Finding child care in North Carolina is a growing burden for families as many centers are short-staffed and children are placed on long waiting lists.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) is launching a new statewide initiative to tackle the workforce problem.
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The state is partnering with 16 colleges and universities to launch Child Care Academies. Candace Witherspoon, director for the Division of Child Development and Early Education, told WRAL the free training is designed to prepare teachers for early childhood education careers.
“The point of these childcare academies is to provide a seamless process for new educators to meet licensure requirements,” said Witherspoon. “It shortens this into an intensive, condensed timeline for them to be able to accomplish all of these things before they even begin employment.”
Witherspoon said many of these trainings and certifications are required during an educator’s first year of teaching. The program covers things like CPR and first aid, safe sleep practices and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) prevention, playground safety, child maltreatment recognition, and an introduction to North Carolina’s Pathways to the Stars quality rating system.
“The goal is to entice people to come into the field, get these trainings that are needed, and then go into elite teaching positions that typically pay a little bit more than starting off in an assistant teaching position,” Witherspoon said.
Witherspoon added, “That way programs can offer more spots to families by opening more classrooms. Right now there is a severe teaching shortage. What we see if many of our larger programs that have the capacity to hold many children, are under enrolled because they can’t find enough teachers.”
Kate Goodwin, the owner of Kate’s Korner in Durham, said she fully supports the creation of academies but emphasized the importance of additional personal preparation for educators.
“I am in full support of the state creating academies because I think our workforce is depleted and we absolutely need great human beings who love children and who want to be in a classroom,” Goodwin said. “The thing that I think exacerbates the issue is we are uncertain about what that classroom experience is when we’re just in an academy.”
The educator said supporting educators beyond basic training including classroom practicums (which aren’t required by state law), mental health support, and fair compensation – is critical to preventing burnout. To address this, Goodwin created SoilB4Seed, a teaching model that prioritizes the wellness of educators.
“I think the community colleges are great partners, I think the state being able to see this and the Governor saying, ‘Let’s get this done’ is essentially what needs to happen,” said Goodwin. “I believe the academies should happen, I just truly 100% believe the academy should be married with programs like mine and others who are thinking about the psychological wellbeing of educators.”
Goodwin warned keeping valued educators in their roles will also require greater financial support.
“Our workforce has to be taken care of, and that’s where we’re faltering in trying to do quick fixes to solve for the child care centers that are closing,” said Goodwin. “People who are educated in early childhood education have made a decision to go and work for other entities. We are in peril because it makes the operation dysfunctional.”
The Child Care Academies offer both in-person and virtual options. The state says each academy “delivers a comprehensive curriculum that meets or exceeds the state’s minimum training standards for new child care professionals that may be shorter than the traditional program.”
Witherspoon called on the public to spread the word in their communities stating, “We know those people that are great with kids and educators naturally. Encourage them to sign up for one of these programs. They’re free and they have nothing to lose, and it could be the beginning of a wonderful career.”
For program details and how to enroll, contact the admissions office of any participating college or university:
- Appalachian State University
- Bladen Community College
- Central Carolina Community College
- Central Piedmont Community College
- Davidson-Davie Community College
- Durham Technical Community College
- Elizabeth City State University
- Forsyth Technical Community College
- Guilford Technical Community College
- Montgomery Community College
- Nash Community College
- Pitt Community College
- Roanoke-Chowan Community College
- Sandhills Community College
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Wilson Community College
Some programs began in October 2025 with more locations launching in January 2026. Each site is required to conduct at least three Child Care Academies through July 2026.