This week we were asked to look at 3 national organizations that foster the well-being of children, families, and the early childhood field. The 3 national organizations that I chose to look into are:
1. National Head Start Association (NHSA): NHSA is a national organization that works to advocate for children, families, and communities; their goal is to “work diligently for policy and institutional changes that ensure all vulnerable children and families have what they need to succeed” by providing support and resources to families and communities (National Head Start Association, 2012, para. 2). NHSA has two programs, Head Start (which was created in 1965) and Early Head Start (which was created in 1994) that “serve children and families earning income at or below the federal poverty level” (National Head Start Association, 2012, para. 1). This organization really interests me, especially in light of my Capstone Project, which is focusing on the equity in education gap for young children from low-socioeconomic backgrounds. There is a job board on the NHSA website with positions that range from director, teacher’s aide, cook, child development specialist, and education coordinators for open positions across the United States; however you have to be a member of NHSA to view the full position listing. However, after some more searching on the website, I found that there is a careers section with two currently open positions within the NHSA, a public policy and research director and a communications intern. The one that interested me more was the public policy and research director:
- Public Policy and Research Director: To qualify for this position, you must have a graduate degree in public policy or related field, knowledge of Head Start Programs, and good communication skills. The duties of this job would include conducting, tracking, and analyzing research, developing public policy proposals, and serving as a liaison between the Research and Evaluation Committees and the NHSA Board of Directors.
2. National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC): This organization is one that I have used a lot during this program and has always provided me with great information and resources. NAEYC was founded in1926 and is “the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children with nearly 80,000 members, a national network of more than 300 state and local Affiliates, and a growing global alliance of like-minded organizations” (NAEYC, n.d., para. 1). After looking around this website, I found that they currently have 5 career openings and are in the process of developing a Career Forum where job seekers can look through openings posted by employers (you must be a member to access this). In the NAEYC careers section, I learned that all job positions through NAEYC are located in Washington, D.C. at NAEYC’s headquarters; these positions range from chief technology officer to conference coordinator to editor. The one that interested me the most was Copy Editor/Production Editor.
- Copy Editor/Production Editor: To qualify for this job, you must have a BA, copyediting experience, know Chicago/APA formatting, and electronic editing tools. The duties for this job would be to copyedit, proofread, and provide production services for NAEYC publishing.
3. Children’s Defense Fund (CDF): I chose this organization because it is one that I have used in the past but would definitely like to learn more about. It especially appeals to me because of its history; CDF was founded in 1973 by Marian Wright Edelman, a civil rights leader. This national organization works to provide research and develop policies to protect the well-being of children and families; ultimately it has “challenged the United States to raise its standards by improving policies and programs for children” (Children’s Defense Fund, 2012, para. 2). I learned that CDF currently has 7 open positions, all located in Washington, D.C.; they range from writer/editor, to accounting manager, to database manager, to communications manager. After reading the descriptions, the one that interested me the most was Research /Direct Mail Manager.
- Research /Direct Mail Manager: To qualify for this position, you must have a BA and experience with professional research and direct mail, have excellent computer skills, and be able to manage campaigns. The duties for this position include collecting, analyzing, and managing data, and develop new programs.
Learning more about these great national organizations was really interesting, I would love to become involved in any one of these organizations. It was really eye-opening to see all of the different positions and areas that these organizations have and how wide the career opportunities are through them!
References:
Children’s Defense Fund. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.childrensdefense.org/
National Association for the Education of Young Children, NAEYC. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/
National Head Start Association. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.nhsa.org/
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