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East Hartford, CT 06118 Tel 860.528.4111 Toll Free 800.889.3282 |
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Please share a little bit about your background and what led you to Goodwin College. I started my educational career at Central Connecticut State University right from high school, then moved out of state and transferred to St. Petersburg in Florida. I finally traveled back home and anchored in at Goodwin College. I have been working with children for over 14 years and am currently a Pre-Kindergarten teacher at Mother Goose Children’s Center in South Windsor, the town where I grew up. Describe your experience at Goodwin and what made the college and your program the most worthwhile. I love Goodwin! Each day that I step foot onto campus, whether the portables on Burnside Avenue to the new site on Riverside Drive, I always have a smile of excitement for the experience I take on. The most infectious part of attending Goodwin has been the inspiring professors and fellow students I had the opportunity to meet and take this journey with. They have helped shape me into the student and teacher I am and continue to be to this day. The classes I have taken have given me hands-on experience that has guided me through the tough courses. We share open discussions and real life skills with each other. Goodwin has also supported my education by honoring me as a member of the National Honor Society of the Phi Theta Kappa Chapter. I am currently the secretary of the ECE (Early Childhood Education) club at Goodwin College. I have enjoyed being a student at Goodwin because of the learning
opportunities I am fortunate to experience, the community involvement that
we take part in, and most of all being a part of the growing field of early
childhood education. “Always show children the kid in you.” I am not sure who said
that or if it is just the fact that I live by, but I truly feel that if you
let go and remember the kid in you, your students will always feel
comfortable. No matter what kind of day my students are having or what we
have planned to teach, I always find a way to connect with them on their
level. Most of the time, it’s when I act like a kid. This is when I feel a
child can trust you and open up their mind to learn from you. I have also learned so much from my professors in our department – Lori, Kim, and Kathy – because of the experiences they have had and the knowledge they are continuing to receive from the organizations that support our field, such as NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children). What do you hope to do after leaving college? I presently call myself a professional student. I am working to receive my bachelor’s degree in Child Study here at Goodwin. Once I achieve this goal, I will hopefully move on to a local university to receive my master’s in the education field. Do you have a role model? Who? The person in my life that I look up to the most is my sister, Caroline. She is a teacher at O’Brien Elementary School in East Hartford, and she gives me the inspiration to be the best teacher I can. She supports my efforts and always gives me guidance and advice with every turn I take, from my educational goals to the classroom students. She is the one I look up to because of the amazing job she does with her students and classroom curriculum year after year. Thanks Car, I love you! Nicole graduates from Goodwin College on Sunday, June 13.
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