The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) commemorates its 100th anniversary this year, marking a century of advocacy, innovation, and leadership in early childhood education (ECE).
Founded in 1926 as the National Association for Nursery Education, NAEYC began with a simple but powerful belief: young children deserve better, and the people who care for them deserve a voice. Today, NAEYC stands as the nation’s largest early childhood education association, with tens of thousands of members, 50 affiliates in nearly every state, more than 5,800 accredited early learning programs serving over half a million children and nearly half a million families, and nearly 180 accredited higher education programs teaching the next generation of early childhood educators.
“Our work has never been more urgent,” said NAEYC CEO Michelle Kang. “We need systems that truly value children and the people who care for and educate them. Early childhood educators are the workforce behind the workforce—skilled, dedicated professionals whose impact reaches children, families, businesses, and communities nationwide. By recognizing these educators’ expertise, investing in their compensation, and elevating their contributions, we invest in our collective future.”
A Century of Progress
Over the past 100 years, NAEYC has created the foundational infrastructure of the early childhood education field. Key milestones include:
- Publishing the first professional standards in 1929
- Collaborating to develop the Child Development Associate (CDA) credential in the 1970s
- Launching the first voluntary national accreditation system in 1985
- Establishing Developmentally Appropriate Practice guidelines in 1987 to promote each child’s optimal development and learning
- Creating the field’s first Code of Ethics in 1989
More recently, NAEYC convened Power to the Profession (2017–2020), a national collaboration of 15 organizations and 11,000+ educators that developed the “Unifying Framework,” which defines shared career pathways, qualifications, and compensation recommendations for the early childhood workforce.
A Crisis of Today
While the science is clear that high-quality early childhood education changes trajectories for children, families, and communities, today’s early childhood educators remain undervalued and under-supported. Early childhood educators currently earn a median wage of $15.41 per hour, even as families pay an average of $13,128 per year for child care.
“Families can’t afford to pay more, educators can’t afford to earn less,” said Kang. “Our entire nation suffers as parents can’t find or afford the high-quality care they need, pulling themselves out of the workforce in the process.”
A Year of Reflections and Events
As the centerpiece of its centennial commemoration, NAEYC has launched A Year of Reflections, a storytelling initiative inviting educators, families, and advocates to share the moments, mentors, and milestones that have shaped their journeys in early childhood education. Monthly themes throughout 2026—from beginnings to workforce advocacy to a vision for the future—aim to not only surface important stories and storytellers in the field but will help inform NAEYC’s next chapter.
