Child Care Directors Association of Southwest Alberta

05/12/2026

Join us in celebrating early childhood educators this Friday May 15th

05/06/2026

04/09/2026

🚨 Early Childhood Educators Are Losing Access to Professional Development 🚨

On April 1st, major changes to professional development funding came into effect across Alberta’s child care sector.

While funding may still “exist” on paper… access to it has been significantly limited.

What does this actually mean?

Educators won’t be able to actually USE the full funding….

👉 If funding can’t be accessed, it becomes easier to reduce later
👉 25+ years of sector-built knowledge gets sidelined overnight
👉 PD participation will drop rapidly, even if funding exists
👉 Local conferences (like ours) lose access
👉 One-size-fits-all learning replaces community-rooted knowledge

❗ Fewer approved workshops and conferences
❗ No new training opportunities added for a full year
❗ No release time funding for educators
❗ Increased barriers for Level 1 & 2 educators
❗ Reduced access to culturally relevant and community-based learning, Indigenous programming gets sidelined.

For over 25 years, organizations like ours have provided meaningful, inclusive, and community-driven professional development for educators across all levels. Now, many of these opportunities are no longer eligible for funding.

Let’s be clear:
👉 This is not just a policy change
👉 This is a limitation on access
👉 This impacts educators, programs, and ultimately… children

When educators can’t access meaningful learning, program quality is affected.

When community voices are excluded, diversity in care is lost.

When funding can’t be used, it raises serious concerns about what comes next.

Our conferences are not just for Level 3 educators. They support educators at all levels, across diverse communities, including Indigenous programs.

We will continue to advocate for:
✔️ Inclusive and accessible professional development
✔️ Recognition of community-based learning
✔️ Equitable access for ALL educators

Because Alberta’s children deserve educators who are supported, growing, and empowered.

📢 Contact us at: [email protected] for a template letter and emails to join us in advocacy!

03/30/2026

There are moments when an event becomes something more than a gathering… it becomes a feeling that lingers. ✨

We are incredibly grateful to receive such heartfelt feedback from our recent IGNITE: Fuel Your Why conference. Hearing that the opening moved participants to tears, that the words of Elder Charlene resonated so deeply, and that the energy of the White Buffalo Singers and our keynote speakers left a lasting impact—this is exactly why we do this.

To know that attendees felt honoured, inspired, and reconnected to their purpose fills our hearts right back. 💛

Thank you to everyone who joined us, shared space with us, and allowed this day to be what it was meant to be: a reminder of your “why.”

We’re already dreaming about next year… 🔥