REPORT EMBARGOED: FOR PUBLICATION AND BROADCAST THURSDAY, SEPT. 15, AM

For more than 20 years, the qualifications of the center-based early childhood workforce nationwide have fallen so much that now 30 percent of teachers and administrators have only a high school diploma or less, according to a comprehensive new report published by the Economic Policy Institute, the Keystone Research Center, and the Foundation for Child Development.

"Losing Ground in Early Childhood Education" explores how workers in the early childhood education (ECE) field have less education and fewer skills than their predecessors. U.S. center-based teachers and administrators with at least a four-year college degree averaged 30 percent from 2002 to 2004, down from 43 percent from 1983 to 1985. What's more, the authors find that the pay and benefits in the field are so low they aren't attracting more qualified workers. Only a third of center-based ECE educators receive health benefits on the job.

Click below to read a press release on "Losing Ground," along with the full report, an executive summary, a 39-state data table on ECE trends, and companion reports, which offer an in-depth look at seven states - California, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

To access the report, click, then type in the user name and password to REVIEW UNDER EMBARGO “Losing Ground.”

http://www.epinet.org/docs/news/losing/

username: media

password: advance

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