National Association for the Education of Young Children

Location: US National

Child care associations promote the education and well-being of children, families, and child care providers.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) works to ensure the highest quality learning for all children from birth through 8 years old. NAEYC connects early childhood policies, research as well as practice while advancing a diverse and dynamic profession to all who work with, educate and care for children. Working with the nearly 60,000 individual members and 300 regional affiliate chapters, NAEYC and their affiliates work together to reach their shared vision of ensuing all children thrive and achieve their full potential.

NAEYC operates under core values and represents five key initiatives; Leadership and Professional Development, Early Childhood Accreditation, Higher Education Accreditation, Resources, and Public Policy. As the foremost professional association in the field of early childhood, professional development at NAEYC supports progression and education to advance the careers of the professionals in the field. NAEYC accreditation provides the gold standard nationwide for early childhood programs through high-quality early learning. High-quality early learning is complimented by high-quality early educators. In order to ensure quality, NAEYC promotes a vision of excellence through accreditation and initiatives to respond to the needs of individual children and communities nationwide. Members of the NAEYC community receive resources created by the association, including their award-winning journal and magazine, books and manuals, as well as digital content. All resources are developed through professionals and leaders in the field of early childhood. Resources can be applied directly to individual classroom practices.

At the forefront of influential, federal, state, and local legislation, NAEYC advocates for comprehensive approaches providing access to top-quality early learning, focusing on children in multilingual children, children of colour, children with disabilities as well as those living in poverty. NAEYC works to ensure the public understanding of importance and demand for appropriate developmental practices and programs for all children up to 8 years of age.

For more information visit the National Association for the Education of Young Children website.