Children's Village Featured in PHLpreK Newsletter!
Children’s Village recently hosted Sean Perkins, Chief of Early Childhood Education, City of Philadelphia, and other PHLpreK representatives from the Office of Children and Families (OCF) for a tour. PHLpreK’s November 2022 newsletter featured expert tips from Mary Graham, Executive Director, Children’s Village. Scroll to read the section of the newsletter that shared Ms. Graham’s insight!
Welcome to the latest edition of the PHLpreK newsletter. We are excited to spread the word, highlight programs, promote upcoming events, and share tips and tools with you.
PHLpreK funds 4,300 free, quality, pre-K seats at 180 centers throughout Philadelphia
OCF visited the Children’s Village (CV) in Center City to speak with Executive Director Mary Graham. CV is an independent, non-profit organization that provides high-quality early childhood education to young children and educational enrichment to school-age children. It serves families of all economic levels and diverse backgrounds. CV is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and is a Keystone STAR 4 Program.
Graham shared some pivotal insight on her longevity in education, the use of classroom systems, and center success. PHLpreK asked Graham to share one tip that can and will be useful to other providers. Here is what she shared:
“Quality is:
Children placed in classrooms based on their age and development.
Teachers paid based on their credentials and experience.
Families being welcomed into any classroom and not being identified as poor, unemployed, or homeless.
A community that is diverse and accepting.
When we use funding to segregate children, we are not honoring one of the major intents of high-quality early education, which is teaching children to be accepting of others. This is why we have had braided funding since our inception, and strongly believe children should be in classrooms based on their age, not based on their funding. Staff should be paid based on their credentials and experience, not based on the age or funding of the child.”