Our History

Ron McGuckin

Board President

Ronald V. McGuckin and Associates

P.O. Box 2126, Bristol, PA 19007

Mr. McGuckin is a graduate of Duquense Law School and is the owner of Ronald V. McGuckin and Associates Law Firm, which represents child care agencies in Pennsylvania, and has consulting agreements with child care agencies across the country, including several large Head Start programs. Because of his extensive expertise in the area of law affecting the child care industry, Mr. McGuckin has gained a national reputation as "The Child Care Lawyer". Having done so for over forty years, he continues to train child care professionals on a variety of issues including personnel, administration, and other management and legal issues. In addition, he is the author of three publications designed for child care administrators, "Current Issues in Child Care,” “ Model Personnel Policies for Child Care Agencies 1 st through 6 th Editions," and “Model Parent Handbook for Child Care Agencies,” all which have proven to be valuable assets to the child care industry nationwide. Since 2007, Mr. McGuckin has served on the Board of Directors of the National Accreditation Council (NAC) of the Association for Early Learning Leaders (AELL). Most recently, Ron served a four year term as Board President of the Association of Early Learning Leader’s Board of Directors.

Association For Early Learning
Leaders History

The Association for Early Learning Leaders (formerly the National Association of Child Care Professionals – NACCP) is an organization committed to strengthening the skills of owners, directors, administrators, emerging leaders and other professionals who are dedicated to early care and education. Today, it is one of the top associations serving administrators in the early care and education field.

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70's

Late 1970s

To meet the need for training of child care directors and administrators, Associates in Human Development, Inc. created educational seminars covering all aspects of the administration and management of a child care center.

80s

Late 1980s

There were few opportunities for management and administrative training at the national level. Child care management training was offered by National Louis University, Banks College, Nova University, The High Scope Foundation and Pacific Oaks College at the graduate level. The Erickson Institute in Chicago offered a graduate degree in child development, but still, little was covered in the area of child care administration Associates In Human Development, Inc.

(AHD, Inc.) pioneered this concept in the child care field in 1980. Following the successful launch of “The Person In Charge of Child Care,” presented at the National Association for the Education of Young Children National Convention in Los Angeles, AHD, Inc. became the first organization to market and present management seminars for child care in 1982. AHD, Inc. conducted a total of 25 seminars at the time.

1984

AHD, Inc. determined the need for a national association exclusively for child care management. Under the umbrella of AHD, Inc., the Association conducted seminars, while offering professional memberships in a national association exclusively dedicated to the administration of child care.

Fall of 1989

AHD, Inc. introduced total child care management training and certification to the nation’s child care directors through a three-day training conference entitled, The Successful Director Administration Conference. Participants completed the certification process by passing a written examination.

90s

1990

Statewide conferences were enlarged to include one-day staff conferences.

1994

An independent consultant, Donna Thornton Roberts, purchased Associates In Human Development, Inc. (AHD).

1995

AHD, Inc. launched the first national effort to increase the quality of child care by providing training and support services to the people who operate child care centers under the name of the National Association of Child Care Professionals (NACCP). It was determined at this time that AHD, Inc. and NACCP needed to become separate organizations to better meet the needs of the child care industry.

July 1996

NACCP, formed an alliance with the National Early Care and Education Association (NECEA). In doing so, NACCP acquired the management of its accreditation system, the National Accreditation Commission for Early Care & Education Programs, which was originally developed in 1991 and field tested in several states.

1997

NACCP membership reached 1,200 and NACCP’s website was introduced, which added additional membership benefits of a free listing on the National Yellow Pages.

July 1998

After a three-year process, the National Association of Child Care Professionals received its legal status as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization.

2000

NACCP hired an executive director and professional staff to execute membership services and the national office was moved from Christiansburg, Virginia to Austin, Texas.

2009

NACCP reached another significant milestone when it transitioned from a 501(c)(6) to a 501(c)(3) organization after acquisition of the Institute for Child Care Excellence.

2012

NACCP made significant changes and implemented a rebranding campaign in addition to a name change to the Association for Early Learning Leaders, as the first steps in pursuing a well-connected, more involved organization of leaders, where ideas are shared, relationships developed and best practices are learned.

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The Association for Early Learning Leaders is committed to excellence in the field of early childhood care and education by promoting leadership development and enhancing program quality.

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