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New Survey To Help With Attracting Quality Directors, Assistant Directors, and Teachers

ECE-RJ has hired Association Research Inc. to publish a compensation and benefits report. A survey will be sent out to all Directors of Early Childhood Education within the Reform Movement, and a separate link was provided for the Directors to share with their staff.

One of my roles is to serve as a resource to congregations who are going through the placement process for a new Director of Early Childhood Education. I have seen how difficult it is to put forth a competitive salary and benefits package that fits within the constraints of a tight budget and can still attract highly qualified candidates. By hiring an independent third-party firm like Association Research, we will have solid data to help congregations make informed decisions during their hiring process.

We expect to be able to provide the results from the survey this December.

Dear Friends,

I want to share with you a topic that I am passionate about, the children in migrant detention centers. As someone who spends every day with young children, watching on the news what is occurring just breaks my heart. 

I just think about how sad and scared these children must be, separated from their families and living in an unfamiliar place.   

In mid-June, attorney and children’s-rights advocate Warren Binford gained access to a Clint, Texas Border Patrol facility where 351 migrant children were detained; more than 100 were under 13 years old, with the youngest just over 4 months.  

Children are being separated from their families and placed in what I believe are inadequate facilities.  Center employees, who are not their parents, are punishing these children, including making them sleep on the floor. This is not right.

Can you imagine what the long-term effects will be on these children? Past studies have found that children who are subject to traumatic events, such as what these migrant children are going through, experience a stress response commonly known as fight or flight.

 Many times, if this fight or flight response is prolonged, it can change a child’s brain architecture. The consequences include learning difficulties, increased depression, and other social and emotional lasting effects.

As professionals, who spend our days protecting and helping young children grow mentally and physically, we need to make our voices heard on this matter.

L’Shalom,
Lori