Merrill

“Leadership skills are not something that’s just for administration. Leadership skills are part of all staff, and it doesn’t matter what role you’re in here, you’re representing our program."



Working on Our Own

								“ The administrators are there for us, but we pretty much run ourselves. We’re pretty much a self-managed situation.” “ That’s probably a great compliment to the administration (in reference to) the fact that they’ve allowed us to pave the way as we saw fit. In the very beginning, the idea of putting those monies together (garnered) a great deal of support from those programs. Nobody ever said no. They gave us a lot of support and encouragement to go ahead with our ideas.”



Sharing the Leadership Role

								“Leadership skills are not something that’s just for administration. Leadership skills are part of all staff, and it doesn’t matter what role you’re in here, you’re representing our program. There’s a lot of opportunity for leadership. Many times our parents will come to the person they feel most comfortable with and not necessarily the one with the most degrees. So everybody gets thrust into leadership all the time.”
				Head Start Director, Little Learners Head Start



How the Children Benefit

								“ One of the points I’m not sure I touched on heavily is the children themselves. Obviously the point of the program is to make a difference for the kids. The early childhood special education program and the Head Start program provide the necessary support and background so that these young boys and girls, as they work their way through the initial learning stages, will find themselves being much more comfortable and confident when they get into a traditional school setting in kindergarten and first grade/second grade. The ultimate benefit for the children has been demonstrated through the success of history with the program.”



Happy with the Program

								“ My child’s name is Taylor. She was in early childhood for a speech delay. (I’m) very pleased with the program. She was in an IEP and started kindergarten this last year. Within a month she was off her IEP. We know it was because of the early childhood program and the teachers that helped her. I was very happy with the teachers and the aides. (They) were very friendly. They always looked after Taylor, her interests and what would benefit her. It’s an excellent program, excellent teachers, excellent aides. I don’t know what else to say. I was very, very happy with them.”
				Parent