Professional Development Summit

TECEC is proud to share the success of the Early Childhood Professional Development Summit!


More than 500 early childhood teachers, center directors, legislators, community leaders, advocates, foundation leaders, and business leaders attended the August 10, 2010 statewide summit, “Preparing Highly Effective Early Childhood Teachers in Texas: A Focus on School Readiness and Professional Development” in San Antonio, Texas. The Summit focused on Texas’ early childhood workforce and how best to prepare children for success in school.


The Summit consisted of four panels hosted by experts in the field:
• Exploring Best Practices in Professional Development
• Utilizing Cutting Edge Technology to Improve School Readiness
• Texas Higher Education Early Childhood Development Project
• Texas Early Care and Education Career Development System (TECECDS) and State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care (SAC)


In addition, key elected officials, including Representative Rob Eissler, Representative Mark Strama, and Representative Mike Villarreal , participated in a public policy lunch panel. The panel was facilitated by Bill Hammond , President and CEO of the Texas Association of Business.


The early childhood education landscape in Texas consists of a diverse network of professionals and educators operating in a variety of settings, all of whom have different education and training needs and requirements. As we seek to improve the quality of our early childhood education system, it is essential we focus on how to prepare and develop highly effective teachers and leaders. This Summit represents a critical step in moving Texas toward a stronger professional early childhood workforce. 


Many thanks to the summit organizers who made this event successful:
• Children's Learning Institute (CLI)
• Family Service Association
• Texas Education Agency (TEA)
• Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE)
• Raise Your Hand Texas (RYHT)
• Texas Association of Business (TAB)
• Texas Association for the Education of Young Children (TAEYC)
• Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA)
• Texas Association of School Boards (TASB)
• Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office (THSSCO)
• Texas PBS
• Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA)


This summit was made possible by our generous corporate sponsors: