La Plume, Pa. – Keystone College has received a state grant to collaborate with Shippensburg University to survey early childhood education teachers about the ways they most effectively learn the skills they need to perform their jobs.
The two institutions of higher learning, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Higher Education Consortium, received a $250,000 grant from the administration of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf to administer and collect survey data on early childhood teachers’ perspectives about the skills they believe can be learned on the job compared to the skills that can be learned through college coursework. Results of the survey will help design more effective pre-apprenticeship programs to educate future childcare professionals.
The grant is part of a $1.5 million investment by the Wolf Administration to improve the quality of early childhood education with grants to 10 colleges and universities across the commonwealth. Keystone is the only college or university in Northeastern Pennsylvania to receive one of the early childhood education grants.
“It is vital that our children are being served by educators who have access to course work and degrees grounded in the most recent research around children’s learning and development,” said Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Pedro A. Rivera in a press release from Governor Wolf’s office. “This grant program builds on the commonwealth’s commitment to increase the number of high-quality, effective professionals in our early childhood programs, ultimately benefiting children and families for years to come.”
“We are extremely grateful to the Wolf Administration for selecting Keystone College to be part of this important early childhood education initiative,”said Keystone College President Tracy L. Brundage, Ph.D. “We look forward to partnering with our friends at Shippensburg University to begin collecting survey data which will ultimately be used to improve the quality of early childhood education throughout the state.”
Enrolling nearly 1,400 students, Keystone offers more than 40 undergraduate and graduate degree options in liberal arts and science-based programs in business, communications, education, fine arts, natural science, environmental science, and social sciences. Located 15 minutes from Scranton, Pa. and two hours from New York City and Philadelphia, Keystone is known for small class sizes and individual attention focused on student success through internships, research, and community involvement.
Photo: Keystone College officials accept a state grant to survey early childhood education teachers about the ways they most effectively learn the skills they need to perform their jobs. From left: Carolyn Crowley, community partnership program specialist; Sue Musheno, advancement specialist; Peter Moylan, major gifts officer; Fran Langan, Ed.D., vice president institutional advancement and strategic initiatives; Keely Kettel, program and advancement generalist.
