Personal Statement
There is some good that came out of COVID. I am sure at some point since the pandemic, we have all heard that statement. What I learned from COVID is what is driving my desire to serve on the board of FLAEYC.
March 13, 2020, I was the director of a large daycare with over 200 children and 40-plus staff. We were on a waitlist, and times were good. Monday morning, I opened the school as I normally would. Greeted my staff and prepared for the day. We had 11 children in attendance. In the next coming days, we had well over 150 withdrawals, and the future seemed bleak and unknown. So many of these families we never saw again. The scene I painted is, I am sure, one that most of us have experienced. As the weeks passed, we were forced with the harsh reality that families would not be coming back, and PPP loans would only do so much. We had to make the difficult decision to lay off staff. I received an Excel spreadsheet in my inbox. It contained the names of my staff and columns that included "DCF45, CPR/First Aid, CDA, Staff Credential" and so on. 5 points given to each column. Women I worked with side by side for years were reduced to a number. I remember feeling physically ill as I knew the moment I pressed send on the email, women would be laid off.
A matrix number could not tell the value or worth of someone who loved and nurtured our children, but it was what they were reduced to. I remember feeling how I failed these women. How as a director, it was my responsibility to ensure these women received the training and education they need to succeed and not just forward an email or hand them a flyer I received from the coalition. It was then I became very active with TEACH-FL and have committed much of my professional life to obtaining training, scholarships, and stipends for Early Learning Educators so I NEVER have to make those decisions again. Sitting in trainings alongside my staff to not only support but also walk the journey with them. These educators are hardworking and dedicated. They come from vast socioeconomic, cultural, and educational backgrounds, and it is important we meet them where they are at and move them forward. I myself am a TEACH-FL recipient and a student at UNF. I am an active FLAEYC member and this year joined the One Voice Advocacy FLAEYC group and participated this February in Day on the Hill. Although not my current coalition, I remain active with DELDN (Duval Early Learning Directors Network) and have recently become involved with the Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children as my current center offers neurodivergent educational and support programs.
Applying to be a member of the FLAEYC Board is out of my comfort zone. I consider myself an altruistic leader, who would much rather push from behind rather than pull from the front. But here I am! I take great joy in the successes of my team and watching women take a job and helping them create a career.