Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/developing-a-village/5020444/
It is the responsibility of every early childhood program director to support the development of staff, to ensure that teachers and caregivers have the skills and understanding they need to provide the highest quality of services to children. For Head Start directors, this same responsibility is intensified by federal mandates and a mission statement that goes beyond the needs of the child to encompass the development of entire families. Across the country, more than 1,800 Head Start and Early Head Start grantees have spent the past 46 years evolving local practices for encouraging the professional advancement of teachers, staff, volunteers, and parents based on the needs and resources of their communities. In Alexandria, Virginia, the Campagna Center is one such example of innovation and success.The Campagna Center is a non-profit organization that has been serving
Alexandria since 1945. In the 1960s, during the early years of Head Start, Campagna became one of the first grantees. Today it runs Alexandria Head Start, a NAEYC accredited program serving 270 preschool students, and Early Head Start, which serves an additional 60 infants and toddlers in center-based, family child care, and home-based settings. The Early Head Start program also works with expectant mothers. In addition ...