Center director vs child care center director

The differences between center directors and child care center directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a center director and a child care center director. Additionally, a center director has an average salary of $106,505, which is higher than the $66,949 average annual salary of a child care center director.

The top three skills for a center director include customer service, oversight and proficiency testing. The most important skills for a child care center director are patient care, professional development, and child development.

Center director vs child care center director overview

	Center Director	Child Care Center Director
Yearly salary	$106,505	$66,949
Hourly rate	$51.20	$32.19
Growth rate	8%	8%
Number of jobs	62,348	109,279
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

What does a center director do?

A center director is responsible for ensuring and maintaining the efficiency of child care facilities. Their role is to conduct various assessments, ensure that all aspects adhere to federal requirements, develop programs and supplemental activities in collaboration with child care experts, recruit and hire an efficient workforce, and train staff for professional development. Furthermore, a center director is also responsible for managing budgets, handling issues, meeting parents or guardians to discuss the scope of programs or any other concerns, and implementing policies and regulations.

What does a child care center director do?

Child care center directors lead the staff, supervise daily activities, prepare budgets, and design program plans that will help children learn in a fun way. Their usual tasks include meeting with parents and teachers to get updates on the students' improvement, making sure that the center is a clean and safe environment for children to be in, and hiring new staff members. Fulfilling the job requires a person to have good communication skills, interpersonal skills, and organizational skills.

Center director vs child care center director salary

Center directors and child care center directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Center Director	Child Care Center Director
Average salary	$106,505	$66,949
Salary range	Between $65,000 And $172,000	Between $33,000 And $135,000
Highest paying City	Newark, DE	-
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	-
Best paying company	Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between center director and child care center director education

There are a few differences between a center director and a child care center director in terms of educational background:

	Center Director	Child Care Center Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 50%
Most common major	Business	Early Childhood Education
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Center director vs child care center director demographics

Here are the differences between center directors' and child care center directors' demographics:

	Center Director	Child Care Center Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 29.0% Female, 71.0%	Male, 16.2% Female, 83.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 4.3% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between center director and child care center director duties and responsibilities

Center director example responsibilities.

Manage programs provide by SDE, DMH, DHS.
Design, implement and manage day-to-day operation of the 21st CCLC grant support afterschool program.
Manage daily operations of NAEYC accredit childcare center.
Manage daily operation for a family-own business with responsibility for sales, production, and administrative functions including payroll.
Manage delivery of quality early childhood education programs by establishing an environment of learning and maintaining the integrity of the programs.
Lead a staff of 76 FTE's.

Child care center director example responsibilities.

Manage curriculum along with school budget, accounts receivable and payables.
Budget preparation/administration, record maintenance, purchasing, payroll, supervision of staff, development and administration of policies and procedures.
Establish and facilitate implementation of facility CQI program.

Center director vs child care center director skills

Common center director skills

Customer Service, 12%
Oversight, 8%
Proficiency Testing, 6%
Center Management, 6%
State Regulations, 6%
Federal Regulations, 6%

Common child care center director skills

Patient Care, 16%
Professional Development, 9%
Child Development, 8%
CPR, 6%
Payroll, 5%
Educational Programs, 5%

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Center Director
Center Director vs Child Care Center Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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