MS · None — state has no formal QRIS
Mississippi — CDA & ECE Workforce Credentials
Mississippi directly mandates CDA for lead teachers in licensed centers — among the strongest CDA portability in the country; ELC pre-K requires B-K endorsement.
Data current as of April 2026.
CDA acceptance & requirements
- Lead teacher requirements: Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) child care licensing directly requires CDA for lead teachers in licensed centers — one of the few states with an explicit CDA mandate.
- Assistant teacher requirements: Minimum age 18, HS diploma/GED, plus required orientation and ongoing PD.
- Director requirements: Mississippi Director's Credential for ECE administrators.
- State-funded pre-K (Mississippi Early Learning Collaboratives, ELC): Lead teachers must hold Mississippi Department of Education B-K (Birth-Kindergarten) endorsement — BA + state EPP. CDA does not satisfy this in ELC classrooms.
- QRIS: Mississippi does not currently operate a stand-alone star-based QRIS at scale; quality recognition flows through ELC participation and licensing.
- T.E.A.C.H. & apprenticeship: T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® Mississippi is administered through Mississippi Low-Income Child Care Initiative (MLICCI).
State-specific ECE workforce credentials
- Mississippi Director's Credential for ECE administrators.
- Mississippi Department of Education — Birth-Kindergarten (B-K) endorsement for state-funded ELC and public-school pre-K teachers; BA + state EPP.
- Mississippi does not operate a stand-alone state ECE workforce credential beyond the CDA mandate, the Director's Credential, and the B-K endorsement.
Notable state context
Mississippi is one of the few states with a direct CDA mandate for licensed-child-care lead teachers — making it among the strongest jurisdictions for CDA portability. The split between mandated CDA in licensed care and B-K cert in ELC pre-K is sharp, with the CDA Council reporting strong CDA volume from Mississippi-based candidates.