CaAEYC’s Professional Development Committee
Wilma Gold, as a member of EPCC & the CaAEYC’s Professional Development Committee, conducted an interview with Jacque Sell, chair of CaAEYC’s committee.
The Professional Development Committee is composed of 10 members from around the state with diverse roles and experiences in early learning.
Jacque shared, “We work together to plan and present professional development opportunities for our members and the early learning community throughout the year. The Professional Development Committee coordinates training and professional development opportunities with various organizations, including the Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC) and Educators for Peaceful Classrooms and Communities (EPCC), as well as the different CaAEYC Committees. The committee is also dedicated to ensuring that CaAEYC’s professional development offerings appear in the California Early Childhood Workforce Registry.”
In addition to the typical in-person and virtual regional workshops, the Professional Development Committee is working on new and exciting opportunities for the professional development of early childhood educators throughout the state.
Jacque continued to share, “Over the next year, we will be expanding our offerings to include podcasts, book clubs, a YouTube library and more! Our immediate focus is on developing podcasts on a variety of topics. Our next priority will be working on creating a YouTube library with short videos sharing theory, demonstrating theory or philosophy, interviews with early learning professionals and more!”
CaAEYC Professional Development events cover topics of immediate importance, such as Universal Pre-Kindergarten, (UPK) and Transitional Kindergarten, (TK), as well as topics of ongoing importance, such as challenging behaviors, Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP), etc.
One of the main areas of conversation has been how to support public school teachers who are moving into positions in UPK and TK classrooms with no or limited education and experience in early childhood development and education practices. The need for this support in order for these teachers to provide the highest quality of developmentally appropriate curriculum and environments is essential for the success of the state’s plan.
Jacque concluded with, “The Professional Development Committee would love to hear from you if there is a professional development opportunity you are looking for, or if there are topics or presenters you would like to suggest. You can contact us through the CaAEYC Information email at info@caeyc.org. Please reach out if you are interested in participating on the committee as well. Currently there are three vacancies on the committee, and we’d love to have you join us!”
This article is part of our Newsletter 2024 Issue 1. See all articles.
