The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® North Carolina Scholarship Program provides educational scholarships to early care professionals and those who perform specialized functions in the early care system. Not in N.C.? Learn about the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® National Center.
If you’re just learning about the program, be sure to check out the program overview and F.A.Q, or see our community college directory. You’ll also find information on how to qualify, apply and contact us.
If you would like more information about T.E.A.C.H. scholarships offered at North Carolina Community Colleges, please view the following presentation video.
Get Started with T.E.A.C.H. NC
Getting Started
The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program offers a variety of different scholarships to early educators who work in licensed settings in North Carolina.
Apply
Learn more about scholarships and see a list of scholarship models and applications.
Sponsor
Employers can access tools and tip sheets to assist you in navigation through the scholarship process.
Recipient Updates & Forms
All submissions will be received by T.E.A.C.H. admin staff and requests are passed to counselors four times daily.
Directory of Schools
Learn more about early childhood education programs at colleges and universities that support T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® scholarship programs through our directory.
Careers in Early Care and Education Directory – Sixth Edition
Child Care Services Association and its T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® National Center are excited to release the sixth edition of the Careers in Early Care and Education Directory. This directory was created to introduce you to a variety of wide-ranging careers in the early childhood field, from child care providers to trainers, regulators, consultants and more. It contains a sampling of different types of employment opportunities in early childhood education and the type of formal education that may be required.
This edition has added profiles of new career opportunities that began trending since the fifth edition was published. Each of the careers profiled introduces you to real people from across the country who are currently working in critical roles with young children and their families or performing other specialized functions on behalf of the workforce.
Today, there are tremendous opportunities available to support early childhood educators’ professional development and growth. Higher education institutions are offering robust ECE associate and bachelor’s degree-granting programs composed of coursework that is accessible in various formats. To help remove roadblocks to accessing education, there are various workforce initiatives across the country that offer scholarships to help educators earn a debt-free college education. Comprehensively designed ECE apprenticeship opportunities have become increasingly available. These promising programs can be used as recruitment and retention strategies to attract aspirational teachers into the field. They can provide individuals with real-time exposure to on-the-job learning experiences, mentoring supports, wage progression and access to higher education.
Find the right early childhood career for you with the sixth edition of the Careers in Early Care and Education Directory!
T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship Informative Video for North Carolina Community College Early Childhood Students and Instructors
The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® North Carolina Scholarship Program is pleased to introduce a new informative video for students enrolled in early childhood education classes at North Carolina community colleges. The video provides background, eligibility criteria and information on the different types of scholarships available at North Carolina community colleges. Community College instructors are encouraged to use this new tool to share information about the T.E.A.C.H. scholarships available to early childhood students enrolled in their courses.
Fafsa Information
Saturday, Oct. 1, the 2023-24 FAFSA cycle officially begins. The form is open until June 30, 2024, on a rolling basis. You should complete the form as soon as possible, as many schools award aid on a first-come, first-served basis.
The FAFSA questions ask for information about you (your name, date of birth, address, etc.) and your financial situation. The 2023–24 FAFSA on the Web Worksheet previews the questions students and parents may be asked while completing the FAFSA form.
Apply Today!
Free help is available! You do not have to pay to get help or submit your FAFSA form. Submit your FAFSA form free online at fafsa.gov. Federal Student Aid provides free help online at fafsa.gov or you can call 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).
T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarships of Early Childhood Apprentices
The Associate Degree Scholarship for Early Childhood Apprentices is specifically designed for early childhood apprentices working in licensed programs enrolled in a registered apprenticeship program in North Carolina. Registered early childhood apprenticeship programs are a strategy to help strengthen the pipeline into the early care and education workforce.
To learn more about the program, be sure to check out the F.A.Q, and read about the Associate Degree Scholarship for Early Childhood Apprentices. You’ll also find information on how to apply.
Eligibility Income Caps Suspended until further notice
T.E.A.C.H. scholarship eligibility income caps have been suspended until further notice. Individuals whose earnings exceeded the previous income cap are eligible to apply for the T.E.A.C.H. scholarship throughout the ECE workforce stabilization grant period.
Learn more and download this flyer.
Working with DCDEE, we have made an adjustment to the T.E.A.C.H. eligibility during the stabilization grants
The existing T.E.A.C.H. scholarship program income caps proved to be a deterrent to program administrators and community specialists meeting established eligibility criteria. In an effort to expand eligibility in NC as we build the pipeline once again, the income caps have been temporarily suspended through the fiscal year (FY21-22) which includes the beginning of the DCDEE stabilization grant period. The temporary policy change for the T.E.A.C.H. income cap will be revisited again for the FY22-23.
New Policy Alert!
All active scholarships now require the submission of a tuition/book reimbursement form (Form B) along with receipts, account summaries and/or registration statements each semester.
Failure to submit these items could result in recipients being invoiced for the full amount of charges on the college bill. Final deadlines are one week from the date we receive a college bill.
