Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

I was very excited to do this assignment because I have wanted to explore more about early childhood in my hometown, local area and state and the organizations and opportunities that already exist. One of the reasons this excited me is because my home state of Connecticut established the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC) in 2013, with the intention "to coordinate and improve the various early childhood programs and components in the state to create a cohesive high-quality early childhood system." (www.ct.gov/oec). They are divided into four sections, which are Early Care and Education, Licensing, Early Intervention, and Family Support Services. The establishment of this organization at the state level appealed to me because as an early childhood educator and student at Walden University, like many other ECE professionals, I know the importance of quality early childhood programs for all children, and am glad someone is finally recognizing this at the state level!

This led me to explore the Connecticut Birth to Three System, which provides services to support the development of children in this age group who have been identified by parents, caregivers, or physicians as struggling developmentally in one or more areas. A special educator at heart, I was especially drawn to their job opportunities of Early Childhood Special Education Teacher (for which I am currently certified) and Early Intervention Specialist. Knowing there are opportunities for me to make a difference for children and their families outside the public school systems and specifically with children with atypical development is especially interesting, since I find this type of work simultaneously challenging yet rewarding.

I also found the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance, which is a statewide membership and advocacy organization committed to improving young children's outcomes in several areas, such as learning, health, safety, and economic security. They encompass all of early childhood, from birth through age eight.

I have had experience working with professionals who are part of the Early Childhood Consultation Partnership, another program for young children and families. This program is a strengths based, mental health consultation program developed to meet the social/emotional needs of children birth to age five. They provide services and consultations for early childhood care providers, educators, and families. I am interested in learning more about how to become a consultant for this program, because of the wonderful experiences I had with them when I worked in a program who served a child and family who required their services. My experience was so positive I would almost consider more coursework if necessary!

Finally, I also found the SEEDS network, which is an organization created to support the needs of early childhood educators, administrators, child care providers, advocates, and parents who work with or have children birth through age five. I have attended professional development opportunities presented by this organization and have found them helpful for both information and for expanding professional contacts.

I look forward to exploring each of these organizations websites further and the services they provide. Learning more about where I can focus my passions as a career is also a welcome component.

 

References

Connecticut Birth to Three System. Retrieved from www.birth23.org

Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance. Retrieved from earlychildhoodalliance.com

Connecticut Office of Early Childhood. Retrieved from www.ct.gov/oec

Early Childhood Consultation Partnership. Retrieved from www.eccpct.com

The Seeds Network. Retrieved from theseedsnetwork.com.