Every Great Teacher Has a Beginning: Why Randolph County Needs More Early Childhood Educators
Every day, hundreds of families in Randolph County head to work—often with a stop at a child care center to entrust their little one to a teacher who knows them, welcomes them, and is trained to keep them safe while supporting their healthy development.
But this isn’t the reality for every family.
There simply aren’t enough child care spaces to meet the need.
According to The Early Years, nearly 6,000 young children in Randolph County live in households where their parent(s) work, but there are only 1,924 licensed child care slots available. That gap leaves families scrambling and places stress on an already strained workforce.
Space Isn’t the Problem — Staffing Is
When people hear about the shortage, many assume we need to build more centers. But the truth is: we already have room to enroll more children. What we don’t have is enough early educators to teach them.
Hiring new teachers can take weeks or months. Background checks must clear. Required trainings must be completed. And once someone begins the job, the reality sets in: early childhood education is not simply babysitting. It requires:
- Understanding early learning and development
- Building strong relationships with families
- Maintaining safety and supervision
- Completing health and safety trainings
- Passing background checks and health assessments
It takes the right person with the right preparation—and finding that fit can take time and resources programs often don’t have to spare.
Introducing Randolph START
To support our community and strengthen the workforce, the Randolph Partnership for Children is launching Randolph Supporting Teachers and Readying Talent (Randolph START)—a fast-track early educator training program created to prepare the next generation of teachers.
Over two weeks (60 hours), participants will:
- Complete all required training
- Receive necessary background checks and assessments
- Tour a child care program
- Observe classrooms
- Take part in hands-on learning experiences
At graduation, each participant will leave with a portfolio including:
- Certificates for completed training
- A qualifying letter from the Division of Child Development and Early Education
- Samples of their work demonstrating readiness
This means centers can hire candidates who are already prepared, reducing onboarding costs, shortening time-to-hire, and helping programs open more classrooms so more families can access reliable childcare.
A Step Toward a Stronger Future
Investing in early educators doesn’t solve everything—but it moves us in the right direction. When we help future teachers succeed, we strengthen the entire community. A stable early education workforce means:
- More classrooms open
- More families supported
- More children learning in nurturing environments
Every great teacher has a beginning. Randolph START is designed to help them find it.