Aloha New Students!
Welcome on behalf of the Master of Early Childhood Education Program. We are pleased that you are interested in pursuing your degree at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. The MEd in Early Childhood Education Program is a unique interdisciplinary program designed to prepare leaders rooted in a sense of Hawaiʻi as a unique place who can also understand national and global challenges. The program was created in 2001 in response to the demand for a graduate degree to meet the statewide needs for leadership in programs serving the islands’ youngest keiki and their families. We have a history of collaborative partnerships across departments on our Mānoa campus and with policymakers and practitioners in our island and national community.
We are proud of the five cohorts of over 95 students who have graduated since the program’s inception. Our local program graduates serve in teaching, administrative, research, policy and other leadership positions on the islands of O‘ahu, Maui, Moloka‘i, Kaua‘i and Hawai‘i. They are employed in a myriad of settings that reflect the diverse services within our community. Many alumni have provided leadership within their organizations as well as the broader early childhood community.
In addition, enrollment in the program has expanded to include students from throughout the continental United States and in Pacific Basin countries. Every year, several of our students reside off-island, coming for three consecutive summers to complete mandatory coursework and completing the rest of their program requirements online. All students balance commitments to their organizations and to their families. The program provides an affordable alternative that allows working professionals to continue their educational aspirations.
Over the years, the College of Education early childhood programs have also expanded program offerings and collaborations with the broader University of Hawai‘i system and community partners. The MEd ECE Program offers yearly ECE Summer Institutes and is an incubator for professional development that benefits the early childhood education community and provides opportunities for local and visiting professionals to engage in meaningful dialogue with national and international leaders. Our distinguished speakers have included Sue Bredekamp, Stephanie Feeney, Janet Gonzalez-Mena, Lilian Katz, Carol Brunson-Day, Carolyn Pope Edwards, Kathy Hirsh-Pasek & Roberta Golinkoff and Barbara Kaiser.
Aloha and welcome to the MEd ECE Program!