What we would like you to know... May 03, 2010
TLLCCF
Child care teachers honored at evening ceremony
The day-long celebration for the Terri Lynne Lokoff/Children's TYLENOL® National Child Care Teacher Awards™ recipients’ culminates at the evening ceremony. This year, the ceremony and buffet dinner were held at Please Touch Museum, Memorial Hall, Philadelphia, PA. The pageantry of the evening began upon entering the museum, where the award recipients and guests were welcomed into the palatial-sized room crowned with a glass-domed skylight. The start of the ceremony had the recipients being paraded to their seats by the heart-thumping drumming by Reilly Raiders Drum and Bugle Corp, Willow Grove, PA., which set the upbeat mood for the evening. The excitement continued as the recipients received accolades from title sponsor Children's TYLENOL®'s Tiffani Moses. They were lauded by James R. Roebuck, Jr., Chairman of the House Education Committee, PA State House of Representatives, who presented each recipient with a citation from the PA Legislature. Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman delivered the evening's keynote address. She praised the National Child Care Teacher Awards™ recipients for their dedication and hard work. She acknowledged the vital roll high-quality child care plays in society and the positive effect the child care teachers have on the children in their care. TLLCCF Founder Kay Lokoff and Child Care Specialist Marcy Bacine presented each award recipient with their cash prize and their "Terri" award (recipients pictured with their "Terri's"). To view more photos, click here or to watch the ceremony, go to www.tllccf.org and click on the button.
TLLCCF
Teacher awards luncheon At the Teacher Awards recipient luncheon, the winners to get to know one another and hear firsthand about each others' award winning projects. The teachers are treated to a makeover courtesy of Clinique. Once the recipients receive their makeovers, Lafayette Hill Studios takes formal portraits of each recipient. While waiting in line for their turn in the chair for a makeover and photo, each recipient is given a Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation tee shirt with the foundation's signature yellow rose -- "Terri's Rose", reproduced from the original created for the TLLCCF by Philadelphia artist Sam Maitin (1928- 2004). Pictured above from left to right, Paula Proscino of Hamden, CT; Vicki Mauldin of Birmingham, AL; Margaret Mason of Milwaukie, OR; and Nancy Nairns of Spring Hill, FL. To view more photos from the 2010 National Child Care Teacher Awards, click here.
TLLCCF
Teacher awards open house
The Teacher Awards open house held for the recipients and their families, friends and coworkers is the first opportunity the recipients get to meet each other in a relaxed atmosphere for casual conversation and light refreshments. During the open house, TLLCCF Child Care Specialist Marcy Bacine had the attendees laughing and cheering as she got the evening started by asking questions of those in the room. She called out regions, states and cities and by a show of hands everyone in the room knew who had traveled the farthest. Who drove the farthest. Who came with family. Who's a family or group home provider or from a center. This year, award recipient Shirley Reynolds -pictured center with her family, drove from Mobile, Alabama. Paula Preston, this year's National Child Care Teacher of the Year, of Quincy, Michigan had four generations of family members in attendance at the awards ceremony. Several of the recipients extended their trip to Philadelphia to visit the area's historic landmarks and attractions. To view photos of the teacher awards ceremony, click here. To hear Paula Preston’s speech or to watch this year's Teacher Awards Ceremony go to www.tllccf.org.
TLLCCF
Nobody trumps our bridge classic Join us for the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation's 22nd annual Golf, Bridge & Games Classic, which will be held on Monday, June 14, 2010 at Green Valley Country Club, Lafayette Hill, PA. Test your bridge skills or play Mah Jong. Bid on an auction prize or two. Try your luck in our raffle. Come. Participate. Have a good time. Help a good cause. Sponsor a bridge table and help support our grant-making efforts. Our success in the 2010 Golf, Bridge & Games Classic will help determine our grant allocations for 2011. Sponsorships have a positive impact on our local child care community. Programs the TLLCCF funded last year had a positive effect on more than 4,000 children and hundreds of teachers. Please help us ensure that we continue to improve the quality of nonprofit, nonsectarian centers in the region by renewing a sponsorship or by becoming a sponsor. It's a win-win all around. You will feel great for helping and we will show you a good time. To sign up to participate or become a sponsor click here http://tllccf.org/ev_golf_sform.php, visit www. tllccf.org or call 610-992-1140.
