Established in 2022, the 2-year fully online MSE in ECEP program is designed to give professionals the tools needed to address early childhood education system solutions, preparing them to work with schools, non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, advocacy groups, and institutes of higher education.
THE FOUNDATIONAL YEARS INSTITUTE
FYI was founded to champion the breadth and depth of teaching, policy, and research in Early Care and Education (ECE) at UW-Whitewater. Through the facilitation of existing ECE resources, we are forging new opportunities for collaboration — at the university, in the Whitewater community, and with the broader early care and education community — creating a regional hub with a national reach and a global perspective.
This collaborative work begins to address the need for systems change in ECE by meeting funding and regulatory shifts from federal to state control through licensure of teachers, ECE consulting and conferences, research collaborations, and network building.
What does the Foundational Years Institute do?
The work of the Institute is founded on current success in providing licensed teacher preparation, direct services, research, and professional development focused on ECE and policy.
The FYI makes this work more visible — providing a platform from which to create inclusive collaborative spaces, elevate ECE work that benefits society’s youngest members, bring greater attention to research, policy and outreach efforts, and attract greater funding opportunities.
The institute also provides a mechanism for state, national, and international communication across early years agencies, other centers, and institutes, with the intention of supporting the field in addressing systemic change in relation to the needs of children and families for care, education, and health support through equitable access to these services.
FYI: Teaching in ECE
With a strong foundation as an institution of higher education licensing the largest number of teachers in Wisconsin, UW-Whitewater is poised for regional and national reach.
The annual UW-Whitewater Early Childhood Conference, which had its first meeting in 1979, offers one avenue to broaden the reach of curricular and pedagogical support for new and continuing educators.
Through student teaching and community-based learning, relationships are formed in the field. The FYI supports the application of these and other programs to meet community needs in the area of teaching.
FYI: Policy in ECE
UW-Whitewater has taken a leadership role nationally in ECE policy research and advocacy.
The Master of Science in Education in Early Childhood Education Policy, or MSE in ECEP, program was launched in 2022 to give professionals the tools to address early childhood education system solutions, preparing them to work with schools, non-profit organizations, governmental agencies, advocacy groups, and institutions of higher education. The program is included with the Early Childhood Policy Institutions in Higher Education (ECPIHE) coalition.
Within our local community of Whitewater ECE faculty, staff and graduate students are partnering with leaders on an exciting initiative to create additional capacity in high-quality care for children and families, the WECEC Center project.
FYI: Research in ECE
Research in ECE is robust at UW-Whitewater, with programs such as counselor education, communication sciences and disorders, special education, and kinesiology. Early Childhood Education Policy graduate students are studying the impact of state policy (Get Kids Ready) analyzing data across four districts and three stakeholder groups. Students in our programs have traveled and worked in international contexts including Ecuador, Sweden, Jamaica, and most recently are presenting research in New Zealand — an exciting opportunity for global reach through shared research.
The child care industry in Wisconsin
The WECA Center for Policy Research and Engagement and Wisconsin’s Department of Children and Families shared the following data on the early childhood education and care industry in the state.
$2.45B
in revenue generated in 2022
53%
ECE capacity gap in 2025
30%
Fewer child care programs in the last decade
31%
Staff turnover rate in 2025
Related programs at UW-Whitewater
UW-Whitewater is known for its groundbreaking work in education and related fields.
UW-Whitewater’s dual licensure program in early childhood education and early childhood special education is in response to the critical need for educators who can teach in inclusive settings. Our blended program is the first of its kind in the Universities of Wisconsin.
UW-Whitewater’s special education program is cross-categorical, meaning that it prepares future special education teachers to work with students from kindergarten to adulthood, with mild disabilities to severe and profound disabilities, and in inclusive to intensive self-contained educational placements.
The communication sciences and disorders bachelor’s degree program prepares students for entry-level careers in health, education, and human services, as well as for a master’s degree. A communication sciences and disorders major is also excellent preparation for people looking to pursue work in other helping fields such as early childhood, special education, nursing, social work, or counseling.
The UW-Whitewater Master of Science in Counseling program includes emphases in clinical mental health counseling and school counseling and equips students with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in a variety of educational and community settings through tracks in school counseling and mental health counseling. Graduates of the program are eligible for licensure in the state of Wisconsin as a licensed professional counselor in training or a school counselor.
Social work is one of those helping professions, and it’s a career that is increasingly in demand in our nation and around the world. The UW-Whitewater bachelor’s degree in social work program offers an affordable, well-rounded education and the professional, practical training needed for a career as a general practitioner.
A Master of Social Work from UW-Whitewater prepares students to become advanced social work professionals equipped for a variety of social work jobs. Through our MSW degree program, we support students in achieving their goals — whether pursuing licensure as a licensed clinical social worker or engaging in other forms of advanced practice social work in urban and rural areas with diverse client systems.
For more than 50 years, the Children’s Center at UW-Whitewater has been leading the way with year-round, full-day care for children aged 3 months to 6 years in a learner-centered, collaborative early care and educational environment.
Since 1979, the Early Childhood Conference at UW-Whitewater has delivered high-quality professional development and networking with early childhood professionals from across the region.
FYI leadership
The creation of the FYI is a collaborative endeavor building on the successful work of UW-Whitewater as well as state, regional and national ECE and related organizations. Through the facilitation of the director, the advisory boards provide input through semi-annual meetings, survey feedback and share resources to guide the Institute and enhance the field through synergistic leadership.
FYI director
The Foundational Years Institute is directed by Lucy Heimer, professor of curriculum and instruction, who has a deep passion for addressing the needs of children and family in support of equitable and caring communities.
Her decades of experience in early childhood education and care spanning private, public and tribal contexts, classroom, ECE administration, and higher education settings support this goal. She has earned university awards for teaching and research and has extensive publications including pieces co-authored with colleagues, undergraduate, and graduate students. In her qualitative research she applies ethnographic methods to critically consider curriculum, pedagogy and policy in ECE contexts most recently in her 2020 co-authored book “Reshaping Universal Preschool.”
Dr. Heimer’s leadership in the field has included national and international elected positions for American Educational Research Association (AERA) and Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education (RECE), community board membership and co-editor of the International Critical Childhood Policy Studies (ICCPS) journal.
Internal Advisory Board
Key stakeholders within the UW-Whitewater community representing related ECE interests through teaching, research, and community action comprise the Internal Advisory Board and will share the work of the units, their intersections, and challenges or opportunities that arise. This group provides foundational support to define and focus the work of the institute for the ECE field for teaching, policy, and research at UW-Whitewater.
For more information, contact FYInstitute@uww.edu.
External Advisory Board
The External Advisory Board focuses on state and national issues in ECE, promotes the intersections of work across stakeholder groups, and provides feedback to support the work of the FYI.
The External Advisory Board includes 10-15 members across interest groups, such as:
- The Department of Children and Families
- Head Start Associations and Agencies
- State and national centers and institutes affiliated with other universities
- Philanthropic organizations
- Early intervention services
- Cooperative Educational Services Agencies
- Resource and referral
- Legislative and community leaders
For more information, contact FYInstitute@uww.edu
Contact us
Lucinda Heimer, Ph.D.
Founding Director, Foundational Years Institute at UW-Whitewater
FYInstitute@uww.edu
262-472-5802