Examining Center-Based ECE Workforce in New Jersey in the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education
November 17, 2025
This brief describes the center-based early childhood education (ECE) workforce in New Jersey using data from the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE). Conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic, the NSECE provides valuable insights into who cares for young children, workforce qualifications, and motivations for entering and leaving the ECE field. The report finds that New Jersey’s center-based workforce has higher educational attainment and greater stability than the workforce nationally, with fewer staff seeking second jobs. However, the state’s ECE workforce is less racially and ethnically diverse than the national sample, highlighting opportunities for future workforce development and recruitment. These data provide a foundation for understanding and supporting New Jersey’s early education workforce.
The Authors
Jennifer K. Duer, Ph.D. is an Assistant Research Professor at the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. Her work focuses on both federal and state policies designed to improve the health and development of young children and their families with an emphasis on finance, quality, and prenatal-to-three policies.
Dr. Milagros Nores is the Co-Director for Research and Research Professor at the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER). With a profound expertise in early childhood evaluation, informing data-driven policy and programming, cost and benefits of early interventions, evaluation design, equity, and English language learners, she has established herself as a leading researcher in the field of early care and education.
W. Steven (Steve) Barnett is a Board of Governors Professor and the founder and Senior Co-Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. Dr. Barnett’s work primarily focuses on public policies regarding early childhood education, child care, and child development.
Allison Friedman-Krauss is an Associate Research Professor at NIEER where she is also the Associate Director for Policy Research and Director of the Infant and Toddler Policy Research Center.
About NIEER
The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at the Graduate School of Education, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, conducts and disseminates independent research and analysis to inform early childhood education policy.
Suggested Citation
Suggested citation: Duer, J.K., Nores, M., Barnett, W.S. & Friedman-Krauss, A. (2025). Examining CenterBased ECE Workforce in the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research.
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