Fellowship Program in Early Childhood Education and Child Development

at Calvin Hill Day Care Center and the Yale Child Study Center

Calvin Hill Day Care Center, in collaboration with the Yale Child Study Center, is proud to offer one Seedlings Fellowship opportunity for the 2021-2022 academic year. Our fellowship program is a unique combination of engagement in a high quality preschool classroom setting and participation in related courses in a nationally renowned child development clinic. The one-year program is designed as a supervised and supported entry into the professional world of early childhood education, childcare, and clinical work with young children.

The Seedlings Teaching Fellowship: This program is for individuals with a dedicated interest in child development, early childhood education, and clinical evaluations and interventions with young children and their families. Seedlings fellows have had some classroom experience and/or a degree in Early Childhood Education or Child Development. They are passionate about and interested in issues of childcare, early childhood education and advocacy on behalf of young children. Fellows participate in the weekly seminar, “Clinical Child Development and Assessment of Young Children” at the Yale Child Study Center. Fellows observe senior clinicians conducting developmental assessments and participate in the ongoing discussion of diagnostic formulations. Through this exposure, Fellows become familiar with the processes of clinical referrals, diagnostic assessment, how clinicians think about the behaviors of children in groups, the differences between an educational and a therapeutic intervention, and models for working with children in an educational setting. Depending on their preparation and background, Seedlings Fellows may have the opportunity to participate in the seminar, “Theory and Practice of Early Childhood Education.” This course, offered by the Yale Child Study Center, explores developmentally appropriate curriculum and instruction for young children.

Graduates of this fellowship have gone on to pursue advanced degrees in education, medicine, and psychiatry. Many continue to teach in childcare and early education settings, take on leadership roles, or work in other related fields to improve the quality of care for children.

Fellows work a full teaching schedule at Calvin Hill and become an integral member of the highly experienced teaching team. Under the supervision of their mentor, they gradually assume all the responsibilities of a teacher over the course of the year. They are involved in all aspects of the program including planning curriculum for large and small groups as well as individual children, leading activities, maintaining the classroom and materials, and participating in parent conferences. Their growing participation enables them to become immersed in and to share all aspects of the early childhood classroom environment.

Calvin Hill is a nationally accredited, model educational preschool and Kindergarten program for the children of Yale and New Haven community families. Calvin Hill and the Yale Child Study Center value diversity in the families they serve and their staff. Families pay tuition based upon a sliding fee scale and the Center is an inclusive community, serving around sixty children from a wide variety of ethnic and economic backgrounds.

The fellowships begin in August 2021 and end in July 2022. Fellows have full health coverage provided through the Yale Health Plan. Health Plan application forms must be submitted in August. Fellows receive a one-year stipend of $23,100. Checks are issued twice a month beginning in the middle of September.

Application Requirements:

· Applicants must have a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree.

• Applicants must be interested in further developing their knowledge of early childhood education and child development.

• A background in early childhood education or college course work in early childhood education and/or developmental psychology is preferred. Applicants may hold non-matriculated credits in child development and/or early childhood education. Fellows may already have some teaching experience.

• Applicants must be mature, stable, and flexible. They must be able to interact sensitively, tactfully, respectfully, and warmly with young children and their parents. They must be willing to work as a member of a team of teachers. Reliability and responsibility are essential, as the fellows will be counted on as members of the teaching staff.

• Applicants should be interested in issues of childcare, early childhood education and advocacy on behalf of young children.

NOTE: Depending on COVID-19 program restrictions, finalists will be asked to attend a full-day, mandatory visit at Calvin Hill Day Care Center in New Haven, CT on a date to be determined in the spring of 2021. Finalists will observe in the classrooms, meet the teaching staff, and interview with members of the Fellowship Selection Committee.

Please send to Randi Alpert (Administrative Associate), Calvin Hill Day Care Center, 150 Highland Street, New Haven, CT 06511.

· Completed application (3 copies).

· Current resume (3 copies)

· A brief statement of your professional goals. (3 copies) We are particularly interested in knowing about your thoughts about teaching, learning, and children.

· A short autobiography of your life experiences as they apply to your work interests. (3 copies)

· Three references each consisting of a formal letter and the attached reference form, each mailed in a sealed and signed envelope.

· Your college transcript (1 copy)

Requests for applications should be made to Randi Alpert, randi@calvinhilldaycare.org or call (203) 764-9350. Applications are due by Monday, March 5, 2021. Visit our website at www.calvinhilldaycare.org for more information.