States Move to Require the FAFSA for High School Graduation
View more T.E.A.C.H. NC News »
New Report: T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program: Supporting ECE Workforce Development, Education, Compensation and Retention in Western North Carolina
In 2022, CCSA contracted with Dogwood Health Trust to conduct a study of T.E.A.C.H. participants in 18 counties in western North Carolina. This report includes information about T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood scholarship program participants in the area served by Dogwood Health Trust and outcome data related to increased education, wage progression, retention and degree attainment and a comparative analysis of outcome data from a pre-COVID-19 point in time to the present.
Program Overview
In 1990, Child Care Services Association created the Teacher Education and Compensation Helps (T.E.A.C.H.) Early Childhood® Scholarship Program to address the issues of under-education, poor compensation and high turnover within the early childhood workforce.
The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program is an umbrella for a variety of different scholarship programs for those working in the early education field in North Carolina. Every TEACH scholarship has 4 components: scholarship, education, compensation, and commitment. The goals of these scholarships are:
- To provide educational scholarship opportunities for people working in regulated early care centers and family child care homes
- To increase the knowledge base of early care and education professionals working with young children, thus improving the care these children receive
- To encourage early care and education professionals and organizations continuing support to educate their staff
- To provide increased compensation that is directly related to increased education
- To reduce staff turnover by supporting the above goals while also requiring from participants a one year commitment to early education after their scholarship year
- To provide a sequential professional development path for teachers, directors and family child care home providers currently in the field
- To create a model of partnership for improving the quality of care that children in early education programs in North Carolina receive.
The T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program North Carolina is funded by the NC DCDEE.
More Information
Download the T.E.A.C.H. North Carolina Brochure (PDF)
Download the T.E.A.C.H North Carolina Scholarship Brochure Spanish (PDF)
Download the North Carolina Directory of Early Childhood Careers 2019 (PDF)
T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship Description (PDF)
Information Request Form (PDF)
T.E.A.C.H. Recruitment Flyer (PDF)
T.E.A.C.H. NC FAQs
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Can staff participate on T.E.A.C.H. if they are receiving a Pell Grant or other financial aid?
Yes, T.E.A.C.H. encourages participants to apply for financial aid. If alternate sources of financial aid pay for tuition and/or books, T.E.A.C.H. is not able to reimburse for these costs.
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Does T.E.A.C.H. help with online coursework?
T.E.A.C.H. will help with online coursework if taken through a North Carolina community college or participating university and as long as the coursework is required for completion of a credential or degree. T.E.A.C.H. does not offer scholarships to attend out of state schools or correspondence schools.
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What courses can T.E.A.C.H. pay for?
T.E.A.C.H. will sponsor required courses needed to complete coursework towards your educational goals including developmental classes. The academic advisor at the community college can provide guidance regarding required courses and acceptable classes for the credential or degree being sought.
T.E.A.C.H. NC Annual Report
Download the latest report about the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Scholarship Program North Carolina.
T.E.A.C.H. NC Testimonials
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I started using T.E.A.C.H. back in 2007. Without T.E.A.C.H., I could not have financially afford to go to school. I just recently graduated with my AAS in Early Childhood Education and T.E.A.C.H. was a huge part in helping me reach that milestone in my life. I never had problems with receiving assistance from T.E.A.C.H. and I am forever grateful that T.E.A.C.H. was available to help me. I have told other providers about how much T.E.A.C.H. has helped me and how it can help them as well.
— Family Child Care Home Provider, Rowan County
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I am grateful for the aid that I have received from the T.E.A.C.H. program. My 21 years of working in early childhood has been a blessing. Looking back, I made the best decision. With the help from CCSA, what I thought was impossible THEY made it possible.
— Owner, Durham County
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T.E.A.C.H. has helped me out a lot with being able to go to school. My ultimate goal is to be a director and I am closer and closer to that goal. Without T.E.A.C.H., I would not have been able to accomplish any of my educational goals.
— Teacher, Durham County
T.E.A.C.H. NC Blog
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Incentivizing Education and Quality: I am WAGE$ with Stephanie Marshall
“WAGE$ makes me want to keep going with my coursework. I love what I do, but there is not a lot of money in it. WAGE$ is an incentive to do it, to keep going because there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. My supplement increases with more classes. Who doesn’t like getting more money for more education when that coursework also helps change your life? You have education and you have money. It is a win-win. I don’t want to lose my supplement. It’s a big incentive.” -
Child Care Services Association Adds New T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship for Early Childhood Apprentices
Child Care Services Association’s T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® North Carolina Program announces its newest scholarship opportunity, the Associate Degree Scholarship for Early Childhood Apprentices. This scholarship was developed with the guidance and support of NC’s Division of Child Development and Early Education (DCDEE) to uniquely support the educational and experiential needs of apprentices statewide working in licensed programs that are participating in a Department of Labor registered apprenticeship program. -
Early Childhood Educator Apprenticeship Program: A Pathway to Build Competencies and Pay
In North Carolina and across the country, the child care industry is struggling to recruit and retain workers. It’s a tight labor market and child care programs report difficulty in paying wages that are competitive with other community employers (such as Target or Walmart or McDonalds). Unlike other local employers, child care programs are looking for individuals who have a passion for working with children and also have early childhood competencies important for a business based on promoting the healthy development of children.
T.E.A.C.H. Talk Newsletter
Stay in the know with the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® NC Quarterly Newsletter.