Academic Scholarships

Georgia’s educational assistance program for early childhood educators pursuing credentials or degrees in early childhood education

Academic Scholarships is funded by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL) through the federal Childcare and Development fund and is designed to increase the number of well-qualified and credentialed early childhood educators in Georgia.

Am I eligible?

To qualify for our Scholarships program, you must meet the following criteria:

Legal Status

You’re one of the following:

  • United States citizen
  • Legal permanent resident
  • Qualified alien

Employment

  • You must have maintained 6 months of continuous employment in one of the following roles (volunteer work, practicums, and internships do not qualify):
    • Teacher
    • Assistant teacher
    • Floater
    • Director
    • Assistant director
    • Owner
  • You must work a minimum of 30 hours per week if your employer is one of the following:
    • A child care learning center licensed by DECAL or the Department of Defense
    • A family child care learning home licensed by DECAL
    • An exempt Georgia Head Start center
    • A Georgia Lottery-funded Pre-K program in a public school
  • You must work a minimum of 15 hours per week if your employer is:
    • A before/after school program licensed by DECAL