The province is making it easier to pursue a career as an early childhood educator.
It’s reallocating $4 million to provide additional grants and bursaries through the ECE Education Support Fund.
The fund was started back in September of 2018, with a target of supporting 4,000 students by the end of March 2020.
The province says so far the program has provided more than 5,400 bursaries to students pursuing their ECE education goals.
The Executive Director of the Early Childhood Educators of BC, Emily Gawlick says the extra money goes a long way.
“These extra bursary funds are a welcome addition to a very successful program. Educated early childhood educators are the backbone to a successful child care system, and the funds will go a long way to help many more students complete their studies.”
In addition to the extra funding, more than 10,000 early childhood educators have received a $1-per-hour wage increase with another $1-per-hour lift to come in April.
The province says more than 600 new seats in post-secondary ECE programs will also be available this year.
The ECE bursary is currently available at 32 post-secondary institutions throughout British Columbia.
For more information on the ECE bursary and to apply for the program, visit the and to apply, visit the early childhood educators of BC’s website.
