The SFCC Early childhood education program offers several options:

• A two-year transfer degree called the Associate in Applied Science Transfer (AAS-T) degree prepares students for transfer to a four-year institution.
• A two-year professional technical degree called the Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree prepares students for immediate employment.
• A two-year Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree degree is transferable to four-year universities, ideal for students interested in becoming elementary school teachers.
• A one-year certificate of completion satisfies state requirements for program supervisors, child care center directors, or family in-home providers.
• Eight 20-27 credit Certificates of Specialization have been designed as add-ons or stand-alone certificates addressing the many areas of specialization in the field of early chiildhood education.
• Articulation with high schools for students who want to earn up to 10 college credits for successful completion of high school ECE courses.
• College credit for the State Training and Registry System (STARS) is available, comprised of 20 hours of basic child care training and skill-building, seminars that meet the 10-hour ongoing annual training requirements for child care professionals. You can register online with NE Washington Technical Education Consortium for Dual Credit Registration.

Students in these courses are exposed to rigorous curriculum that includes many hours of actual work with children, as well as classroom discussion and theory. Most first quarter students complete their field hours with children in the SFCC Early Learning Center, a Head Start and Early Head Start program providing day and evening care/education for children ages 6 weeks through school-age.

Students also are assigned to approved field site setting in private child care centers, special programs such as ECEAP and before/after school-age care, and public elementary schools to expose them to different program structures and teaching styles. This broad exposure to a variety of settings with children, under direct supervision of a master teacher, is one of the program’s strengths.

Scholarships for these courses and programs are available through Washington Scholarship for Child Care Professionals, Early Childhood® WASHINGTON, and STARS (Washington State Training and Registry System).