Boston, MA – Seven early childhood professionals in Boston have been selected to receive the prestigious CAYL Schott Fellowship in Early Care and Education, run by the Cambridge-based CAYL (Community Advocates for Young Learners) Institute. The seven from Boston were chosen to be part of a cohort of twelve CAYL Schott Fellows statewide. This esteemed award supports a diverse group of early care and education leaders in strengthening public policy for young children in the Commonwealth.
«CAYL Schott Fellows are ‘architects for change’ for children and families in the Commonwealth,» said Dr. Valora Washington, President of the CAYL Institute.
«This Fellowship is a hands-on experience that will provide development of policy skills and a learning community for child advocates and educators who want to make a difference in the availability and quality of the preschool years,» Dr. Washington continued.
CAYL Schott Fellows seek to build public will and improve public policy to achieve quality education for all young learners.
The seven 2009 CAYL Schott Fellows from Boston are:
Flossy Calderon (Roxbury) – Flossy Calderon is the Program Director for ABCD Head Start at Roxbury St. and Lenox St. Within the last two years Flossy has successfully lead her program through Federal Review, renewal of State License by the Department of Early Education & Care and re-accreditation by NAEYC. Flossy graduated from the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2001 where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Social Psychology.
Isabel Cartagena (Chelsea) – Isabel Cartagena is the Education and DCF Coordinator at Child Development and Education, Inc. in Malden. She works with family child care providers to offer guidance to ensure children’s programs are in a safe, nurturing setting. She received her Associate’s degree in early childhood education from Aquinas College.
Eric Mitchell (Boston) – Eric Mitchell is the Outreach and Policy Director for Head Start and Children’s Services, which provides Head Start and child care services for 2400 children throughout Boston. He received his undergraduate degree from Tufts University and a Graduate Certificate in Human Services management from Suffolk University.
Sandra Bispham Parkin (Boston) – Sandra Bispham Parkin is the Director of the University of Massachusetts, Boston, Early Learning Center. She graduated from UMass Boston, where she received a BA in Human Services Planning, but has also completed numerous courses in Early Childhood Education at Roxbury Community College and Wheelock College. Sandra has been working within the early childhood field since 1979.
Tomas Reyes (Boston) – Tomas Reyes works as a technical assistance and training specialist for the Head Start Quality Initiative, Donahue Institute, University of Massachusetts. He holds a doctorate and a master of science on Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Carlos Albizu University in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He also holds a master of arts on Social and Community Psychology, and a baccalaureate on philosophy both from the University of Puerto Rico in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico.
Grace Richardson (Dorchester) – Grace Richardson is a licensed large family child care provider and is also the Executive Director and one of the founders of the American Family Child Care Association. The AFCCA is a statewide family child care association. The Association works to enhance and improve FCC by protecting the rights of family child care businesses, promoting the service to the general public and assisting businesses to improve their sales and profits. She has an Associate Degree in Early Education and attended UMASS Boston’s CPCS Law Center.
Lourdes Sariol (Boston) – L
