Des Moines Area Community College is helping high school students get a jumpstart on their early childhood education training through a partnership with the Ankeny Community School District.
The Ankeny-based community college announced in a news release Wednesday it is expanding its relationship with the school district through a program allowing high school students to attend early childhood education courses at Terrace Learning Center, which houses the district’s preschool program.
According to the release, this initiative is two years in the making and transforms courses previously offered online only through the community college’s online career academy into in-person instruction and on-the-job observation of professionals.
Students who enroll in the Introduction to Early Childhood Education and Childhood Health, Safety and Nutrition courses will be taught on-site by a DMACC instructor and have opportunities to complete observation and clinical work.
“Offering the courses through DMACC faculty allows traditional college students to enroll in the same sections alongside high school students,” said DMACC early childhood education program chair Katie Champlin in the release. “As a result, both groups experience a more authentic college classroom environment while high school students benefit from learning alongside current college students.”
With this partnership, students will gain a more complete picture of what working in early childhood education looks like beyond any assumptions that having only classroom work can create, Champlin said in the release, aiding them in building confidence and establishing their “professional identities as future early childhood educators.”
The overarching goal of the district and community college’s work is to help high school students earn a certificate in early childhood education, with 13 required credits, before they earn their diploma. This certificate satisfies the education requirement for the Child Development Associate credential as well.
“Ultimately, the partnership creates a pathway,” Champlin said in the release. “An opportunity to explore the profession, develop practical skills, earn college credit and credentials, and see a clear pathway toward continued education and employment in (early childhood education).”
