Cook County News Herald

Higher Ed offers Early Childhood Education degree opportunity


This is a once in a lifetime opportunity! Earn your Early Childhood Education Associate degree or Bachelor of Science degree through evening Zoom classes for FREE. The deadline to register for this program is November 13.

Join a cohort of Minnesota students online this January 11, 2021, and work towards a career with the Head Start program.

Worried about funding? Don’t be! Once you register and are accepted into the cohort (group of students), then your tuition, books, computer, and pretty much everything you need to start and attend your degree program remotely will be covered!

This funding provides those interested in pursuing early childhood education an opportunity to receive resources that make it easier for them to attend classes. UMC Chancellor Mary Holz-Clause said that oftentimes there are many impediments to obtaining a degree. We hope this grant will help to address the chronic challenge of having qualified early childhood educators for our region.

The grant project is timely because rural Minnesota is facing challenges in employing qualified early childhood teachers in Head Start and Early Head Start programs serving communities of Native American children and families. UMC Professor Soo-Yin Lim said that we are excited to have the opportunity to partner with White Earth Tribal and Community College (WETCC). Two goals are to increase the number of qualified indigenous teachers and to create a workforce that reflects the demographics of ethnically diverse populations of students in each community.

Pursuing an Associate of Arts (AA) degree with WETCC or a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC), the Early Childhood Education 2 + 2 student pathway program emphasizes a developmental approach to teaching and learning. The WETCC program is infused with Anishinaabe culture, language, and traditions.

There are limited seats available, so register today! Contact Brian Dingmann at brian.dingmann@wetcc.edu or call 218-936-8323. Step 1. Call or email Brian Dingmann and get your name on the list. Step 2. Provide your academic transcript (official or unofficial) for review. Interested in local support in getting signed up? Contact Cook County Higher Education at 218-387-3411 or email gethelp@mycche.org

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.