165

CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER: TEACHER QUALIFICATIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

165.1

A Teacher in a Child Development Center shall be at least eighteen (18) years of age and shall:

(a) Have earned an associate or more advanced degree from an institution accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, with a major in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development;

(b) Have earned an associate or more advanced degree from an institution accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, with a major in a field other than child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development, with at least twelve (12) credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development, from an institution accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, and have at least one (1) year of supervised occupational experience working with children in a licensed District of Columbia Facility or its equivalent in another jurisdiction;

(c) Have successfully completed sixty (60) credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, with at least twelve (12) of those credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development, at an institution accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, and have at least one (1) year of supervised occupational experience working with children in a licensed District of Columbia Facility or its equivalent in another jurisdiction;

(d) Have successfully completed sixty (60) credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, with at least twelve (12) of those credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development, from an institution outside of the United States, and submitted a foreign credential equivalency report as required by OSSE, and have at least one (1) year of supervised occupational experience working with children in a licensed District of Columbia Facility or its equivalent in another jurisdiction.

(e) Have earned the equivalent of an associate or more advanced degree from an institution outside of the United States, and submitted a foreign credential equivalency report as required by OSSE, with:

(1) A major in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development; or

(2) A major in a field other than child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development, with at least twelve (12) credit hours, or its equivalent as determined by OSSE, in child and family studies, child development, child studies, developmental psychology, early care and education, early childhood development, early childhood education, early childhood special education, early childhood studies, early learning and development, or human development and at least one (1) year supervised experience working with children in a licensed District of Columbia Facility or its equivalent in another jurisdiction;

(f) Have earned a current Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, or a state-awarded certificate that meets or exceeds the requirements for a CDA credential as determined by OSSE, which specifies that the individual is qualified for the assigned age classification; provided that the individual is enrolled in an associate or more advanced degree program and earns an associate or more advanced degree in compliance with (a) or (b) within four (4) years of their initial date of hire as a Teacher in a Child

Development Center;

(g) For a Montessori school teacher, have earned an associate degree from an institution accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, and a Montessori certificate issued by the National Center for Montessori Education, American Montessori Society, or the Association Montessori International, or a program accredited by the Montessori Accreditation Commission for Teacher Education; or

(h) Have earned a competency-based credential, representing a level of knowledge and skills equivalent to or greater than an associate degree and awarded by a nationally recognized credential program, should one become available and approved by OSSE.

165.2 An individual who meets the requirements of 165.1(f) above and has not earned a degree in compliance with 165.1(a) (b) (c) (d) or (e) within four (4) years of their initial date of hire as a Teacher, may have up to six (6) years from their initial date of hire, to earn a degree, if the individual has maintained continuous enrollment in an associate or more advanced degree program or experienced a documented hardship, as approved by OSSE, that interfered with maintaining enrollment or completing the course of study within four (4) years.

100165.3 For the purpose of Subsection 165.1, a period of supervised occupational work experience shall include an average of no less than twenty (20) hours per week. One (1) year of occupational experience is equal to one thousand (1,000) hours. Multiple qualifying periods may be aggregated in order to achieve the required total.

100165.4 For the purposes of this section, early childhood development and early childhood education shall include the courses listed in Subsection 164.5.

100165.5 Any person who is employed as a qualified Teacher in a licensed Child Development Center in the District of Columbia on December 20, 2023, and who has continuously served as a Teacher for the past ten (10) years, excluding any absences from the labor force related to caregiving responsibilities, may submit an application to OSSE for a continuous service certification that waives the qualification requirements in Subsection 165.1. OSSE may deny a certification request for any reason consistent with ensuring the health, safety and welfare of children.

100165.6 The duties of a Teacher in a Child Development Center shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(a) Assisting the Center Director in ensuring compliance with this chapter;

(b) Providing or overseeing the provision, adequate supervision, and appropriate care of all of the children in his or her class or group at all times;

(c) Planning and initiating appropriate daily activities, which promotes positive development and learning, based on the strengths, interests, and needs of all of the children in his or her class or group;

(d) Assisting the Center Director in implementing the Facility's policies and procedures;

(e) Communicating regularly with the parent(s) or guardian(s) of each child in his or her class or group about the development of their children;

(f) Participating in on-going in-service training and continuing education requirements, as required;

(g) Supervising subordinate staff;

(h) Assuming responsibility for the program of the Facility in the absence of the Center Director, if designated to do so as provided for in Subsection 164.9; and

(i) Performing other appropriate duties as requested by the Center Director.

100165.7 A private, parochial, or independent school is exempt from complying with the requirements of this section, if the school:

(a) Is an elementary/secondary educational program, as defined in this chapter;

(b) Cares for infants and toddlers on the same premises as the instructional program offered to school-age children;

(c) Is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting body or other body satisfying similar standards as approved by OSSE; and

(d) Does not offer subsidized child care.

SOURCE: Final Rulemaking at 63 DCR 14640 (December 2, 2016); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 65 DCR 7032 (June 29, 2018); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 72 DCR 008518 (August 1, 2025).