<p> success. Quality early childhood care and Oregon’s Early Learning education is the first step to close the Professional Development achievement and opportunity gaps that Consortium Projects are exist in our state. providing unique opportunities to support the Early Learning Workforce advance in Success their education attainment and career Both Central Oregon and Southern Oregon goals. With thanks to Oregon Department programs have applied the Oregon Equity of Education’s Network of Quality Teaching Lens as the foundation of their strategies and Learning funding, Southern Oregon and and have prioritized reaching diverse and Central Oregon have implemented underrepresented early childhood care and strategies to connect the Early Learning education professionals through a variety of Workforce with college credentials, degrees outreach efforts. Coverage area for the two and certificates. The focus is to provide projects encompasses 10 counties and higher education pathways for childhood about 1/3 of the state (See Figure 1: care and education professionals through Coverage Area). partnerships that include child care resource & referral, community-based organizations serving underrepresented populations, community colleges and universities. These programs are designed to prepare a highly qualified workforce in ways that meet their unique needs. </p><p>Research consistently shows that there is a correlation between the level of professional development in child care providers and the quality of the child care program. As more professionals obtain higher education in the field of early childhood education and apply the practices in their early learning programs, more Over 900 students are participating in the children will receive higher quality care. The Early Childhood Education classes and more enriching and quality experiences workshops, gaining college credit, young children have prior to kindergarten, certificates and/or degrees, advancing their the more likely they will be ready to education in their career pathway and succeed in kindergarten at entry, which can moving up Oregon’s Career Lattice, the also result in reading at grade level by 3rd Oregon Registry (See Figure 2: Combined grade, high school completion and career Outcomes). Most of the students are child care providers who work full time and receive very little wages. The Early Learning Workforce represents non-traditional students who are benefiting from support provided by this grant (See attached handout). Following are several activities that have Key components of these projects are helped in successfully reaching and research-based in effectively supporting surpassing each project’s outcomes: early learning professionals obtain higher education degrees and certificates. They  Working with extensive college include: systems to coordinate the process for enrollment, scholarships and access to  Culturally and linguistically classes which provides seamless responsive Navigators, Coaches and pathways for child care provider Peer Mentors to assist with the college students to obtain college credit, system and work/life /school balance certificates and degrees  Scholarships that cover tuition, fees,  Scheduling and offering ECE Classes books in Spanish and English at non-traditional  Cohort model times and locations to meet population needs  Online, hybrid and face-to-face  relevant class selections offered and Hiring and training Navigation articulated across higher education Coaches and Peer Mentors to support institutions students in culturally responsive ways   Classes offered in the languages, Creating a shared database to track locations and times most convenient for students' progress child care provider students – career to  Working with each region’s Quality college Improvement Specialists to assist  Commitment from community student child care providers move up partners and community college/higher the Oregon Registry and achieve Quality education systems to allowing credit for Rating Improvement Systems (QRIS) prior learning and coursework that Star Status transfers across educational setting </p>