Center director vs early head start director

The differences between center directors and early head start 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 an early head start director. Additionally, a center director has an average salary of $106,505, which is higher than the $39,448 average annual salary of an early head start director.

The top three skills for a center director include customer service, oversight and proficiency testing. The most important skills for an early head start director are social work, child development, and childhood.

Center director vs early head start director overview

	Center Director	Early Head Start Director
Yearly salary	$106,505	$39,448
Hourly rate	$51.20	$18.97
Growth rate	8%	8%
Number of jobs	62,348	16,978
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	4	4

Center director vs early head start director salary

Center directors and early head start directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Center Director	Early Head Start Director
Average salary	$106,505	$39,448
Salary range	Between $65,000 And $172,000	Between $25,000 And $61,000
Highest paying City	Newark, DE	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center	Columbia University in the City of New York
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between center director and early head start director education

There are a few differences between a center director and an early head start director in terms of educational background:

	Center Director	Early Head Start Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Business	Early Childhood Education
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Center director vs early head start director demographics

Here are the differences between center directors' and early head start directors' demographics:

	Center Director	Early Head Start Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 29.0% Female, 71.0%	Male, 10.6% Female, 89.4%
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, 11.0% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.1% Asian, 4.3% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	16%	16%

Differences between center director and early head start 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.

Early head start director example responsibilities.

Lead program development for an early childhood education initiative.
Provide technical assistance to EHS staff i.e.
Implement direct early childhood development education, health, nutrition, and social services to children and families.
Monitor regulations at the NAEYC accredit program sites.
Ensure all classrooms exceed NAEYC accreditation standards and guidelines.
Participate and develop the design of EHS internal structures, systems and policies.

Center director vs early head start director skills

Common center director skills

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

Common early head start director skills

Social Work, 14%
Child Development, 8%
Childhood, 8%
Social Services, 8%
Community Resources, 6%
Child Care, 5%

Center Director vs. similar jobs

Center Director related careers

Center Director related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Executive Management Industry
Center Director
Center Director vs Early Head Start Director

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse executive management jobs