National and Federal Early Childhood Communities of Practice

Organizations that I would like to include in my Community of Practice Partners are:

        School Nutrition Association-They place emphasis on providing students will health nutritional meals. They provide workshops for school districts to increase the consumption of healthy foods.

            National Education Association (NEA)-I chose this organization because I am already a member and I value its commitment to early childhood education.  The NEA promotes high-quality learning opportunities for children from birth to age 5 (National Education Association, 2013).

     National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE) NAECTE members are people from all across the United States and from countries around the world. They are joined together by the common interest in Early Childhood Education.

Employment opportunities that interest me are:

Child Development Specialist

Requirements: B.S. in Child Development, Psychology, Education, or Speech and Language Pathology with additional coursework in Special Education or related field or equivalent degree from another country. Minimum 1 year working with young children birth to 5 years. 3. Current CPR. 4. Bilingual (English/Spanish) required (National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators, 2013).

District Supervisor, School Nutrition

Requirements: Bachelor’s degree in hotel/restaurant management, nutrition or related field plus progressively more responsible experience related to food service management.  Master’s degree in related field and experience in school nutrition programs is desirable. The ideal candidate must have considerable knowledge of the principles and practices of institutional food management, dietetics, and personnel management.  Ability to assess and evaluate job performance of staff. Candidates must have leadership and management skills necessary to work with students, staff, administrators, and parents.  All must have the ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.  Good presentation and communication skills are a must (School Nutrition Association, 2013).

Fitness Instructor

Requirements: A bachelor's degree is not a standard educational requirement. However, some employers generally preferred applicants who hold bachelor's degrees in fields such as physical fitness, physical education and exercise science. Coursework related to these programs include sports safety and first aid, anatomy and physiology, human nutrition, exercise physiology and kinesiology as public health, physical education and recreation leadership (Education-portal, 2013). 

Exploring Roles in the Early Childhood Education Community

Three organizations and/or communities of practice that appeal to me are:

         

The Food Bank of South Jersey-I choose this organization because it serves families in need. They have several outreach services such as churches and other organizations that help give food to those in need.  They also have services especially for children.  Kids Café is a program that supplies meals to children in a safe and supervised environment (http://www.foodbanksj.org/ProgramsServices/KidsCafe).  At this present time my school is having a collection campaign. We are asking for each child to donate at least one can product.  Also, my church uses the Food Bank donations to pass out food to people in the surrounding community that are in need.

        New Jersey Department of Health-Offer child nutrition classes by professional nutritionists, dietitians and registered nurses. Also advise parents about financial support offered by the state such as, Women, Infant and Children (WIC) which is a program that mothers and children age 5 and under receive financial assistance to purchase healthy food. Another assistance program is New Jersey Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-SNAP, formally known as food stamps. I would like to learn more about this program based on information that I have received from recipients.

Children’s Defense Fund-This is a national organization that advocates for the well- being of children.  I became interested in the CDF when I came across an article about Mrs. Marian Wright Edelman, founder.  From this article I reviewed the CDF website and joined their mailing list. I have been very impressed with the stand that the CDF takes on the behalf of children and their families.

Job opportunities that interest me are:

Early Childhood Supervisor for Camden City School District-This position is available within my current district.  The minimum requirements for this position are:

•   New Jersey Supervisor’s Certificate or New Jersey Principal’s Certificate
•   New Jersey Teaching Certificate
•   At least 5 years teaching experience in preschool education
•   Preferred experience in urban settings.
•   Preferred experience and knowledge in Special Education and/or Literacy background
•   At least five (5) years of successful experience in an Early Childhood leadership role with demonstrated organizational skills and the ability to work well with people (www.//http.camden.k12.nj.us).

Other jobs that I would be interested in are within the Children Defense Fund office in New Jersey. Currently positions are not available however, positions available nationally are Senior Health Policy Associate, Policy Associate for the Juvenile Justice department, Executive Director, Community Health Outreach Assistant, and Chief Development Officer. There are many qualifications for these positions but what they have in common is the commitment to improving the state of children’s lives, particularly children from low- to moderate- income families (Children’s Defense Fund, 2013).