NACCTEP Now welcomes Ms. Rene' Manning from Rio Salado College's undergraduate Early Childhood Program and Dr. Allison Landy from Northland Pioneer College's Early Childhood Program to jointly discuss the seamless pathway they've developed for students to earn a Bachelor of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education. Through this partnership, students who complete an Associate of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education at Rio Salado College can apply to and seamlessly transfer 100% of their credits into Northland Pioneer College's Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education program to complete their studies. With no loss of credits and no need to retake courses, the first cohort of students has been able to complete the BAS in just four semesters.

Not only is this an effective way to address the continuing shortage of teachers in early childhood, it is also a leading example of how transfers between community colleges and other institutions can painlessly benefit students.

From May 3, 2024

In this episode we kick-off Mental Health month with founder and CEO of Educators Thriving, Dr. Tyler Hester. He shares what he describes as the five pitfalls leading to educator burnout: Overwhelm, personal neglect, conflict, unexpected challenges, and isolation. Moreover, he shares how his team is supporting schools, districts, and labor unions around the country to buck burnout through a two-pronged approach: First, they facilitate professional learning experiences in which educators can learn about, practice with, and apply strategies empirically proven to increase well-being. Second, they work alongside school and system leaders to measure the well-being of educators, analyze the results, and take strategic action on the basis of what they find. Educators Thriving envisions a world in which every educator reaches the heights of their potential – and works in a system that makes that possible. Come hear more about how they’re pursuing that important vision. Catalog of sessions - educatorsthriving.org/_files/ugd/106140_6637dc79ec0741e299a1c2ec371f4725.pdf

Dr. Fay Lee shares her 30 year journey from being a middle school paraprofessional with a bachelor's degree through earning a masters in education with certification to teaching at the preschool and high school levels and on into being a community college instructor, first of English and then of teacher education. From there Dr. Lee added being a faculty advisor for education and on into administration with her current role as Dean of Instruction for the Lone Star College system. As such, she endeavors to help reduce the teacher shortage and associated learning loss resulting from uncertified teachers in the classroom.

Based on feedback from local districts as well as universities across the state, Dr. Lee assists in making practical adjustments to Lone Star College's education programs. With Texas recently approving the offering of bachelors degrees from community colleges, Dr. Lee is hopeful that they may be able to add bachelors degrees in elementary to their new offering of early childhood bachelors degrees.