San Diego State University

Our mission is to prepare students to become early childhood educators and professionals who work with children and families in their schools and communities. The focus of the department is on the study of social-emotional development as the underlying foundation for all other areas of development including physical, cognitive, motor, and language. The program represents an interdisciplinary field of study with the basic assumption that development takes place across the lifespan in the context of the family, community, and public policy.

Our department’s emphasis on primary prevention prepares students through hands-on, community-based learning experiences. Field experience programs offer students supervised work in community agencies, children's programs, the SDSU Children's Center, as well as multiple school districts across San Diego.