Jacque Sell |
2019 Is Around the Corner
2018 has been a whirlwind and 2019 is right around the corner. As I look to next year, one of the highlights is the CAAEYC Annual Conference and Expo that is finally going to be in Northern California again after four years in Southern California. I hope to meet many of you at our Annual Conference in Santa Clara, April 11-13, 2019 as we come together for personal and professional growth – Celebrate the Joy of Childhood is our theme.
I cannot tell you how excited I am to be at this event and hear from our amazing speakers. In July this year, I had the good fortune to spend two days working with our Leadership Day Speakers at an NAEYC Leadership Summit discussing equity in our organizations, work, world, etc. They created a safe, dynamic environment for considering issues related to equity and prompted critical thinking and problem solving to address issues. Our keynote speakers are amazing, however, we also have an amazing array of workshop speakers who make the event complete. Many of our speakers have presented at our event several times and others will be new faces. The workshops are great opportunity to reinforce and build up knowledge and skills, as well as introduce new ideas, concepts and best practices.
On Saturday we have a few special features to offer enhanced learning opportunities with a specific focus. These features include the Film Festival, an opportunity for attendees to view videos relevant to early care and education, children and families and engage in a dialogue afterward. The Center for Social Change, an environment for information and engaged dialogue and learning about topics related to diversity, equity and social justice, is open all day on Saturday. We also offer several topic tracks for participants to attend four workshops focused on a particular area of interest, such as Family Child Care and Men and Early Childhood Education. In 2019 we are thrilled to be adding a four workshop track for our Family members on topics important to early care and education presented for parents.
As we wrap up 2018, we are taking a moment to acknowledge the amazing work you do every day on behalf of children. We look forward to working for and with you in the coming year. May your holidays be peaceful, joyous and what you hope for.