TLLCCF
See you on the fairways Don't be left out in the rough. Join us for the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation's 22nd Annual Golf, Bridge & Games Classic, which will be held on Monday, June 14, 2010 at Green Valley Country Club, Lafayette Hill, PA. Join honorary chair Merrill Reese, former Eagle all-pro wide receiver Mike Quick and Eagle all-pro long-snapper John Dorenbos. Bid on an auction prize or two. Try your luck in our raffle. Come. Participate. Have a good time. Help a good cause. There are still several sponsorship opportunities available. Our success in the 2010 Golf, Bridge & Games Classic will help determine our grant allocations for 2011. Sponsorships have a positive impact on our local child care community. Programs the TLLCCF funded last year had a positive effect on more than 4,000 children and hundreds of teachers. Please help us ensure that we continue to improve the quality of nonprofit, nonsectarian centers in the region by renewing a sponsorship or by becoming a sponsor. It's a win-win all around. You will feel great for helping and we will show you a good time. Pricing for golf participants has been rolled back to 2007 levels. All of the accoutrements you've come to enjoy and expect at our Classic will be provided. For golfers, we will have a post-round reception with drinks and buffet stations immediately following play. We will have our awards and prize presentation, pull raffle tickets and close the silent auction. Major Sponsors signed up so far include Children's TYLENOL®, Audi Wynnewood and Audi Conshohocken, Philadelphia Suburban Development Corporation, Citizen's Bank, Evie and Ron Krancer, Kay and Fred Lokoff, and Joy and Stanley Mandel. On June 1st, check out the online auction by visiting www.tllccf.org. Among the auction prizes is the opportunity to play golf at the event with Philadelphia Eagle's radio color analyst and former all-pro wide receiver Mike Quick. To sign up to participate or become a sponsor click here http://tllccf.org/ev_golf_sform.php, visit www. tllccf.org or call 610-992-1140.
TLLCCF
New findings on Autism presented at teacher awards luncheon Dr. Deborah Schadler, Ph.D., Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Undergraduate Education at Gwynedd-Mercy College in Gwynedd Valley, Pa, delivered the keynote address at the National Child Care Teacher Awards™ Recipients' Luncheon. Dr. Schadler spoke on the topic of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), new research in the field of ASD and how it relates to early care and education. One of the most telling points of her presentation was when she polled the teachers by show of hands how many had children in their classrooms who have been diagnosed with or were at risk for diagnosis on the autism spectrum. Only four of the teachers at the luncheon currently do not have students in their classrooms on the autism spectrum. Dr. Schadler outlined many important areas for early care and education. To read Dr. Schadler's presentation in its entirety, click here.
TLLCCF
What is infant mental health?
