DAY ONE Teacher Apprenticeship Program

Program Overview

The DAY ONE Teacher Apprenticeship Program (TAP) is an 11-week course for individuals interested in working in early childhood education (with children ages 0-5). No previous teaching or child care experience is required. Applicants must be 18 years or older and have graduated from High School or have a GED. DAY ONE TAP is currently offered in English and Spanish in Poughkeepsie, New York and in English in Kingston, New York.

Apprentices spend 5 hours in the morning in an internship at an early childhood school, center or home-based care site and 3 hours in an afternoon seminar/workshop, Monday-Friday. Apprentices develop essential workforce skills such as communication, collaboration, critical thinking and problem-solving. DAY ONE offers a participation-based stipend during the 11-week course, connects apprentices to potential employers and provides a wage supplement to graduates who stay employed in early childhood education but do not earn a living wage.

Cost Info

Student and Volunteer Success Stories

Fulfilling a Dream Deferred

Lucia Lara Macias had a moment of clarity while listening to a Zoom meeting in her car. Her women's empowerment group had invited a speaker from DAY ONE Early Learning Community to talk about the Teacher Apprenticeship Program. The speaker described an intensive, full-time, eleven week educational program for persons of varied experiences and backgrounds who have a passion for teaching young children. Ms. Macias immediately responded: “This is something I would like to do!"

Time and circumstances postponed the fulfillment of her dream. As an immigrant to the United States, her life was not easy. Drastic changes in culture, language, and customs caused her to make adjustments and prompted fears and worries she had not experienced before. In 2012, she and her husband welcomed a child into the world whose needs took first place in her life. As he grew, Ms. Macias and her husband noticed differences in his development, leading to a diagnosis of ADHD. To support his progress, Ms. Macias and her husband educated themselves about child development and special needs education.

In December 2021, it was finally time for Ms. Macias to pursue her dream of becoming an early childhood educator. She enrolled in the Teacher Apprenticeship Program, along with a diverse cohort of six other individuals, and was on her way to becoming a “brain architect." Through TAP, she learned about the importance of play-based learning, about stress and resilience, and about ways to enrich learning environments so that children can learn and grow in their own way. In the midst of the program, she uncovered a desire to own and operate her own, home-based day care center. She persevered, through many challenges and with the support of DAY ONE, to the successful realization of her ambition.

“Every day I feel like this job is a gift from God to our family. We try to do our job with our hearts and the best that we can because we know that we can be someone who makes a footprint in a child's life."