Santa Fe College is preparing to open its new Bachelor of Science degree program in early childhood education this spring.
This will be the first bachelor’s degree program in the education department at SFC.
The program was created in response to a change in the Florida Legislature, which now requires all pre-kindergarten teachers to have B.S. degrees by 2013.
The 36-credit-hour course will begin in January to give teachers time to earn the new degree before the deadline, said Edward Bonahue, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at SFC.
He said the new legislation affects all pre-kindergarten teachers in accredited schools and those in the Alachua County Public Schools Head Start/Voluntary Pre-K Program.
“They face the real prospect of losing their jobs,” he said. “They have a lot of training needs that go unfilled.”
Most pre-kindergarten teachers hold an Associate of Science degree. An A.S. does not fulfill entry requirements for a B.S. at a four-year university, but the program at SFC allows these students to pursue a bachelor’s.
Bonahue said the college is very excited to offer a program that will enable teachers who are already in the field and other students to move directly into the bachelor’s program.
The program will emphasize school readiness, focusing on pre-literacy skills, science, math, and emotional and social development.
