Birth to Kindergarten (B-K) | Catawba College

Birth to Kindergarten (B-K) | Catawba College
Birth to Kindergarten (B-K)
Mode of Study
Online
Degree Level
Undergraduate, Major, Licensure, Non-Licensure
Degree Types
Bachelor of Arts in Education
Department
Education
School
School of Education
Help Grow Future Generations with a Degree in Birth-Kindergarten Education
The Catawba College Birth-Kindergarten program for Early Childhood Education prepares you for being a teacher of young children. One of the most exciting and fulfilling careers is teaching birth to kindergarten age children through preschool education. What you can do with an early childhood education degree is teach and grow our future. Helping children grow in the classroom is why teachers teach.
The Bachelor of Arts in Education for Birth-Kindergarten children will increase your understanding and skill in the classroom, providing you with new tools to help manage the classroom and help each child reach their potential. You will learn proven techniques for working with newborns, infants, toddlers, preschool, and early school-age children through Grade 2. Most of our students are working adults employed in a childcare center or elementary school setting and are able to use new ideas and methods on the job the next day. You will gain job skills in infant and childhood development, improving your resume for promotion in the classroom.
We support full-time adult students and part-time adult students. Our early childhood education degree is flexible to match your schedule and your career goals. You can go to school year-round, take the summer off, or even take a month off during a semester while still being considered a full-time student for financial aid.
Program Highlights
Experiential Learning
Benefit from strong partnerships with local school systems, experiential visits early on, and a co-teaching student teaching model for optimum support and growth.
Essential Skill Development
Developing skills that transfer to immediate and future careers provides a competitive edge. You will learn critical thinking, management, public speaking, and technology skills, plus motivational techniques and service orientation.
Scholarships & Aid
You may earn your bachelor’s in early childhood education with minimal to no out-of-pocket costs due to the low Catawba Online tuition combined with federal and state aid, plus
North Carolina T.E.A.C.H.
funding.
School of Education at Catawba College
Catawba College's Teacher Education Department prepares reflective teachers who possess the professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for effectively teaching students in a diverse and global society. Our Teacher Education program has a rich tradition of turning out excellent teachers dating back to 1925.
Education Pathways
The Birth-Kindergarten program working toward a B.A.E. degree at Catawba College has
two concentrations
Licensure Concentration
Catawba’s Birth-Kindergarten Degree can lead to a recommendation for North Carolina teaching license so that a graduate can be a lead teacher in a classroom. Licensure students are required to complete a 600-hour supervised student teaching experience in a birth-kindergarten classroom to meet NC licensure requirements. They are also required to complete and pass an edTPA professional portfolio that will be submitted to the State. Most students complete the student teaching in the same classroom where they are employed. Alternative arrangements will be made for those that cannot complete student teaching at their own place of employment.
Non-Licensure Concentration
A non-licensure path is available for those birth-kindergarten students who do not want or cannot meet the requirements for teacher licensure. The non-licensure pathway is more flexible and a variety of settings may be approved for the professional internship- including your own place of employment. Birth-Kindergarten non-licensure majors complete a 180–hour supervised internship experience in a classroom or other approved environment.
Program Details
Discover the courses you will take in B-K Education.
Explore Birth to Kindergarten Courses
Catawba College offers full-time NC community college students the opportunity to take one course per semester through Catawba tuition remission, which means we waive your tuition through our
Stay and Learn Local
program. You can take up to four free college classes. Four free classes equal one free semester. After earning your associates degree, you are already closer to earning your bachelor’s degree from Catawba College from our free classes, reducing the total time and total cost of a college degree.
Tuition Remission = Free Courses
North Carolina Need-Based Scholarship (NCNBS)
The North Carolina General Assembly created a need-based program that is administered centrally by the North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority (NCSEAA). The North Carolina Need Based Scholarship program (NCNBS) is awarded to legal North Carolina residents who demonstrate financial need by filing the Free application of Federal student aid (FAFSA). College Foundation of NC uses the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) from the FAFSA to award this scholarship and notify the schools of eligibility; if the EFC changes for any reason, the scholarship amount is reevaluated. This grant is contingent upon legislative appropriation of funds and is subject to change.
North Carolina T.E.A.C.H.
Along with a full range of financial aid,
North Carolina T.E.A.C.H.
provides early childhood education scholarships for many active preschool and kindergarten teachers, both those employed at T.E.A.C.H. partners and those who are employed in non-partners. The
low tuition at Catawba College in the online program
combined with federal and state financial aid, plus T.E.A.C.H. funding, allows many B-K degree students to earn their bachelor’s degree in early childhood education with minimal to no out-of-pocket cost.
