On March 6, 2024, Associate Policy Director Brianna January submitted written testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee in support of HB 1385 – Early Childhood Education – Prekindergarten Providers – Resident and Conditional Teaching Certificates. This creates resident early and conditional early teacher certificates for prospective teachers to allow them to work in pre-K facilities while pursing their full certification.
Counties see this as an additional tool to address the need for more providers and facilities to implement this aspect of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.
Counties have worked creatively with local school systems to support and grow early childhood education programs and workforces, but they need greater support from the State and legislature to successfully implement the Blueprint’s vision for pre-K in Maryland. While the capacity and situation vary between counties, these are near-universal issues facing every corner of the state.
From MACo testimony:
By creating conditional and resident certifications, HB 1385 helps address the Maryland’s current challenges of not having enough early childhood education workers to expand pre-K services as required under the Blueprint. Prospective workers with conditional and residential certificates will be eligible to work in public and private pre-K facilities, allowing them to gain critical experience in the field and alleviate some of the early childhood education workforce shortage.
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