Time Well Spent

Being in this course has helped me realize the importance of a community and how much other people’s thoughts and ideas can inspire my own.  This course gave me and my colleagues the opportunity to build on challenges and collaborate with each other to help guide our projects toward success.  I have also learned from this course what I need to do in becoming a successful leader.  “Leaders who have confidence are more likely to be motivated to succeed, to be persistent when obstacles arise, and to welcome a challenge” (Northouse, 2010).  I have learned the best leaders need to be able to communicate clearly with the people around them.  A third thing I have learned from being in this course is “people thinking is influenced by the times in which they live, the places where they live, by political circumstances, by belief systems, and so on” (Laureate Education, 2011).  As a professional leader we want people to reflect on our thoughts and moves, but the truth of the matter is, everyone is diverse in their own way and a true leader understands that and allows open collaboration.  I have learned that even a great leader needs guidance to be successful.

One long-term goal of mine is to become a CEO of a nationwide franchised preschool program that keeps a 100 percent success rate for every child who comes within.  I have always been taught to go for what I know and believe in.  I want to thank each and every one of you (my colleagues and professor) for helping me throughout this course.  I could not have done it without your guidance, great thoughts, and excellent work.  I will never forget this great community of practice team and I wish you all the best of luck throughout your wonderful professional and personal lives.  Let’s continue to help education and our world as a whole grow strong by showing positive guidance, leadership, great self-esteem, building family engagement, and staying committed in what we believe in.   

  

References

Northouse, P. G. (2010), Leadership: Theory and practice (5^th ed.).  Thousand Oaks, CA:

            SAGE Publications, Inc.  Northouse, P.G., Chapters 9 & 10, Leadership: Theory and

            practice (5^th ed.).  Copyright 2010 by Sage Publications, Inc. Books.  Used with

            permission from Sage Publications via the Copyright Clearance Center.

 Laureate Education, Inc.  (2011).  Strategies for working with diverse children: Your

            Commitment to anti-bias work.

Job/Roles in the ECE Community: Internatioally

The first international organization I chose that is appealing to me was the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).  I love the fact they support the rights and health of all children.  “Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere” (UNICEF).  I commend organizations that put out exhausted efforts to ensure children are receiving the necessary treatment.  A job opportunity that interests me from UNICEF is the Education Specialist position.  This position requires advanced university degree in one or more of the disciplines relevant to Education, primary education, or social sciences fields relevant to international development assistance.  As far as work experience, eight years of progressively professional experience at national and international levels in fields relevant to Education programs.

A second international organization I chose that is appealing to me was the Academy for Educational Development (AED).  I love their mission which is “to improve lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions for human development” (AED, 2011).  Their organization like me believes in pushing everyone to the max so they reach their full potential.  Our world is a better place knowing that people extend their efforts to the max.  A career opportunity that grabbed my attention was an Administrative Assistant, Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Region.  The job functions of this position are as followed: 

• Perform a wide variety of assignments, which support the activities of the Region XII T/TA Coordinator, and other TTA Specialists on the project.
• Assist personnel to comply with internal corporate and OHS information system guidelines to ensure operational compatibility, security, and functional capabilities required to support program activities.
• Prepare program and fiscal planning information and required correspondence and reports
• Produce reports from HSES at the request of the Regional Office and T/TA Coordinator;
• Coordinate and Track Case Management Schedule and meeting notes
• Participate in Meetings and take notes as directed by the T/TA Coordinator

The skills needed for this position is:

• Demonstrated ability to analyze data and to present data in written report utilizing charts and graphs, as well as ability to analyze and interpret data, identify errors and prepare reports.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate clearly, both orally and in writing to various audiences.
• Ability to work both independently and in a team environment.
• Demonstrated proficiency with using Microsoft Office Suite and internet applications required.
• Ability to problem solve and implement corrective action as appropriate.
• Work at the Regional Office (RO) at least once a month.  The number of days will be determined by the Regional Office
• Ability to organize and perform multiple tasks at the same time with high level of accuracy.

The third international organization I chose was the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).  This organization is about educating the economic and social comfort of people around the world.  “The OECD provides a forum in which governments can work together to share experiences and seek solutions to common problems” (OECD).  A career opportunity that interests me is Program Coordinator: Energy Training and Capacity Building.  Must possess excellent knowledge of written and spoken English as well as ability to draft correspondence and reports independently.  Fluency in other languages is an advantage.  Great experience to have is as followed:

·         Experience with organizing activities and events for international audiences both close to the workstation and abroad.

• Experience with sourcing and providing training and capacity building, familiarity with global energy issues, of energy policies of the IEA and outreach priorities of the Agency.  Must have familiarity with the development and institutional issues in emerging and developing economies.

