Qualifications of administrators in Massachusetts licensed child care programs vary across seven levels based on licensed capacity, hours of operation, and the percent of non-teaching administrative time. For full-day programs serving 14 or more children, director certification is required. The two-level Director Certification for licensing serves as the administrative credential for the state. At the minimal level, a director can achieve certification with a combination of a CDA, three CEU’s in child care administration, and six months of prior experience as a lead teacher. The QRIS is undergoing changes. The rollout of the new QRIS program, StrongStart, has started in 2019 but has not been completed yet. The interim QRIS standards no longer has the requirement that the program administrator has a Bachelor’s degree. The state pre-K program requires a bachelor’s degree for administrators along with at least 18 credits in early childhood education. There are five early childhood leadership degree programs offered at four institutions, and two early childhood leadership academies in Massachusetts.
