4  Higher education faculty, staff, and administrators can use core competencies to evaluate and refine course content, plan for future course development; and coordinate and design course content to facilitate transfer and articulation agreements.  Federal, state, and local agencies can use competencies to develop and implement policies that will enhance professionalism in the field, connect stakeholders around common goals, and to serve as an advocacy tool for guiding policy makers.  Professional development efforts can use competencies to create a framework for a career development system which will support professionals in pursuit of competency-based training/education, recognition, and compensation commensurate with educational achievement. The following principles guided the development of the Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Knowledge & Competencies (WKC’s): 1. Children - Every child is born learning and develops at an individual rate, possesses unique characteristics, and exhibits an array of talents and abilities, in addition to family background, culture , and experiences. 2. Inclusion - Every competency and indicator is meant to include all children, including those with developmental delays or disabilities and those who are gifted and talented. 3. Diversity - Every competency and indicator is meant to include all children, including those whose families are culturally and linguistically diverse, those from diverse socioeconomic groups, and those with individual learning styles, strengths, and needs. 4. Families - All families, encompassing a myriad of ethnic origins, value systems, faiths, customs, languages, and compositions, must be equally respected. Families are the first and most influential teachers of young children.  Indicates term defined in the glossary the first time it appears in the document. 5. Early Care & Education Professionals - High quality teaching is relationship-based and guided by continuous research-driven knowledge and best practices . It is necessary for early childhood professionals to engage in continuous, high-quality professional development. 6. Community - High quality early learning experiences draw upon and enhance the trust and connections between families, early childhood programs and services, schools, and the community. 7. Professional Development System – The Arizona Early Childhood Career and Professional Development Network, a coordinated professional development system, provides strong focused support for professionals, families, and organizations serving children; and enhances and increases the services of children individually, collectively, and in the long term. 8. Ethical Behavior - Early Childhood professionals should abide by the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) code of ethical conduct5 Many people from across Arizona worked to develop the Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Knowledge & Competencies, including professionals working in the field of early childhood care, education, and program development; officials from the Arizona Department of Education, Department of Economic Security, and Department of Health Services; professionals from colleges and universities; members of charitable foundations serving young children; and other relevant community members (See Participants). Numerous written sources were consulted during the creation of this document including several Arizona documents, national health and safety standards, national professional recognition standards, and the professional development work of many other states. (See References). 5 http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Ethics%20Position%20Statement2011.pdf