The Childhood Development Division, through a partnership with the Vermont Association for the Education of Young Children (VTAEYC), is pleased to support early childhood educators with expanded professional recognition bonuses and student loan repayment assistance.
For a limited time, eligibility for Early Childhood Professional Recognition bonuses and Afterschool Professional Recognition bonuses has been expanded.
- If you have not yet applied for an Early Childhood Level Certificate or a Afterschool Certificate/Credential before, or are eligible to apply for a higher Level, the requirement that your education/training be completed in the last two years is temporarily waived. For more information on the certificates and how to apply, visit the Early Childhood Career Ladder and Afterschool Pathways on the Northern Lights at CCV website or the Career Pathways on the Vermont Afterschool website.
- If you have earned an Early Childhood Level Certificate or a Vermont Afterschool Professional Development Certificate/Credential since 2018 but didn't receive a bonus, you may be temporarily eligible to receive that bonus retroactively. Review the Early Childhood & Afterschool Professional Recognition Grace Period Bonuses application from VTAEYC for more information on qualification requirements.
The Student Loan Repayment Assistance Program also has a time-limited opportunity for early childhood educators. This program provides qualifying full-time educators who earned a degree in the early childhood field to receive up to $4,000 annually for student loan payments.
- The requirement that the qualifying degree needed to have been earned in the last five years has been eliminated.
- For a limited time, retroactive payments are available for eligible applicants who would have met the revised eligibility requirements if you met the new eligibility requirements between January 1, 2022 and June 1, 2023.
Visit the Student Loan Repayment Assistance Program webpage to see if you qualify.
For support with Early Childhood and Afterschool Certificates, email northernlights@ccv.edu.
For support with bonus applications and the Student Loan Repayment Assistance Program, email pdsupports@vtaeyc.org.