Metropolitan Montessori Schools Vice President Aaron Carrara was recently elected President of the Texas Association for the Education of Young Children (Texas AEYC). The Texas Association for the Education of Young Children is a state affiliate of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) which is the nation’s largest and most influential organization of early childhood educators and others dedicated to improving the quality of programs for children from birth through third grade. Founded in 1966‚ Texas AEYC supports over 2‚000 members statewide with training‚ legislative advocacy‚ grants and scholarships. Membership is open to all who share a desire to serve and act on behalf of the needs and rights of children and families. The mission of Texas AEYC is to provide early childhood educators with opportunities for professional growth and to broaden public awareness on early care and education issues affecting the lives of children and families.
Aaron’s term begins in June 2010 and is a two year commitment. For more information on Texas AEYC please visit www.TexasAEYC.org.
Metropolitan Montessori Schools is pleased to announce Swaroop Dabhi will be joining the MMS Administrative Team on Monday, August 3. Swaroop will assist MMS and Cathedral House Episcopal School in the the capacity of Assistant Director of Operations. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the organization, so please join us in welcoming her to the MMS/Cathedral House family!
Arts Alive is participating in the 2009 Externship Week at Cathedral House on Thursday, June 11, 2009. Please welcome our guests during our Infant/Toddler classes. To highlight the purpose of Arts Alive with young children and Externship Week, we may have media coverage such as the Houston Chronicle, KPRC, etc. To give you a sense of what Externship Week is all about, we have included a brief description.
During the 2009 Teacher Externship Week, June 8-12 , more than 250 public school teachers will spend a week making connections with business professionals and companies from across the Houston region.
Generous support from Shell Oil Company and the Greater Houston Partnership make the annual Externship Program possible.
Houston A+ Challenge’s popular Teacher Externship Program has grown rapidly since its pilot year in 2003, when it launched with six teachers from Reagan High School. One hundred teachers and 40 businesses from throughout the Houston metro area participated in the weeklong program in 2007.
Similar to a job shadowing or immersion program, externships place classroom teachers with business professionals in their field of study.
The experience gives teachers insight into the business world, provides them with new ideas and tools for classroom lessons, and reenergizes them for the school year ahead. Year after year, teachers tell us that lessons planned through this externship help them to add relevance to the classroom and to connect with students in new and exciting ways.
In addition, externships help businesses understand both the importance of classroom learning and the resources that students need to graduate high school prepared for the workplace. In this way , businesses get the chance to help build a highly skilled labor force that is in step with the ever-changing needs of the workplace.
For teachers in career academy programs, externships are particularly important to ensure that they are preparing students for success in specific careers. Companies are also realizing that time invested in business-education partnerships can reduce the training needed by new hires.
