Posts tagged ‘child care’
Leading With Vision
Last week was the annual 4C Leadership Conference in Northern Kentucky. This conference, for directors and owners of early childhood education programs, is one of the few opportunities most directors have to step back from their frenetic pace to think about their organizations’ vision and direction. There were sessions on management as well as on leadership, and my hope is that managers found new passion to lead, and that leaders gained momentum to fulfill dreams.
I currently am participating in a strategic planning process of an organization I care deeply about. When asked by the consultant whether we wanted to add a vision statement to our mission statement, the general sentiment was “not now. We have enough on our plates.” I was dismayed because I am an advocate of the big vision. I love Daniel Burnham’s famous quote, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably will not themselves be realized.”
Knowing your organization’s function might allow you to manage to that narrow function, but trying to visualize what could be is the only way to lead, and the only way to gain passionate commitment from others.
What’s Wrong With This Salary Picture?
According to the American Association of University Professors, the average salary for full-time college teachers is $80,000. Those teachers, instructors, professors or adjuncts usually have extensive education and are well prepared for their work. Their students have brains that are nearly fully developed and are at a point in their lives when they have learned how to learn. The teacher is mostly a guide to knowledge.
The average salary for full-time teachers of preschool-age children is under 25% of that amount (child care workers at $17,000, preschool teachers from $19, 000 to $22,000). These teachers have lower educational requirements, yet their role is to help children’s brains develop, to learn how to learn, to develop social and emotional skills, and to help create a foundation for life-long learning.
It is time to raise the bar. With all that is known about early brain development and early learning, it seems that this is the place to start education reform.
March 26, 2010 at 10:35 am Sallie Westheimer Leave a comment
