# 119-hr-8859: Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act

119-hr-8859, Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7] (D-CO); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8859
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-8859
- Congress: 119
- Title: Creating Early Childhood Leaders Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-15
- Sponsor: Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7] (D-CO)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Education
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Early childhood leadership training for principals and school leaders.** This bill would amend the Higher Education Act to require knowledge of child development from birth through age 8, social and emotional development, developmentally appropriate behavioral interventions, and effective instructional leadership, and to require school leaders to engage parents, community members, the local educational agency, businesses, and early childhood program providers to leverage resources and improve pre-kindergarten instruction. - Principals and school leaders: Would be required to gain specific skills in child development and instructional leadership for children birth through age 8 so they can better support pre-kindergarten teachers. - Teachers: Would get stronger, more informed leadership support for developmentally appropriate instruction in early childhood classrooms. - Families and community partners: Would face formalized engagement expectations from school leaders, creating clearer pathways to participate in and support early learning. - Early childhood programs and local agencies: Would be more directly connected to K-12 leaders to coordinate resources and align supports aimed at improving early academic outcomes.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5] (D-CT), 2026-05-15T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- School leader training in early childhood: benefit, medium. This bill would change Higher Education Act rules for programs that train principals and school leaders. If enacted, these programs would have to teach leaders how to work with parents, community groups, local school districts, businesses, and early childhood program providers to leverage resources…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-hr-6644: 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act
- 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act
- 119-hr-7481: Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2026
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-8859 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8859)

## Related
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151)
- [119-hr-6644: 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6644)
- [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977)
- [119-hr-7481: Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7481)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8859 (as of 2026-09-21).