Introduction

The Child Development Program at Saint Paul College has a proven track record in meeting the needs of our students while still maintaining high-quality standards for employers.  Our students are very diverse, so you will be able to draw from their diverse experiences and backgrounds in an applied, interactive environment.  Many of our students attend part-time, so we offer day, evening, and weekend classes.  We also offer an accelerated cohort program for working adults…

Accelerated Cohort Program

This program provides an academically rigorous and meaningful curriculum that incorporates team work and applied, active learning with a diverse group of working professionals. It provides a strong foundation in up-to-date educational skills that can be immediately applied to work in the early childhood setting where the student is employed. The delivery system is structured in eight week units allowing the student to complete an AAS degree (66 credits) in approximately 40 months, attending class one night a week. Cohort groups will have a maximum of 25 students that progress through a predetermined schedule of courses together. We also offer a cohort program for Child Care Center Directors…

Child Care Administration Certificate

This certificate program is for current child care directors and assistant directors seeking advanced skills. This program is in collaboration with the Minnesota Association for the Education of Young Children (MnAEYC) and consists of 10 credits (4 courses) that take 1 year to complete. To be eligible for this program, you must be currently employed as an assistant director or director and have at least a Diploma in Child Development. For more information, contact Janet Massa at 651.846.1536 or Email Janet Massa

Collaborative Projects

In addition to MnAEYC, we have been involved in other collaborative projects including:

Ramsey Action Program/Head Start’s Degree by 2003: To date, we have more than 50 graduates working as Head Start Teachers.

Saint Paul Public Schools/Leave No Child Behind: Teacher assistants and Educational assistants must have an Associate’s degree by June 2006.  Our first accelerated cohort program contained some of the assistants that needed this degree to keep their job. 

Early Childhood Resource and Training Center/IMPACT: We have been working with ECRTC to provide high-quality training to providers of color in the metro area.

For more information about our partners, see the "Links and Partners" page.