This is a series featuring the Early Childhood Policy Pathway Fellows and their experiences in their 20-month fellowship positions. To learn more about the Fellowship, visit our website.
What drew you to work in early childhood?
I ended up in early childhood by accident.
When I was in elementary school, I wanted to become an elementary school teacher. But after spending a summer working as an assistant teacher at Mountain Village School, a nature-based, Reggio-inspired early childhood program in Vermont, I was hooked. I’ve been working in early childhood ever since.
Being in the early childhood space opened my eyes and widened my perspective about how learning can look and feel. I was inspired by how children’s curiosity, knowledge, and creative expression was deeply honored, how families worked in partnership with educators, and how play is regarded as the most important work of children. Everyone approached their work with an inquiry-based mindset, eager to ask questions with children and to continue learning all throughout their work.
What projects have you been working on at your host organization, and what have you learned from working on these projects?
Edward Street is located in Worcester. It’s a small organization (there are only four of us!) so I’ve been lucky to work closely with my supervisor Kim Davenport, Edward Street’s president and Chief Executive Officer, and have a hand in many different projects.
I have been working with Kim and Dodi Swope, one of the two incredible leaders of the Together for Kids Coalition, on developing a project titled Home Ownership Meets Equity and Early Education (HOME3). And as the project is beginning to come to fruition, I’m excited to continue learning about family child care, housing, and what it takes to build and pilot something as big and bold as HOME3.
I’ve also written several guest blog posts on the state budget process and on child development topics, with the goal of building stronger bridges between policy and practice, and between early childhood knowledge and the general public. I’m continuing to learn to write in ways that capture attention, effectively convey information, and inspire action.
In addition, I have been exploring the policy landscape of nature-based early childhood education. I’ve met with so many incredible, passionate professionals in this area and learned about their work and their perspective on policy issues. I’m exploring ways to make access to nature-based experiences and play more equitable. In partnership with Sarah Besse at Every Child Outdoors, I co-hosted a screening of a documentary film about forest kindergartens and an accompanying panel discussion featuring local leaders in the nature-based early childhood space.
I’m also creating a survey to gather data about how Worcester’s early educators approach outdoor/nature play, barriers they face, and solutions they would find powerful. I’ll write a brief to share these findings with the community.
Recently, I’ve also been working on an analysis of Worcester early education and care data. During my master’s program, I was eager to build my quantitative analysis skillset so I could do this work in the real world. And this project gave me my first chance to test these new skills. I’ve learned more about new platforms and how best to share data in ways that give shape to a problem and highlight solutions.
How has your relationship with your host supervisor impacted what you’ve learned?
Kim has been so open to inviting me to join her in meetings all across the city and is always available to answer my questions or fill me in on relevant context and history. She has carved out such excellent learning and working experiences for me throughout this fellowship that have allowed me to grow as a professional, and she has cheered me on all along the way, especially in moments where I was far outside of my comfort zone.
Being a fly on the wall at many meetings with Kim and other local early childhood champions has been an incredible learning experience. Across many different groups and contexts, Kim brings focus, strategy, and clarity, without sacrificing warmth and person-centered connection. She always brings a policy-oriented mindset and has really helped me begin to see systems-level solutions when faced with a challenge. Without such a dedicated host supervisor, this fellowship wouldn’t be as rich as it is, and I deeply appreciate Kim’s commitment, wisdom, and grace.
What are some of the persistent challenges that you’ve seen?
Challenges around funding and data have come up time and time again. It’s hard not to feel disheartened by the low commitment shown by many systems to the things that actually help people live healthy, fulfilling, and joyful lives, and how this translates into inadequate funding to do the most important work.
Data and data systems are also a persistent challenge. Having the data you need to make informed decisions that solve the right problem is essential, and there are often barriers to this.
What are some emerging solutions that you’re seeing?
This field works in such authentic partnership with one another. It’s exciting to see people break out of silos and come together across the wide range of fields that impact young children, such as housing, health, neighborhoods, early childhood education.
It’s also exciting to see research, practice, and policy merging as they do in the Early Childhood Policy and Research Collaborative and the Early Childhood Exchange. Having diverse sets of expertise and skills at the table to develop shared solutions will only make those solutions stronger, with wider buy-in and deeper commitments.
What are some long-term solutions that should happen?
I’m eager to see the field explore the possibility of a dedicated revenue source for early childhood education and care. The example New Mexico and Vermont are setting is exciting.
Without an influx of public funds, early childhood education can’t become the public good it deserves to be. Significant public investment is clearly needed to ensure every child and family can access the high-quality early experiences that they need to thrive.
How has your fellowship experience informed your career goals?
I feel much more confident about working in some capacity in public policy. It is easy to feel powerless right now, reading the news and seeing the deeply troubling actions of those we’ve put in power.
The antidote for me has been to contribute (even in small ways) to systemic change, with a group of people who are committed to a future where all children thrive, all families are treated with respect, early educators’ work is truly valued, and love leads the way.
What advice would you give to young professionals who are interested in early childhood policy?
If you’re interested in it, think you might be interested in it, or want to learn more about it, just start. As someone who never saw herself doing policy work, the impostor syndrome can seem really loud. Now that I’m here in a policy job, I see that the wisdom of those with lived experience is incredibly valued, that everyone is learning and figuring things out along the way, and that early childhood policy professionals are always eager to share what they know and provide resources to help newcomers get involved.
Everyone is welcome in this circle!