get funding to pay for your CDA!

The Council for Professional Recognition, Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland Family Network have partnered to offer funding to help you earn or renew your Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential. And now, fully funded CDA® training is available for Maryland early childhood educators! Training options are available for CDA candidates and renewal applicants. Don’t miss out on this exciting professional development opportunity.

Once you are approved, you will be able to pick CCEI as your training vendor. Fill out the form below and we can help guide you through the process.
If you would like to learn more about this exciting opportunity to earn and renew your CDA for FREE visit https://www.marylandfamilynetwork.org/for-providers-training/CDA to apply.

Contact us to learn more about the Maryland CDA Training Initiative.

Eligibility

You are an early childhood educator who is a registered family child care provider, licensed child care staff, or public preschool employee who works in Maryland.

Deadline

Funding is limited, we encourage you to submit applications as early as possible.

CDA training requests from early childhood educators working in public pre-k will be
accepted until September 29, 2023.
CDA training requests from early childhood educators working in family child care
and child care centers will be accepted until November 1, 2023.

Funding Includes

CDA Training Bundles:

120-Hour Initial Training Bundle for first-time
CDA candidates who have not completed the
Maryland 90-hour training
45-Hour Renewal Training Bundle for CDA
renewal applicants

CDA Application & Publication Fees:

Initial Online Assessment Fee
Renewal Online Application Fee
The Child Development Associate® National
Credentialing Program and CDA® Competency
Standards book for one of the following settings:
Preschool, Infant-Toddler or Family Child Care

CCEI has the certificate programs you can use the funding on.

Self-Study CDA Family Child Care Certificate (available in English and Spanish)
Self-Study CDA Infant-Toddler Certificate (available in English and Spanish)
Self-Study CDA Preschool Certificate (available in English and Spanish)
CDA Renewal Infant-Toddler (available in English and Spanish)
CDA Renewal Preschool (available in English and Spanish)
CDA Renewal Family Child Care (available in English and Spanish)

CCEI's Child Development Associate® (CDA) Programs

As a Child Development Associate Program Partner, ChildCare Education Institute successfully demonstrated that its early childhood education training is based on the Council’s three industry-leading principles:

Alignment with the Child Development Association (CDA) formal early childhood education coursework found in the CDA’s Eight Subject Areas.
Sound business policies and practices.
Quality student services that meet their educational and professional needs.

In addition to offering high-quality training, applicants must provide evidence that they serve the CDA course student community with excellence. This includes professional development courses that prepares students for successful completion of their program.

“CCEI continues to demonstrate their worthy of the CDA Program Partnership and that they’re committed to providing CDA candidates the high-quality training they deserve.”

Dr. Calvin Moore Jr., CEO, Council for Professional Recognition

“It’s exciting to think about the many young children, families, and communities that will benefit from the high-quality education and training students will receive from ChildCare Education Institute, a Child Development Associate Program Partner.”

Dr. Valora Washington, Former CEO, Council for Professional Recognition

“CCEI is committed to providing the highest quality training to CDA® candidates that fully align with the competencies required to become a CDA credentialed professional. As a Child Development Associate Program Partner, ChildCare Education Institute has demonstrated they have ethical business practices and are dedicated to supporting students throughout the training process. The superior training that CCEI provides ensures that each educator will receive the tools and expertise to make a difference in the lives of many young children.”

Dr. Calvin Moore Jr., CEO, Council for Professional Recognition

What is a CDA Credential?

In childcare, CDA stands for Child Development Associate. The Child Development Associate® Credential™ is the most widely known and valued credential in early childhood education. It is an opportunity for educators working with children from birth to age 5 to demonstrate and strengthen their knowledge, understanding, and practices when teaching in early education. Not only is the CDA Credential a key part of advancing within early childhood education, but it is also a major professional development learning experience and essential resource moving into the field.

The Child Development Associate Credential is based on a core set of standards set to evaluate and prepare early childhood educators as they work to enter the professional world. Not only is it valuable for professional development, but it can also be a key piece of becoming a qualified, exceptional teacher to young children.

Those who earn their Child Development Associate Credential have mastered the CDA certification standards and have a deep understanding of why these learned practices will help children move more successfully and smoothly from one developmental stage to the next. Child Development Associates have a grasp on each aspect of a child’s development, including emotional, social, physical, and intellectual, and strive to help them grow through the stages of development more effortlessly.

While earning a CDA Credential isn’t always easy, it is overwhelmingly rewarding to personally evolve and professionally prepare to be the best early childhood educator possible.

I’ve been in the profession for 10 years and have done self-paced training in the past that was easy to skip through. I was worried that completing it online wouldn’t be as great, but I didn’t feel that way about CCEI.

When I took their courses for my CDA program, the interface was friendly, thorough and easy to digest. Every part of it was engaging and I learned new, relevant information. The reflective exercises were also helpful. I instantly got a certificate for each module I completed.

I highly recommend CCEI’s courses to other educators.

Enola Garland

Executive Director of the Colorado Association for the Education of Young Children (COAEYC)

How do I get a CDA Credential?

The Council for Professional Recognition is the agency that awards the CDA Credential, but with CCEI, completing the required training needed to apply for your CDA Credential is a simple and efficient process and will effectively prepare you and jump-start your career in early childhood education.

You can take advantage of any one of our many Child Development Associate Credential training programs, as seen listed below, which includes preparing to apply for your initial CDA Credential or renewing an existing Credential. And if you aren’t sure if online child care training is right for you, you can take a trial course on us! At the end of the day, CCEI offers online CDA certification training programs to make the personal and professional development you need available right at your fingertips.

What can I do with
a CDA Credential?

There are limitless possibilities and advancement opportunities that come with obtaining a Child Development Associate Credential. It will open opportunities on the job horizon, it will better prepare you for your future and your career, and it will allow you to continuously stay on the cutting edge of all early childhood education advancements and practices. With a CDA Certification, you can learn and grow alongside the young children you teach.

Benefits of CDA Credential

There are many benefits of going through the process to apply for and earn a CDA Credential. These benefits are not only professional, however. There are also many personal benefits of earning a CDA Credential. A few of the many benefits can be seen listed below.

Entrance and exposure to a large community of qualified, hard-working early childhood educators and professionals.
Advancement of your career both personally and professionally.
Increases personal confidence and capabilities as an early childhood educator.
Helps to meet and often surpass job requirements.
Shows hard-work, persistence, and dedication to the early childhood profession.
Increases trust and confidence within parents who entrust their children with you.
Gain a deeper understanding and knowledge of developmentally essential practices and teachings
And so much more!

Child Development Associate Credential Training with CCEI

Practices and understandings within the early childhood education realm are constantly evolving and improving. With the Child Development Associate Credential training program with CCEI, you can build a professional foundation and strengthen your personal capabilities to prepare you for a career in early childhood education and continue to guide you moving forward. CCEI’s Child Development Associate Credential Certification Program will undoubtedly prepare ECE professionals educationally, professionally, personally, and in many other ways to provide and implement quality early childhood education practices and teachings. Meaning you will undoubtedly be prepared educationally, professionally, personally, and in any other means to provide and implement quality early childhood education practices and teachings.