FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 12, 2006
CONTACT: Ashley M. Meijerink
706.542.7193
Ashley.Meijerink@georgiacenter.uga.edu
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UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA REPRESENTATIVE JOINS NEW NATIONAL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD PROFESSIONALS
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Washington, DC - Karen Shetterley, a senior public service associate with the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center & Hotel, is one of 22 local early childhood education leaders from around the country who will be participating in the new Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families National Leadership Program created by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
The new Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families National Leadership Program is part of an NAEYC initiative -- funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation -- to engage educators from child care, preschool, and other early childhood programs in building the kinds of supportive relationships with families that help prevent child abuse and neglect and promote children's healthy social and emotional development. The National Leadership Program also is part of a larger NAEYC effort to develop a new generation of leaders in the early childhood field.
"Research we've conducted over the past two years guided the development of resources and ideas that early childhood educators can use to support families and promote healthy social and emotional development of young children," said Marilou Hyson, Senior Advisor for Research and Professional Practice at NAEYC. "The National Leadership Program will prepare a cadre of local leaders who can share those resources with other early childhood educators in their communities, and influence changes in practices and public policies."
"I'm excited to have been selected to participate in this important new project," said Shetterley. "The Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families National Leadership Program will help me develop ideas and plans I can bring back to our community, and help many other early childhood educators make a difference in the lives of the children and families we serve."
Shetterley and the other 21 participants began the project with the intensive Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families National Leadership Academy, held in Coral Gables, Florida in January. Over the next year, participants will:
* Implement individual Action Plans that consider their communities' strengths and challenges.
* Be linked to resources, support and professional development opportunities to help them reach their Action Plan goals and build their leadership skills.
* Participate in reporting and evaluation activities. An external evaluation team from the University of Vermont and the University of Illinois is working with NAEYC to measure the outcomes and effectiveness of the project and provide evidence about variables known to be relevant to child abuse and neglect prevention. National Leadership Program participants will be a crucial part of this evaluation.
Participants in the Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families National Leadership Program are NAEYC members who are already leaders in their communities, are well positioned to receive and disseminate information and resources to other early childhood educators, and to influence changes in practice. The participants include:
* Directors of NAEYC-accredited early childhood education programs;
* Leaders of NAEYC's state and local affiliate groups;
* Directors of Accreditation Facilitation projects;
* Faculty in early childhood professional preparation programs at two- or four-year institutions;
* Staff at one of the exemplary early childhood programs identified by the Center for the Study of Social Policy; and
* Members of NAEYC's Interest Forums.
NAEYC's Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families project is supported by grants from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation supports related work by the Center for the Study of Social Policy, ZERO TO THREE, the Alliance of Children's Trust Funds and others interested in preventing child abuse and neglect. In addition to their efforts to protect children, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation works to improve the quality of people's lives by nurturing the arts, protecting and restoring the environment, and seeking cures for diseases.
Additional support for Supporting Teachers, Strengthening Families is provided by the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning and the Center for Evidence-Based Practice: Young Children with Challenging Behavior.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children is the largest and most influential organization of early childhood educators and others dedicated to improving the quality of early education programs for children from birth through age eight. Founded in 1926, the organization now has more than 100,000 members, and a national network of nearly 350 local, state and regional affiliates. NAEYC and its affiliates work to improve professional practice and working conditions in early childhood education, and to build public support for high-quality early childhood programs.
The Georgia Center, a unit of the University of Georgia's Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, provides innovative lifelong learning opportunities through its continuing education programs. On UGA's campus, the Georgia Center includes a full-service hotel with 200 rooms and suites, restaurants, banquet areas, conference rooms, auditoriums, a fitness center, and computer labs -- all under one roof. For more information go to www.georgiacenter.uga.edu.
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