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Early Childhood-Elementary Education (5070)

Social Science
Social Science

Early Childhood-Elementary Education - Associate in Arts (AA) (5070)

If you’re passionate about teaching children and making a difference in young minds, our Early Childhood-Elementary Education Program is your answer to meet your goals.  The Early Childhood-Elementary Education AA and the Early Care and Education AAS is accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Early Childhood Higher Education Programs of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). 1401 H St, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20005. 202-232-8777. The accreditation term runs from July, 2019 through July, 2026. For more information on our program assessment information, View Education Program Data (pdf), Early Childcare Program Outcome Data (pdf)

By completing our program and receiving your Associate in Arts (AA) in Early Childhood-Elementary Education, you will be prepared to transfer your credits to a four-year school and apply for your teaching certification in grades PreK-4.

Jump to career information below!

Our program serves as your guide to later pursue your bachelor’s degree. With a bachelor’s degree, you’re qualified to apply for your teaching certification to teach children in grades PreK-4. In addition, this program supports opportunities for you to take electives that will aid in your pursuit of the Early Childhood-Elementary/Special Education Dual Certificate.

 

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Designed to help you transfer to a four-year college or university to complete your bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. This curriculum provides you with the opportunity to spend a minimum of 66-hours of field experience working in a variety of childcare and educational settings. Since our curriculum involves both field experiences and classroom observations in childcare centers throughout many school districts. You must obtain the following clearance requirements, at your own expense, prior to enrolling into EDUC 110:

  • FBI Clearance
  • ACT 151: PA Child Abuse History Clearance
  • ACT 34: Request for Criminal Record Check - PA State Police
  • Tuberculosis Skin Test (TB test)

Please note that these clearances are to be updated each year. For more information on required clearances, please download the clearances required for education students (pdf) or contact our clearance and placement coordinator Jen Myers.

In conjunction with National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) Standards, our professors will prepare you to:

  • Apply the theories of child development in order to promote healthy and challenging learning environments
  • Observe and assess children’s development and document their learning in order to develop appropriate curriculum and promote positive outcomes for each child
  • Use content knowledge to build meaningful curriculum
  • Use effective strategies to implement developmentally-appropriate teaching and learning
  • Support and involve families and communities in their children’s development and learning
  • Uphold national standards for professionalism and ethics as well as participate in continuous professional growth
  • Use legal and ethical standards to locate professional literature in print and/or electronic format in order to make research-based decisions that inform teaching practices
  • Prepare and maintain an electronic portfolio that documents personal growth as well as scholastic and professional achievement through the course of the Early Care and Education certificate from entry point class to job search

 

 

 

  • View summaries of every course at HACC by browsing our class schedules database.
  • Review our program guide (pdf) to view a list of required courses, recommended course sequencing and program competencies.

Yes! Our program is flexible enough to transfer to a wide variety of four-year colleges and universities with no loss of credit. If your intended transfer school participates in Pennsylvania’s statewide college credit transfer system, you will be able to begin at that school as a junior. Our program also transfers well to schools outside the statewide system. However, each individual college has its own unique program. We encourage you to select a four-year school as soon as possible. This helps you be aware of the transfer college’s program requirements and helps you choose the proper courses at HACC.

Please be aware that to transfer and enter professional-level coursework that leads to teacher certification, you must have a 3.0 grade point average (GPA) and have a passing score on one of the Pre-Service Academic Program Assessment (PAPA) tests. It is recommended that you speak to your advisor to learn more about this information.

Our various transfer options include:

Carlow University: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Cheyney University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania - Bloomsburg: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania - Lock Haven: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania - Mansfield: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
East Stroudsburg University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Indiana University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Kutztown University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Millersville University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Millersville University of PA: ECE AA to BSE ECE PreK-4 (pdf)
Penn State Harrisburg: Early Childhood-Elementary Education into Elementary and Middle Education (pdf)
Penn State Mont Alto: Early Childhood (pdf)
PennWest California: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
PennWest Clarion: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
PennWest Edinboro: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Saint Francis University - Francis Worldwide: Early Childhood Elementary Education (A.A.) to (B.A.) (pdf)
Saint Francis University - Francis Worldwide: Early Childhood Elementary Education (A.A.) to (B.S) (pdf)
Shippensburg University of PA: Early Childhood Elementary Education into (Prek-4) Elementary Education / Prior to Fall 2019 (pdf)
Shippensburg University of PA: Early Childhood Elem. Educ. into Early Childhood Educ. and/or Special Educ. (Effective Fall 2019) (pdf)
Slippery Rock University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
West Chester University of PA: Pennsylvania Statewide P2P Agreement (pdf)
Wilkes University: A.A. Early Childhood & Elem. Degree to Wilkes Elem. & Early Childhood (PreK-4) BA (pdf)

This program may be completed at all of HACC’s campuses through various modalities (e.g.,on-campus/in-person instruction, hybrid, synchronous remote instruction and/or asynchronous instruction).

Yes! We offer many scholarships through the HACC Foundation. Each scholarship has specific eligibility requirements. To learn how to apply, please visit hacc.edu/Scholarships.

You can submit your application anytime by visiting our website. We offer spring, summer and fall classes to meet your work and life schedules. When you submit your application, please include the unique program code 5070 to ensure you apply to the correct program.

 

 

Future students, we are excited to connect with you and answer your questions. Please choose the option that works best for you to meet with us.

Current HACC students, please contact our Advising Department with any questions.

Meet Keichsla: Early Childhood Education Student

“HACC has been an awesome experience for me and I am glad I decided to set my foot in the door of HACC.”