Tori Blogs: A Week of Learning and Leadership
This has been a week of learning and professional development for a number of us at ChildCareGroup.
I have just returned from the Texas Association for the Education of Young Children (TAEYC) “First BIG Retreat” conference held in the Texas Hill Country on Lake LBJ. I was thrilled to attend the conference along with over 125 early childhood leaders from around the state, who came together to sharpen our leadership skills, network and build relationships. I also had the pleasure of speaking on a panel discussion on organizational leadership, along with Santrice Jones, Director of Early Childhood Initiatives for Harris County and Brianna Menard, Executive Director of the House Early Caucus, and moderated by TXAEYC Executive Director Cody Summerville. This first-ever “BIG Retreat” was a special opportunity to pour into early childhood educators and affirm their important but often under-appreciated roles in educating and nurturing our tiniest Texans. I am already looking forward to next year’s Retreat and hope some of our CCG colleagues will join me!
The National Head Start Association (NHSA) also held their yearly National Conference & Expo this week in Portland, Oregon. This annual conference provides a valuable platform for the early childhood education community to gather, exchange knowledge, and celebrate achievements.
Over four days, 13 Early Childhood Program (ECP) leaders of ChildCareGroup (VP of Early Childhood Education Kriston Jackson, along with Joy Campbell, Stacey Cochran, Danisha Egans, Jackie Jones, Cynthia Garrison, Montserrat Hernandez, Guadelupe Hilliard, Kellie McCullough, Yanetta Newton, Jasmine Rodriguez, Dianne Taylor, and Stephanie Waller) engaged in learning sessions focused on the latest research-backed trends and strategies for delivering high-quality ECE programs. They also learned about the new expectations outlined in the newly updated Head Start Program Performance Standards.
This opportunity to interact with peers, experts, and thought leaders not only offered new insights but also paved the way for future strategic planning and implementation in our ECP work.
Professional development opportunities like these are so important to help us continue to learn and grow as early childhood professionals and to network and interact with colleagues from other organizations so that we can bring back new ideas and strategies to continually improve our own CCG programs and services.
One of the most important takeaways from the TXAEYC conference was the importance of ‘self-renewal’. For any of you who are familiar with Stephen Covey’s book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, this concept is described in Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw. Mr. Covey defines ‘sharpening the saw’ as preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have --- YOU! It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental and spiritual. As you renew yourself in each of the four areas, you create growth and change in your life.
As we head into the weekend, I hope each of you will engage in whatever ‘sharpening the saw’ means to you: It may be taking a walk or getting some type of exercise, practicing your faith tradition, spending time with family or friends, or just reading a book or taking a nap. The work we do is challenging and takes a lot of mental and emotional bandwidth. Please take time for self-renewal. YOU are worth it!
Stay strong. Stay safe. Stay positive.
Tori Mannes
CEO & President