Join us on June 24-26 for our 6th Annual Virtual Summer Institute: Advancing Quality in Defense of Early Childhood Education and Care. We are thrilled to announce some of our lineup of distinguished speakers who will share their expertise and insights during this three-day event. Stay tuned for the finalized schedule, and get ready for an enriching experience!

I am the Co-Founder of Love Our Children NC. Our goal is to keep 5, 6, and 7-year-olds learning in school by ending exclusionary discipline. Tonight, I sang a song I wrote to the New Hanover County (NC) Board of Education about revising Short-Term-Suspension Policy 4251. We want Principals to call K-2 parents before a determination is made to suspend a 5, 6, or 7-year-old child from school. Under the current policy, Principals call a parent after they have suspended their child.

DEY National Advisor Heather Bernt-Santly hosts That Early Childhood Nerd Podcast and speaks with DEY National Advisor Carol Garboden Murray and other guests.



DEY National Advisor and family child care provider Melinda Marshall features Neither by Airlie Anderson for our April Banned Book Club. "Neither is a simple picture book showing children that inclusion is a good thing."

DEY launched the Banned Book Club to resist the attempts to deny children the opportunity to learn from diverse books. Each month, we will feature a banned early childhood book that we encourage you to read to the children in your life. If you are interested in joining our Banned Book Club and promoting a banned book, email denishajones@dey.org.

In preparation for our 6th Annual Summer Institute: Advancing Quality: In Defense of Early Childhood Education and Care, we are conducting a survey to gather insights on quality in early childhood education and care (ECEC).

We seek input from early childhood teachers, directors, providers, and parents to understand their perspectives on quality and how it influences their work and children. We invite participation from individuals across all ECEC settings.

The survey will be open from April 1st to May 4th and will take approximately 20-25 minutes to complete. Your input is invaluable in advancing quality in early childhood education and care.

Please take our survey today and share the recruitment graphic below with your networks!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our Honor an Educator fundraiser. Check out our Honor an Educator webpage to view the honorees and donate today!