CDA Assessments
Bilingual incentive for early childhood educators
About the Program
The New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department (ECECD) supports Early Childhood Educators who are pursuing their Child Development Associate credential. Qualified applicants receive a payment voucher that covers the cost of the initial CDA Assessment fee.
The CDA Assessment Voucher Program is open to all early childhood educators who are currently working a minimum of 20 hours per week with children ages birth – five (up to Kindergarten) at one of these qualifying programs:
- Early care and education programs that are licensed or registered through ECECD; or
- Tribal child care; or
- ECECD-funded PreK and Early PreK programs in a community-based setting; or
- NM PreK or Early PreK programs authorized by a public school or charter including Title I or 619 Preschool Programs; or
- NM Head Start or Early Head Start programs; or
- NM Tribal Head Start or Early Head Start programs; or
- ECECD-funded New Mexico Home Visiting or Family Infant Toddler Programs
- Your name
- Job Title
- Ages of children you work with
- Hours worked per week
The employment verification letter must be signed and dated by your supervisor, on letterhead, and include your supervisor’s contact information.
CDA Assessment Voucher Process
When you have met all pre-requisite requirements and are ready to take the exam and schedule your verification visit, please follow this process to obtain your Assessment Payment Voucher.
- Make sure you meet the eligibility requirements for the following settings:
- Create an Account on the Council’s online platform, YourCouncil. You will be issued a Customer ID number once you create your account.
- Apply for an ECECD voucher to cover the cost of the CDA Assessment. You will need to include your Council Customer ID number as a part of your ECECD voucher application.
- Qualified applicants will be issued a voucher number to cover the cost of the assessment. We only cover the initial assessment fee.
- Log into YourCouncil account and create an initial CDA application. Provide the voucher number in the payment details.
- When you use your voucher, we will be notified to make a payment on your account for the cost of the initial assessment.
- Once your CDA application is approved by the Council, you will receive your Ready to Schedule notice and you can schedule your CDA Verification Visit and your CDA Exam.
- You have 6 months from the time of your application to complete your test.
About the Assessment
The assessment process is made up of two components: the CDA Exam and Verification Visit. The Council for Professional Recognition uses the results of both to make a credentialing decision.
The CDA® Exam is a component of the credentialing process. The exam is a 65-question, computer-based exam that is taken at a local Pearson VUE testing site. It is the candidate’s responsibility to schedule the exam after applying for and receiving the Ready to Schedule Notice from the Council.
The CDA Exam questions will test the candidate’s knowledge of basic early childhood best practices based on the CDA Competency Goals and the thirteen Functional Areas. Once the exam is completed, the scores are sent to the Council electronically.
CDA Verification Visit® is a component of the CDA credentialing process, where the candidate will be observed working with children/families as a lead teacher in a specific age group. It is the candidate’s responsibility to schedule the visit after applying for and receiving the Ready to Schedule Notice from the Council.
During the visit, the Council-approved, CDA Professional Development (PD) Specialist™ will go to the candidate’s place of work and review the candidate’s Professional Portfolio, observe the candidate working with children/families, and conduct a reflective dialogue about the candidate’s strengths and areas of growth. The PD Specialist will submit the evaluation and scores electronically to the Council.