Another school year is underway. Our early childhood centers welcomed new and returning families. The beginning of a new school year is always filled with excitement and perhaps even a little trepidation as children, parents and teachers create new classroom communities and new connections. This year, there is another new element for a small group of emerging early childhood educators, mentors, and directors who are beginning a year of learning together. Seven East Bay Jewish early childhood centers are participating in a second cohort of ElevatEd. ElevatEd is a national pilot initiative created to address the shortage of early childcare teachers in Jewish settings. The East Bay is one of eleven communities across the country who are a part of these ElevatEd pioneering communities.

The emerging educators in ElevatEd are committed professionals, new to the field who are engaging in weekly learning sessions alongside 150 educators from these eleven communities. In addition to their weekly learning sessions on teaching and learning, Jewish exploration and child development, they will meet weekly with a mentor from their school to reflect on their practice and integrate these new skills into their classrooms. The East Bay directors also have an opportunity to enhance their knowledge on staff recruitment, retention and onboarding.

Last Thursday, our local ElevatEd cohort of educators, mentors and directors came together to kick off our year of learning. We had an opportunity to learn about each other as educators and what excites us about the year ahead. The dedication of these educators and mentors to engage in an intensive year of learning to deepen their own practice is truly inspiring. May this new cohort of early childhood educators go from strength to strength!