By Elizabeth Bogado Briganti, Psy.D. Some may think that the term “Infant Mental Health” has a negative connotation, such as a baby having a diagnosis of Depression or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. While babies can have features of these disorders, IMH does not focus on pathology. Rather, its focus is on optimal growth and on relationships. Specifically, IMH is “concerned with the optimalphysical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of the human infant within the context of his/her family” (Costa, 2007). The infant is principally viewed within a primary relationship – usually but not always his/her mother – and this pair or dyad is the focus of IMH. Thus, the importance of relationships is stressed in IMH, between parent and infant, parent and child care providers, infant and child care providers, between early intervention professionals, etc. Infant Mental Health typically refers not just to infants but to toddlers and young children as well. Parents’ and caregivers’ nurturance and warmth directly influence an infant’s sense of trust and security with themselves, with other adults, and with the world. When a parent or caregiver responds to an infant’s distress, the child learns to seek comfort when she is distressed versus suffering alone. Babies and young children are not little adults; they need to be able to ask for help and to be responded to with kindness and understanding. This is how they learn how to regulate and manage their feelings, which will prevent them acting out in later years. Not surprisingly, the positive qualities in infant-parent/caregiver relationships have been linked to more optimal social, emotional and cognitive development. Thus, relationships between the child and the important adults in her life really set the stage for learning. The earliest relationships directly affect brain growth. Beginning in the last quarter of pregnancy through the second year of life, the brain has a growth spurt where the wiring is being laid down for the first time. Interestingly, brain growth depends on the interpersonal experience it receives. In other words, the child’s brain grows through relationships. Thus, babies and young children need positive social experiences during this period for their brains to grow properly, and experience with primary caregivers shapes the way in which circuits are made in the brain. Loving, nurturing early experiences wire the brain connections for healthy, curious, motivated children who can adapt to a variety of situations, while harmful early experiences lay a very different foundation. Children raised under adverse circumstances (i.e., repeated abuse, exposure to domestic violence, parental mental health issues) demonstrate a harder time developing healthy relationships, have difficulty concentrating in school, may be distracted by being constantly vigilant of their surroundings, and often become involved in substance abuse. These kids are not free to learn. Children do not want to be “bad” and act out. However, they may not have a choice if they endured unhealthy relationships and traumatic experiences in their early years. If no one protected them or helped them regulate their feelings early in life, how would they know how to themselves? To learn more about IMH, the 2nd Annual Pennsylvania Infant Mental Health Conference will take place on October 22-23, 2010 at the University of Pennsylvania. Visit www.chatham.edu/imh for more information. To receive training in IMH, there are two certificate programs in the Philadelphia area, including Widener University (www.postgraduatecenter.org) and Arcadia University (www.arcadia.edu). The organization Zero to Three (www.zerotothree.org) is a wonderful resource as well. Elizabeth Bogado Briganti, Psy.D. is a licensed psychologist with a specialty in infant and early childhood mental health/parent-child interactions. Dr. Briganti is a graduate of the Certificate Program in Infant Mental Health affiliated with Chatham University, and is a faculty member in Widener University’s Certificate Program in Early Childhood Mental Health. She is a board member of the Delaware Valley Group/World Association of Infant Mental Health and founder of the Infant Mental Health Peer Supervision Group of Philadelphia. Dr. Briganti has given talks at local conferences, preschools, and hospitals on child development. She has a particular interest in infant/child-parent psychotherapy and infant developmental assessment. She has a private practice in Philadelphia and Rosemont, PA where she sees children of all ages, families, adults, and couples.
TLLCCF
2009 teacher award winner gains confidence and furthers career
By Stacy Stefaniak Luther Initially I was experiencing shock and disbelief when I opened my packet from the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation (TLLCCF). I read the letter a couple of times and then bounced back into my preschool classroom, shaking with anticipation. After sharing the news with my co-teachers I went to find my supervisors. I won. I couldn’t believe it. Everyone was excited and immediately an e-mail was sent out to all of the parents and staff at the Child Care Center. It was a whirlwind the next several weeks as I planned the trip to Pennsylvania and answered many questions and received many congratulations. The experience is hard to describe. Plane tickets, hotel reservations, rental car, makeover, meeting new colleagues. It was different than anything I had ever experienced before. It was excitement, appreciation, thankfulness, pride, and contentment. It helped me gain a sense of confidence in my classroom teaching abilities. I was able to teach and the people at the TLLCCF believed that I could make an impact on young lives. Imagine, writing a few paragraphs about what I had always wanted to add to my classroom and receiving the money to do so! But it was more than the money, it was that I was being honored and appreciated for something that not many people recognize. As a teacher, especially an early childhood teacher, it was very difficult to have confidence when people would consistently ask when I planned on getting a “real job.” Family would say, “Stacy teaches preschool.” It would always be followed up with a response among the lines of, “Well, it’s hard to get a teaching job these days.” I loved my job as an early childhood teacher; it is hard and rewarding work. The TLLCCF is the first opportunity I have heard of for early childhood teachers to get the recognition that they deserve. Winning the award made me feel as though someone out there appreciates the early education work that people around the world don’t receive enough credit for. It made me confident that if I was capable of winning this award, I would be capable of many more things. The children in my classroom were abuzz with excitement the day our new materials arrived. They had helped me dig through many catalogs to pick out our dramatic play materials (my award winning project was for enhancing the dramatic play area in my classroom). They awoke after nap to find many new materials to explore. The sharing was the most impressive part. Even though they were all excited and they all wanted a turn, they were capable of patience as well as showing respect for the care of the new materials. The puppets were talking; the school bus was full of kids on their way to “school.” It was exciting to watch how the dramatic play center gained creativity and became a social gathering point within one day of the arrival of the new materials. It was no longer the pretend to cook area, but an interactive area alive with creativity. With the addition of our new supplies, our dramatic play curriculum was in full swing. Soon after, I was approached by my supervisor for whom I was teaching behavioral therapy to children with Autism. He was impressed with my work with early childhood as well as with the children on the Autism Spectrum that I was working with. Would I be willing to be a behavioral therapist full-time? Of course I was. It was very hard to leave my classroom, but I would still get an opportunity to work with children and assist with their development. I have been a full-time Senior Behavioral Therapist since. The TLLCCF award made me feel confident in my abilities. It made me feel I was even more capable and successful with teaching children than I thought I was. In correlation with my new job, it has opened my eyes to many other opportunities with children. After all, if the TLLCCF believed that I was a successful teacher, I must do at least a decent job working with children. The people behind the TLLCCF award were complete strangers and they could see the potential that I had in growing as a teacher. I am now enrolled in an online university to earn a Master’s Degree in Psychology with a specialization in Child and Adolescent Development. I wish to continue to pursue my PsyD in Clinical Psychology immediately after completion of the Master’s degree. I don’t believe that I would have had the confidence to continue my education and explore other realms of early childhood without the TLLCCF. I am thankful each day for the opportunity they provided for me and for continuing to influence my work with young children.
Stacy Stefaniak Luther, Child Care Center of St. Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield, WI, is a 2009 National Child Care Teacher Award Recipient.
TLLCCF
Scott E. Brucker to be inducted to the TLLCCF board of directors
Scott E. Brucker, Member of the Corporate Law Department at Cozen O’Connor in Philadelphia, PA, will join the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation’s board of directors. Brucker’s law practice is in the areas of general corporate law, securities law, and mergers and acquisitions counseling. He has served as acting General Counsel to a NYSE-listed client. He is a member of the board of directors of Jewish Family and Children’s Service and the Philadelphia Children’s Theatre. He is also a member of the American, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia Bar Associations. He has been named a Pennsylvania “Rising Star” by Law & Politics. Welcome to the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation Board of Directors Scott Brucker. We look forward to your participation.
TLLCCF
Why I serve on the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation's board
By Shelley Greenbaum Loving children, helping to make a difference, helping early care and education teachers advance in status, seeing the progress of our work - all make for a great feeling of satisfaction. I have nine grandchildren, all of whom went through early care and education. They were very prepared for kindergarten and all do extremely well in school, as well as having excellent social skills and ability to share with their friends. Not only do I have great respect for what this Foundation does, but I am proud to be a part of the wonderful staff, the volunteers that give so freely of their time and expertise, and the joy of seeing the advancements that are being made. Being on the Board of Directors and being in the loop of decision making, taking part in our fund raisers and seeing their success, helping to solicit for contributions to fulfill the goals of our work, knowing that money for grants is available, being a witness to the Teacher Awards and what it means to the teachers and their projects – makes me fulfilled. Being a member of the TLLCCF board of directors is a labor of love. TLLCCF Staff
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