Child Care Resource & Referral (CCR&R) has made a commitment to offer high-quality, foundational professional development opportunities to child care providers in various settings. The identified goals are to:
CCR&R complies with House File 802 by committing to offering voluntary inclusive, diverse and equitable professional development experiences delivered through conferences, workshops, series and classes. Those who choose to enroll and attend training can do so at their own discretion as they are not mandated. Additionally, participants are encouraged to share their experiences and ideals in a safe space through open discussion in a respectful and engaging manner while applying equity guiding principles to build inclusive practices within the child care setting.
Iowa's Early Childhood and School Age Professional Workforce Registry (i-PoWeR) is a comprehensive registry where you can find and enroll in the Department of Human Services (DHS) approved professional development opportunities related to early childhood and school-age professionals. It will also maintain a record of your professional achievements. Approved training opportunities can be accessed by visiting i-PoWeR.
For assistance on creating an account, please contact your local Child Care Consultant or Training Specialist or email the i-PoWeR Help Desk. Additional tips and tricks that every provider should know can also be found on flyers here: Home Providers or Center Staff & Managerial Roles. At the bottom of this training page, you will also find 1-2 minute "How To" video clips and longer webinars regarding i-PoWeR navigation.
Additional training approved by DHS can be accessed on the DHS website here.
CCR&R is funded to offer core training to assure that providers are meeting minimum requirements. As funding allows, we try to offer diverse and higher-level training. Please contact the Training Specialist in your area for a list of additional trainings that may be available. Our Child Care Consultants assist with Child Development Home (CDH) professional development planning (Spanish) and can make referrals to partner programs that will help providers in following their plans for higher education. Child Care Centers can utilize this professional development tracking form (fillable) for staff.
Training Name
All Our Kin Virtual Business Series
This series is designed to support home child care providers with strategies to manage their business. Business topics covered include marketing, contracts, time-space percentage and recordkeeping.
Back to Sleep - Tummy to Play
This professional development opportunity presents research to understand SIDS, recommendations for safe sleep, the provider's role in the safe sleep environment and guidance for the importance of tummy time when infants are awake.
ChildNet 3.0
This series provides the foundational skills needed to operate a successful child care business. Upon series completion, providers will be eligible for ChildNet Certification and to obtain points in the Quality Rating System.
Emergency Preparedness for Child Care Programs
This training is designed to help child care providers be prepared for handling emergency situations that may affect their program and community. It will also provide the necessary tools and information to create an emergency plan that will meet Iowa law requirements.
Emergency Preparedness Resources
Resource page only - Iowa law requires child care providers to have a written emergency plan in place by October 1, 2016. Emergency plans must include procedures for 6 key areas. There are templates and tools available for child care providers to help meet your program's needs. You are not required to use any of the templates and tools offered, although the tools and templates will help you meet requirements in Iowa law.
Essentials Preservice Series
This series offers providers important information on ten key health and safety topics and was developed to meet Iowa Department of Human Services professional development requirements.
Environment Rating Scale
This series is a nationally recognized tool used to assess and improve the quality of center, school age, infant/toddler and family child care programs. Workshops offer step-by-step guidance for making helpful changes that can make a real difference in the work that is done with young children.
First Aid that includes management of a blocked airway and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Certification in infant and child first aid that includes management of a blocked airway and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation (check with your Child Care Consultant for training options in your area or see this the approved training sites here).
Foundations of Understanding Trauma
This basic orientation training will focus on behavior shaping through a trauma-informed lens. It will use the latest science from multiple fields to support the practice of staff engaged in helping children overcome challenges that are not of their own doing or choice. Changing the question of “what’s wrong with you” to “what happened to you?”
Iowa Early Learning Standards
This series addresses developmental areas of young children, which are based on research and theory in early care and education. It is a guide in understanding how children learn, as well as the importance of play, routine and relationships in regards to their development.
Medication Administration
Mandatory Child Abuse Reporter Training
Providers are required to attend this Iowa-specific training to learn how to identify the signs of child abuse and the steps needed to report incidents.
This nutrition and physical activity self-assessment is available to child care providers as a tool to set goals and implement healthy activities in their programs. Training and on-site consultation is provided.
PALS
The Physical Activity Learning Session (PALS) training is for early childhood providers to learn the best practices of physical activity for children birth to five.
Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports
This training is an effective, evidence-based approach for supporting social competence and addressing challenging behavior in young children.
Program for Infant/Toddler Care of Iowa
This training approach equates good care with training infant/toddler providers who are preparing themselves and the environment so that infants can learn.
Safe Sleep
Participants will increase their understanding of current Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) research models, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) risk reduction recommendations, the importance of tummy time, the necessary components of a safe sleep policy and unresponsive infant drill in the child care environment.
School-age Matters
School-age children have a specific set of developmental needs that are different from younger children. Attendees will learn the skills needed to effectively adapt their programs to accommodate this age group.
Universal Precautions
Providers will learn what can be done to protect the children in their care from the spread of germs and disease. Additionally, they will gain an understanding of the importance of post-exposure policies and procedures.
Training Specialists from each of the five CCR&R regions, work to ensure that early childhood professionals receive multiple opportunities for continuing education credits. To view current training opportunities by region, click the links below.
Training topics may include:
Training must be approved by the Department of Human Services (DHS) or be conducted by an approved trainer. CCR&R is an approved training program with the Department of Human Services (DHS). For a list of additional approved training entities, see the Department of Human Services (DHS) Comm.
A certificate of seat hours is issued at the end of each series or class and is creditable for 5 years, unless otherwise noted. These hours can be used towards regulatory hours as presented in the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) Guidelines specific to provider type.
NOTE: One college credit hour in early childhood or elementary education for school age is the equivalent of 15 hours of training.
Various approved online training opportunities are available for flexibility. Group and self-study options are credible, and a fee may be associated with each one. Individual trainings can be accessed on the DHS Training Registry or by clicking the appropriate listings. CCR&R also offers many online trainings, they are posted in our NEWS section or contact your Training Specialist for options.
For additional trainings approved by the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS), click here.
I want to...explore my career options in early childhood.
Early Childhood Iowa has a new look and way to navigate the early childhood care and education career pathway to help the workforce learn about and to connect with training and higher-education options to develop a dynamic career in early childhood. Explore the website to learn more about roles in early childhood and the educational paths associated with these roles. This interactive website allows you to explore where you are today, next steps in your learning journey and the option to develop a plan. If you prefer documents at-a-glance, explore these resources.
Access additional resources at Early Childhood Iowa (ECI) Support for the Early Childhood Workforce – whether you currently work in the early childhood field as a child care provider; licensed preschool teacher; family support professional; or have a job where you work with young children and families in an early learning, care or family support role – these resources provide several professional development connections.
The Child Development Associate (CDA) Credential™ is a nationally recognized credential earned by those working in the early care and education field. The CDA credential is based on a core set of competency standards and includes an assessment process by the Council for Professional Recognition.
The CDA credential, a recognized part of child care regulations in Iowa and across the country, is a way to earn points on Iowa's Quality Rating System (QRS) and is part of achieving some accreditation standards. CDA credentials have been awarded around the country since 1971 and over 300,000 credentials have been granted. All CCR&R trainings correspond with the 8 CDA content areas listed below:
1) Planning a safe and healthy learning environment 2) Advancing children's physical and intellectual development 3) Supporting children's social and emotional development 4) Building productive relationships with families 5) Managing an effective program operation 6) Maintaining a commitment to professionalism 7) Observing and recording children’s behavior 8) Understanding principles of child development and learning
For more information how to achieve your CDA, visit our CDA webpage here.
T.E.A.C.H. IOWA (Teacher Education and Compensation Helps) is a comprehensive scholarship program that provides the early childhood workforce access to educational opportunities and is helping establish a well-qualified, fairly compensated and stable workforce for our children. You can access the T.E.A.C.H. IOWA booklet here.
Early child care and education providers who may be eligible include those who:
For a directory of 2017 Early Childhood Programs at Iowa Colleges and Universities, click here. This directory is designed to provide valuable information to colleges, students, potential students, employers and policymakers. All information has been provided to us by the colleges and is not verified.
For more information on the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® IOWA program or to apply, visit Iowa AEYC.
*We do not recommend using Internet Explorer with i-PoWeR. The systems are not compatible.
Statewide Training Policies and Procedures Handbook
Request for Child Care Training Approval from Department of Human Services
Go to CCR&R Approved Instructors - Training Materials