Deadline: Ongoing Opportunity
The Columbia Basin Trust is currently seeking applications for the Early Childhood Educator Training Wage Program.
This program helps strengthen the Early Childhood Educator (ECE) workforce by providing a training wage to ECE Assistants (ECEAs) and certified ECEs, employed by licensed child care facilities in the Basin, to support them to complete and/or upgrade their ECE qualifications.
Funding Information
ECEAs are eligible to receive $17/hour, up to a maximum of $12,000 each + 15% mandatory employment related costs (MERCS), and ECEs are eligible to receive $20/hour, up to a maximum of $10,500 each + 15% MERCS, towards in-class/online instructional hours to complete and/or upgrade their ECE credentials at a recognized post-secondary institute of their choice.
Eligibility Criteria
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Non-profit and for-profit providers of licensed child care in the Basin region with the following designations who are eligible to apply on behalf of eligible ECEAs and ECEs employed at their facility.
- Group Child Care
- Multi-Aged Child Care
- Preschools
- Family Child Care
- In-Home Multi-Age Child Care
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Employer Criteria
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To be eligible to apply to the ECE Training Wage Program, the child care provider must:
- be a licensed child care facility in good standing with the Ministry of Children and Family Development;
- continue to employ the ECEA or ECE (Employee) for the duration of the training on a part- or full-time basis;
- be committed to providing permanent employment after completion of the training;
- work with the Employee to develop a mutually agreed upon education plan and timeline;
- be in good standing with the BC Corporate Registry (if the Employer is a non-profit society or registered company);
- have a WorkSafeBC account in good standing (WorkSafeBC coverage is required for all Employers with employees and is recommended for Employers that do not have employees); and
- be located in the Columbia Basin Trust region.
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To be eligible to apply to the ECE Training Wage Program, the child care provider must:
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Employee Criteria
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To be eligible for the training wage, the ECEA/ECE must:
- be a resident of the Columbia Basin Trust region;
- hold a valid Early Childhood Educator Assistant certificate or Early Childhood Educator certificate issued by the BC ECE Registry;
- be directly employed or self-employed on a full- or part-time basis by an eligible licenced child care facility;
- be enrolled part-time in an ECE program at a recognized post-secondary institute with the intention to complete the ECE certification or upgrades within a mutually agreed upon timeline with their Employer (up to a maximum of three years); and
- submit evidence of successful course completion to their Employer at the end of each course/semester.
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To be eligible for the training wage, the ECEA/ECE must:
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Post-secondary Institute Requirements
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To be eligible for the Training Wage, Employees must be enrolled in a post-secondary institute that:
- is approved by the Province of BC as a recognized program and institute; and
- meets provincial standards and ECE certification requirements.
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To be eligible for the Training Wage, Employees must be enrolled in a post-secondary institute that:
For more information, visit Columbia Basin Trust.
For more information, visit https://ourtrust.org/grants-and-programs-directory/early-childhood-educator-training-wage-program/