• Experience of fund-raising and grants administration. Good knowledge of the OECD financial rules and regulations, particularly in respect to voluntary contributions or ability to acquire that knowledge quickly.

• Proven organizational and management abilities as demonstrated in past work (organizing workshops and seminars, coordinating teams, project management) and capacity to take a holistic approach to designing and running complex events.

• Familiarity with the OECD Events Management System or similar IT tool.

 

References

United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.unicef.org/

Academy for Educational Development. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.aed.org/en/index.htm

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, fromhttp://www.oecd.org/home/0,2987,en_2649_201185_1_1_1_1_1,00.html

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

One organization that is appealing to me is the National Education Association (NEA).  “They believe it is a common sense investment we cannot afford to pass up” (NEA).  They are devoted to refining early childhood education and I believe they can provide great insight and resources to helping my challenge of figuring out ways to bring aboard high-quality teachers within the preschool level so that these children are getting the necessary knowledge to move into grade school.  There are many job opportunities within the National Education Association.  “NEA’s 3 million members work at every level of education , from pre-school to university graduate programs and has affiliate organizations in every state and in more than 14,000 communities across the United States” (NEA).  I saw a Manager D position that looks of interest to me.  For this position, the minimum education is a bachelor’s as well as a minimum of 10 years professional lobbying and political action organizing experience.  Experience must include political campaign work, grassroots organizing, as well as project and crisis management.

Another organization that is attractive to me is the Division for Early Childhood (DEC).  I chose this organization because they are for helping develop young children who may possibly have developing interruptions and disabilities.  “DEC is an international membership organization for those who work with or on behalf of young children (0-8) with disabilities and other special needs and their families” (Division for Early Childhood).  A job that interests me within this organization is an Early Childhood Education Instructor (full time).  For this position it is required to have a bachelor’s or masters in child development or early childhood education with sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, and ethnic backgrounds of community college students.  The skills needed are having classroom responsibility, understanding of evaluating students, and understanding of curriculum knowledge, and student advising.

A third organization that is of interest to me is WestEd.  “A nonprofit research and development agency working at the national, state, and local levels, WestEd aims to improve education and other important outcomes for children, youth and adults” (WestEd, 2011).  Any organization that is about the improvement of education and enlightening the future of all, grasps my attention faithfully.  One job that I found of interest with in the WestEd organization is an Associate Program Director.  For this position I would need to possess the skills of writing proposals, manage work and have the technical skills that make the work better.  I must be able to motivate and manage project teams involved in research and consulting work on assessment methods and systems.  This would actually be a dream job for me being that they are looking for someone with tons of experience with this job being so complex.

References

National Education Association.  (n.d.).  Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/18163.htm

The Division for Early Childhood.  (n.d.).  Retrieved from http://www.dec-sped.org

WestEd.  (2011).  Retrieved from http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

           Communities of practice are formed by people who engage in a process of collective learning in a shared domain of human endeavor; a tribe learning to survive, a band of artists seeking new forms of expression, a group of engineers working on similar problems, a clique of pupils defining their identity in the school, a network of surgeons exploring novel techniques, a gathering of first-time managers helping each other cope (Wenger, 2006).  One organization that is appealing to me is Habitat for Humanity.  They believe in providing everyone in need a decent place to live and bring people together to build homes, communities and hope.  A job opportunity I would be interested in for Habitat would be a (Supervisor-Volunteer Mobilization).  For this position I would need to have great oral/written communication/presentation skills as well as organizational and planning skills.  This position is responsible for developing, and engaging in and managing aspects of departmental initiatives and projects that contribute to continuous improvement of the department’s goals and objectives. 

            Another organization I would look to is the National Center for Children in Poverty [NCCP].  I love that they are one of the country’s top open policy center committed to supporting the economic security, condition, and goodness of America’s low-income families and children.  A great job opportunity that is of interest to me is a Project Coordinator.  This position will play a significant role in managing two new research and communications projects led by the Family Economic Security (FES) unit.  The responsibilities are managing day-to-day project operations, coordinate conference calls, meetings and trainings with project partners, and participate in developing focus group screening tools and protocols. 

            A third organization that is appealing to me is Care.  This is an organization out to supply people in the worst communities.  I like that they collaborate with different businesses and groups to more resourcefully assist people in need.  A job position that interests me from this organization is the director of development prospect management.  This position serves as the organizational expert on supporting and training major gift officers to effectively use the prospect management systems and tools at their disposal; interprets and monitors prospect management policies.  The qualifications for the job is to have an undergraduate degree plus 5 years experience working with a complex fund raising organization including the coordination of a prospect management system, directing activities toward prospect identification, and database coordination. 

Reference

Wenger, E. (2006).  Communities of practice: A brief introduction.  Retrieved from

            http://www.ewenger.com/theory/