As an early childhood educator, you can provide a stronger, brighter start and a lifelong love of learning to young students. What better place to start than at a college ranked #1 in the region for Best Undergraduate Teaching.
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Early Childhood Education
Early Childhood Education
Make a big difference for little learners.
Children are complex individuals with multiple influences, unique personalities, and different ways of reaching their potential. Our Early Childhood Education program helps you develop expertise in working with children age three to eleven and acquire a deeper understanding of childhood development and innovative, proven pathways to success.
Through John Carroll’s liberal arts core curriculum, you’ll improve communication skills and hone your critical thinking. Your Early Childhood Education major program offers courses specific to grades pre-kindergarten through fifth grade and provides the academic, collegiate, and personal support you need to thrive.
The breadth of knowledge and depth of experience you’ll gain will matter to your future students and your career. The Early Childhood Education program can lead to a job as a preschool, kindergarten, or elementary school teacher, a Head Start teacher, a curriculum specialist, or a child development educator.
Our Early Childhood program will nurture you as you learn to nurture others. Expect a 13:1 student to faculty ratio; engaged, caring professors; and small, supportive classes.
Early Childhood Program
Nationally recognized by the Specialized Professional Association, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), our program provides a well-rounded, well-thought curriculum. In addition to preparing you for a variety of careers, you may also qualify for the Early Childhood Generalist Endorsement, which broadens your pre-K through grade three teaching license to include grades four and five.
Top Employers
96%
JCU’s Pass rate for Initial Licensure-Early Childhood (2019-20)
1,620,029
3 to 4 year-olds enrolled in Pre-K in the USA in 2020
Top 4%
Cleveland Metro Schools are in the top 4% for Performance Index Growth
BA in Early Childhood Education Program Highlights
Exploring a Child’s Environment
A child’s environment plays a significant role in their development. To really understand these environments and the impact they make, our students participate in multiple field experiences in homes, preschools, service agencies, and elementary schools. These hands-on, real-life engagements will deepen and broaden your education, provide invaluable insights, and help you translate content and pedagogical knowledge into practice.
The Shepherd Internship Program
Part of Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty, which seeks to prepare students for lives aimed at diminishing poverty and enhancing human capability, this internship is ideal for education majors. Through this eight-week summer internship, you’ll work directly with disadvantaged communities and develop meaningful connections with other students, faculty, and alumni.
Featured Faculty
"At John Carroll, our early childhood students learn more than just the foundations of early childhood literacy and effective reading instruction. They are equipped with the tools to consider other perspectives, incorporate multiple cultures and viewpoints into their classroom, and think critically and reflectively about their daily practices and decisions that will impact their students as learners."
—Sara Parrish, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Literacy Education
Featured Courses
ED 200 THE YOUNG CHILD: DEVELOPMENT FROM BIRTH TO AGE 8
In this course, you’ll gain a greater understanding of child development, from birth through age 8. You’ll explore the role of home and early childhood environments on development and, possibly, participate in fieldwork in various settings.
ED 356 CHILDREN'S LITERATURE
Designed for Early Childhood students only, this upper-level course delves into the various genres of children’s literature with a focus on multicultural literature. You’ll also analyze literature’s relevance to child development across disciplines.
Notable Alum
Brian Sinchak, M.Ed. ‘03
Status: President, Lakewood Catholic Academy
Focus: Educational Innovation
Honors: Fulbright Fellowship Study/Research Award, 2018
“As a school leader, some of the very best teachers I have hired have been John Carroll University graduates. Their professional training is second to none and their background in liberal arts education sets them apart from other applicants. Their well rounded formation has equipped them with intelligent curiosity, strength of character, and compassionate concern for others. Carroll graduates see a wider world and then make the world a better place through inspiring the minds and touching the hearts of their students.”
Early Childhood Education Alumni Across the Region
John Carroll University alumni live, work, teach and support communities throughout the region from Northeast Ohio to Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit, Columbus, Buffalo, Rochester, Pittsburgh, New York City, Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia.