Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

Zero to Three  is “… a national, nonprofit organization that informs, trains, and supports professionals, policymakers, and parents in their efforts to improve the lives of infants and toddlers” (ZERO TO THREE: National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families, 2012). Zero to Three provides a plethora of information for military families and the professionals that work with them, on topics such as deployments, separations, and frequent moves.

• No current job opportunities were posted but in researching the site, an interesting job would be a Board Member. All of the board members had a MS or higher in Early Childhood or related field, and extensive experiences in working with children families and other early child development specialists.

National Military Family Association: The Military Family Organization is supports military children and families by advocating for the rights and providing information on how to support military children.

•  No current job opportunities were posted, but in researching the site, an interesting job would        be Youth Initiatives Director. No information was available on the education and experiences of the directors, but I would imagine that the requirements would be a minimum of a PhD in early childhood or a related field and extensive experience in working with children, parents and early childhood professionals, as well as experience in running large organizations.

National Association for the Education of Young Children  (NAEYC) sets standards for early childhood educators to provide quality care, nationwide. NAEYC provides accreditation for programs that meet and exceed the standards for quality of care. Military child development centers are NAEYC accredited, as part of the endeavor to provide high quality care and support the military mission.                                            

• The site listed several jobs, none of which I was would be interested in, however the minimal requirements were a BS or higher in a field related to the job and prior experience. Being accredited through NAEYC I would like to be an Asser of Child Development Centers, ensuring that all children receive high quality care.  

References

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2012). NAEYC Jobs. Retrieved February 8, 2011, from NAEYC: http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf

National Military Family Association. (2012). Issues & Actions 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2012, from militaryfamily.org: http://www.militaryfamily.org/assets/pdf/vsr/2012-Issues-and-Actions-1.pdf

ZERO TO THREE: National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families. (2012). Coming Together Around Military Families. Retrieved March 18, 2012, from ZERO TO THREE: National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families: http://www.zerotothree.org/about-us/funded-projects/military-families/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

The three organizations listed below are communities of practices, as they are groups of people who share a passion for early childhood education and are working together towards ensuring all children have access to high quality learning experiences.  I chose to explore local, state, and global community of practices in the field of early childhood that are proactive in supporting high quality early learning experiences. The Florida Department of Children and Families and the Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County collaborate in providing Florida children the opportunity to attend the Voluntary Prekindergarten Program, funded by the state of Florida, which ensures school readiness. The Military Child and Youth Flight is responsible for providing high quality learning experiences for military children all over the world.

~ Florida Department of Children and Families/Florida Department of Education (STATE)

http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/programs/childcare/    http://www.fldoe.org/earlylearning/

No current jobs were listed, but potential career of interest would be a childcare licensing agent, Educational Policy Consultant, and Program Assistant.

~ Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County (LOCAL)

http://www.elchc.org/

        No current  Jobs  were listed but a job of interst would be VPK Program Specialist:

Skills and Experience: MS in Early Childhood or equivalent and extensive knowledge of Florida’s VPK Standards and Program

~ Military Child and Youth Flight (GLOBAL)

http://www.usajobs.gov/JobSearch/Search/GetRefineControlResults?Keyword=1701&Location=&SelectedRadiusOption=20&search=Search%21

Employment opportunities can include: Child Development Center Director,  Child Development Training and Curriculum Specialist, Child Development Assistant Director, Flight Chief

Skills and experiences needed: For Child Development Training and Curriculum Specialist a 4 year degree in child development or early childhood education. For Child Development Director and Assistant Director, a 4 year degree in child development, early childhood education, home economics (early childhood emphasis), elementary education, special education, or other fields appropriate to the position to be filled. A combination of experience and education can be considered.

References:

DCF. (2012). Child, Youth and Families. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Florida Department of Children and Families: http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/programs/childcare/

Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County. (2012). Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County: http://www.elchc.org/

Early Learning/Prekindergarten. (2012). Retrieved March 10, 2012, from Florida Department of Education: http://www.fldoe.org/earlyLearning/

United States Office of Personnel Management. (2012). Retrieved March 12, 2012, from USAJOBS: http://www.usajobs.gov/JobSearch/Search/GetRefineControlResults?Keyword=1701&Location=&SelectedRadiusOption=20&search=Search%21