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Nancy Bailey
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February 15, 2002

The Johnston Community College Early Childhood Education program has placed students in local community preschool and child care centers through its Cooperative Work Experience.

The Early Childhood Education Program is a two-year associate degree program designed to prepare students to function effectively in working with early childhood age children. Through study and application, the student is exposed to areas such as child growth and development, physical and nutritional needs of children, care and guidance of children and planning and writing developmentally appropriate activities to use with children.

Nicky Cox, department chair, said that the cooperative work experience gives the student more experience in directing early childhood activities.

The students spend 20 hours per week caring for and guiding young children in their assigned work experience sites under the direction of a cooperating teacher. They also attend a 1 hour lecture once a week and have scheduled conferences with their college supervisor. This allows them time on campus to coordinate their planned units of study and discuss daily activities in their respective centers.

The cooperative work experience is supervised by Priscilla Prevette. The work experience sites include private centers, family/homes, public school preschools, licensed centers, church preschools, and school-age care programs and extends to Wayne, Wake, and Harnett Counties as well as Johnston County. Erin Speer Smith, director of the Smart Start Training Center at the JCC Preschool, and Andrea Zipf and Lisa Ormond, preschool teachers, assist with the supervision and guidance of students placed in the JCC Preschool or who observe or visit the preschool.

The following students are working in child care settings in Johnston and surrounding counties throughout the spring semester.

Angela Lynn of Goldsboro, Rosewood Elementary Pre-K, Goldsboro; Bobbi Capps of Angier, Ann's Child Care and Learning Center, Clayton; Windi Pounds of Selma, First Baptist Church Garner Preschool; Zan Lipscomb of Clayton, Lipscomb's Kindergarten and Day Care, Clayton; Donna Eason, of Four Oaks, Building Blocks #3, Clayton; Myra Peedin of Selma, Building Blocks #3, Clayton; Michelle Gilmore of Benson, JCC Preschool, Smithfield, and Rosewood Elementary YMCA, Goldsboro; Melissa Stancil of Benson, Godwin's Little Busy Bodies, Dunn; Keri Gilchrist of Raleigh, JCC Preschool, Smithfield; Mamie Newsome of Micro, Smithfield Headstart; Annette Stallings of Selma, Princeton Headstart; Ella George of Selma, Selma Headstart; Blondell Campbell of Benson, Smithfield Headstart; Edna Taylor of Benson, Smithfield Headstart; Glenda Ruffin of Selma, Kenly Headstart; Deborah Atkinson of Four Oaks, Smithfield Headstart; Frances Hughes of Smithfield, Smithfield Headstart; Karen Shepherd of Selma, Shepherd's Home Day Care, Selma; Katrina Sanders of Princeton, A Bright Start Child Care Center, Smithfield; Naomi Hamer of Clayton, Lipscomb's Kindergarten and Day Care, Clayton; Jenifer Ray of Clayton, Cooper Elementary School, Clayton; and Mary Mitchell of Wendell, JCC Preschool, Smithfield.

The Cooperative Work Experience of the JCC Early Childhood Education program places students in area child care centers and preschools. Pictured are (front, from left) Erin Smith of Clayton, JCC Preschool director, and students Mary Mitchell of Wendell, Naomi Hamer of Clayton, Annette Stallings of Selma, Frances Hughes of Smithfield, and Deborah Atkinson of Four Oaks; (2nd row) Edna Taylor of Benson, Blondell Campbell of Benson, Jenifer Ray of Clayton, Bobbi Capps of Angier, Katrina Sanders of Princeton, Kim Foti of Clayton, Michelle Gilmore of Benson, and early childhood instructor Priscilla Prevette; (back row) Nicky Cox, director of the Early Childhood associate’s degree program, Mamie Newsome of Micro, Ella George of Selma, Glenda Ruffin of Selma, Myra Peedin of Selma, Karen Shepherd of Selma, and Melissa Stancil of Benson.