The Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System is a statewide program designed to meet the professional development needs of those working in the early childhood field.
Formerly known as the Texas Early Care and Education Career Development System (TECECDS), the Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System (TECPDS) was developed through a joint project of the Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office (THSSCO) and the Texas Early Learning Council (TELC). Housed at the Children’s Learning Institute at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), TECPDS is one of several statewide programs managed by CLI to support the early childhood system, including programs, professionals, and families across the state, as part of its role as the Texas State Center for Early Childhood Development. TECPDS launched in 2013 and continues to expand and enhance professional development opportunities, resources, and tools for early childhood professionals.
The Texas Workforce Commission and the Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office offer ongoing support and guidance for TECPDS. Through partnership with TWC, the Texas Workforce Registry on TECPDS is formally integrated with the Texas Rising Star assessment process for its Category 1 Director and Staff Qualifications and Training measures (learn more about TECPDS for TRS). Housed in the Children’s Learning Institute, the Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office offers ongoing support and guidance for TECPDS. State and local funding offered opportunities to continue enhancing the tools and resources on the system, including the Find My Career Pathway tool to better guide professional development planning, the Texas Trainer Registry, a statewide job board, and more.
For more information on the initial development of the system as a whole, please take a look at the Texas Early Learning Council’s Pathways to Quality: Charting the Course for a New Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System (published 2012).
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Tools and Resources
History of TECPDS
- Early 1990’s: As a result of a national study on Cost, Quality and Child Outcomes in Child Care Centers, the Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office (THSSCO) Task Force created a Career Development System sub-group with the purpose of assessing the needs of early childhood professionals in Texas.
- 1993: Based on the Task Force’s findings, the THSSCO developed a proposal and framework for Texas’s first Early Childhood Career Development System.
- 1995: Five communities volunteer to pilot components of the career development system.
- 2003: The TECPDS became state-wide, offering a resource website, Core Knowledge & Skills Areas for Practitioners, Administrators and Trainers; and the Texas Trainer Registry.
- 2010: The Texas Early Learning Council (TELC) awarded funding to help enhance and improve the TECPDS, to include an updated website; Core Competency Areas (previously Core Knowledge & Skills Areas) for Practitioners, Administrators, Trainers and Coaches/Mentors; Online application process for the Texas Trainer Registry; new online professional development tracking system called the Texas Workforce Registry; and a Job Board.
- 2013: New TECPDS website and resources was developed and are available to the early childhood community in Texas.
- 2016: TECPDS became a National Workforce Registry Alliance member.
- 2017: New partnerships with the Texas Workforce Commission, Workforce Solutions of Tarrant County, and the Early Learning Alliance provided for the development of new features on TECPDS, including the Find My Career Pathway tool and record validation for Texas Rising Star Certified Providers.
- 2018: TECPDS started offering FREE Texas Workforce Registry accounts to all practitioners and directors, and launched new trainer tools, including accounts for Non-Registered Trainers and a Certificate Generation Tool.
- 2020: Consolidated accounts launched on TECPDS, providing seamless access for users to their information and features previously housed separately in the Texas Workforce Registry and Texas Trainer Registry.
- 2021: TWC provided sustained support, with funds authorized under the federal Child Care & Development Block Grant Act of 2014, for the Texas Workforce Registry and integration with Texas Rising Star, including customized reports and record validation features for local workforce boards and resources for TRS providers.
- Coming Soon…additional tools, resources, and opportunities will be available soon on TECPDS!
TECPDS Advisory Council
TECPDS is supported by several staff members at the Children’s Learning Institute at UTHealth and a dedicated advisory council with diverse experience in the Texas early childhood sector that provides guidance and support to TECPDS.
Nicole Allen, Fort Worth, TX – Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County
Elizabeth Beavers, Houston, TX – University of Houston at Clear Lake School of Education
Ashley Borthick, Dallas, TX – First3Years
April Crawford, PhD, Houston, TX – Children’s Learning Institute at UTHealth
LaDona Elder, Edmond, OK – KinderCare Education
Alferma Giles, PhD, Houston, TX – Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office
Sue Hancock, San Antonio, TX – Hancock P.D. Resources & Counseling
Tracy Anne Jones, EdD, Houston, TX – Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System
Karen Killian, Austin, TX – Texas Workforce Commission
Cody Summerville, Austin, TX – Texas Association for the Education of Young Children
Rachel Robinson, Austin, TX – Texas Education Agency
Sharon Spillman, Houston, TX – Collaborative for Children
Albert Talley, Pasadena, TX – San Jacinto College
Esteban Zamora, Austin, TX – Texas Department of Health & Human Services
Kim Kofron, Austin, TX – Children at Risk
