For the past two years, the early childhood education program at Elon has been developing, but hasn't gotten off the ground until this semester. Many different departments and instructors were involved in the design and creation of the program, which offers both a major and a minor in early childhood education.
"We did some interest surveys during the design and development," said Heidi Hollingsworth, assistant professor of education and coordinator of the new program. "We heard from admissions when they got calls about Elon's programs and up until this point, we haven't had it to offer."
The students who complete the major will receive a B-K, or birth-Kindergarten, license that indicates they are specially trained to work with children younger than kindergarteners, according to Hollingsworth.
"It's a much earlier focus," she said. "Because of that, it has a lot of focus on family and the social and cultural context rather than just the school context. Graduates will be able to teach in the public school system, but they could also teach in a variety of other places."
One of the main objectives of the program is to encourage stimulation and growth at a very young age.
"Children are so much more capable than what people used to think," said Mary Knight- McKenna, associate professor of education, who has helped coordinate the new program. "With the right stimulation, with the right language, they can start to develop math, science and other skills early."
Prevention is always superior to remediation, she said.
"My hope, personally, is to see the development of reading skills early on," she said. "The research on this is very exciting. Intervening early holds all kind of promise."
While some classes early childhood development majors and minors take are similar to other education programs, the program is structured to encourage more than just students pursuing a career in teaching.
"For anyone who is interested in working with kids, it wouldn't be hard to pick up the minor," Knight-McKenna said.
Alyssa Kendall, a sophomore psychology major, wants to pursue early childhood education as a minor because it will supplement her psychology education.
"I want to be able to understand childhood development through this minor in order to apply the knowledge to my major," she said. "I am interested in childhood development and elementary school psychology, so gaining an understanding of how children develop leading up to the elementary age is important."
A recent N.C. ruling may increase funding for at-risk 4-year-olds by $300 million per year over the next four years. The increased funding would directly help the community centers and schools where Elon students would work.
"It will hopefully increase funding in programs in the community and familiarize resources in the community," Hollingsworth said.
Working within the community is one of the main differences between the early childhood education program and other education programs, as all candidates pursuing the major or minor work directly in the immediate community. The increased state funding would help benefit the children Elon students would work with in daycare centers and schools.
Local centers often struggle financially, as well.
"There was a point in which the Alamance Partnership for Children, who works here in Burlington,was wondering ifthey would have to close their doors," McKenna-Knight said.
Increased funding will start to remediate the financial problem, and the Elon early education program will make connections with programs like the Alamance Partnership for Children.
"We are looking forward to developing relationships with other communities," Hollingsworth said. "There will be challenges, but we want our candidates to see high-quality, inclusive programs working right there with students who have special needs."
Knight-McKenna said she hopes to see early childhood development students spend a semester in Costa Rica, where they would work directly in settings not found in the United States that could give them a unique experience.
"Students would learn Spanish through immersion," she said. "In coming back to the Burlington community, they would have a higher degree of proficiency in working with Hispanic families. It's about connecting various cultures and backgrounds."
Freshman Ciera Martinez said she is interested in the early childhood education program because majoring in it would allow her to fulfill a career goal.
"Being a bilingual daycare owner and coordinator is my goal at the moment, and it will not only benefit me, but my students," she said. "I hope that Elon can give me the experience needed in order to successfully fulfill that goal"