Admission Requirements & Process
Apply Online
Select Online Undergraduate Program
Choose the month you would like to start
Select your program of interest
Learn more about the admission process for
First-Year Students
Learn more about the admission process for
Transfer Students
Once you are notified of your acceptance to Catawba College,
contact your advisor
to register for your first semester.
Licensure Concentration
To enter the
licensure concentration
, the student must apply and be admitted to the Teacher Education Program. Requirements for admissions include:
A recommendation by their major advisor;
A 2.75 overall academic average on Catawba coursework;
Passing scores on all sections of Praxis Core Academic Series or a composite score as determined by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction;
An acceptable criminal background history and proof of liability insurance.
Student Teaching
The Application for Admission to Teacher Education to complete Student Teaching must be made by the beginning of the semester prior to the semester in which the student teaching is to be done. Application deadlines are March 1
st
for Fall Semester and September 1
st
for Spring Semester. The student must have a 2.75 academic average to be admitted to Teacher Education and Student Teaching and must complete the licensure program with a 2.75 or better GPA. Successful completion of an edTPA portfolio is a requirement of student teaching and will be graded at the State level. Passing edTPA scores are required to be recommended for a North Carolina teaching license.
Application to Teacher Education
Application to Student Teach
The goal of Catawba's Teacher Education Department is to prepare reflective teachers who possess the professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for effectively teaching students in a diverse and global society. Catawba's Teacher Education programs are approved by the North Carolina State Board of Education and the Department of Public Instruction for licensure of our graduates.
Catawba's Teacher Education program has a rich tradition of turning out excellent teachers dating back to 1925. Graduates of the program have had great success completing all licensure requirements and securing teaching jobs immediately after graduation.
Meet the faculty of the Teacher Education Department:
Meet Our Faculty
Birth-Kindergarten Handbook
Student Professional Associations
Student Professional Associations
SNCAE (Student North Carolina Association of Educators)
: Catawba's prospective teachers club, SNCAE, is open to anyone majoring or minoring in education. The regular monthly meetings are devoted to the professional and social enrichment of the members and to the advancement and refinement of the profession. SNCAE sponsors social activities, professional development, and community service activities throughout the year.
Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society
: Kappa Delta Pi is an International Honor Society in Education dedicated to recognizing excellence in education. Kappa Delta Pi invites members who exhibit the ideals of scholarship, high personal standards, and promise in teaching and allied professions. The Theta Phi Chapter at Catawba College was installed on February 28, 1958 and reactivated in 1983. KDP accepts members who exhibit commendable personal qualities, worthy educational ideals, and sound scholarship.
Net Price Calculator
Net Price Calculator
Estimate your share of college costs and how much financial aid you may be eligible to receive
Our calculator is designed to give you an early indication of what type of financial aid you may qualify for if you were attending Catawba College as a first-year, transfer, online, or graduate student.
Estimate Your Financial Aid
Outcomes
Outcomes
Graduates earning licensure through the Early Childhood Preschool Education degree at Catawba College are ready to be lead teachers in any birth-kindergarten classroom.
Most of our BK degree students are already employed in a childcare environment and are able to use the new ideas and methods learned in class on the job right away. This equates to gaining instant job skills in infant and childhood development and improving your resume for promotion in the classroom.
Recent News
Read what students and faculty in the Teacher Education Department have been up to:
School of Education Academy Students Explore London in Transformative International Experience
Catawba College’s School of Education’s Academy for Teaching scholars recently returned from an immersive international trip to London, where they spent four days exploring historic landmarks, world-class museums, and educational institutions while gaining valuable global perspectives to bring back to their future classrooms.
Categories
catawba stories
Catawba College Alumna Shaelyn Rowan Named West Rowan Elementary's Beginning Teacher of the Year
West Rowan Elementary School and Rowan-Salisbury Schools are proud to recognize Catawba College alumna Shaelyn Rowan as the school’s Beginning Teacher of the Year. The recognition was announced at the September 22, 2025, Board of Education meeting, where all Beginning Teachers of the Year across the district were celebrated for their hard work, dedication, and positive impact on students.
Categories
catawba stories
Catawba College Expands Teacher Pipeline Through New Articulation Agreement
Catawba College’s Goodman School of Education and the North Carolina Teaching as a Profession (NCTAP) Program have established a new articulation agreement designed to strengthen the pipeline of future educators across the state.
Categories
catawba stories
Department of Teacher Education
Email
rfleming@catawba.edu
Hours
9am - 5pm
TU
9am - 5pm
9am - 5pm
Th
9am - 5pm
Fr
9am - 5pm
SA
CLOSED
SU
CLOSED
Phone
704.645.4504
Location
3rd Floor
Hedrick Administration Building
Site Menu
Your Path Starts Here.
A center for sustainability, a powerhouse of the arts, and a leader in the sciences, business, and more. With 70+ academic programs — there’s nowhere Catawba can’t take you.
Discover The Good