To boost preschool quality, Massachusetts invests in degrees for educators

Kayla Pinto knew she had found her calling from the first day she taught preschool at the YMCA in Somerville, Mass. Ms. Pinto had grown up attending programs at the Y in this small city just north of Boston, and she started working there when she was 14. But it wasn’t until her early 20s, when she was asked to fill in for an absent preschool teacher, that she realized how much she connected with young children.

“My heart sang,” she says, remembering that first day. She soon decided to get certified as an early childhood teacher and make a career in preschool. 

Now a veteran teacher with 11 years of experience, Pinto still has a passion for becoming a better teacher. One thing she doesn’t have is a bachelor’s degree. That limits the salary she can earn at a community center like the Y and prohibits her from working in the

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