Creating an Extraordinary Impact
Nearly 500 early childhood education professionals and family advocates gathered this week at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center for the third annual two-day Catherine Hershey Schools for Early Learning Early Childhood Education Leaders Summit. Summit attendees included all CHS teachers and staff, direct-care providers at childcare facilities, educators and administrators from K-12 schools and higher education, social workers, non-profit leaders, and more.
“This year our theme is Extraordinary Impact,” CHS Executive Director Senate Alexander said during the CHS ECE Leaders Summit. “It is each person doing their role and really doing it with the passion, the energy that we want to see for them to be able to then really change the trajectory of children and families.”
Extraordinary impact is created by having a continuous quality improvement (CQI) mindset, embracing constant growth, and continuously asking ourselves how we can improve today for a brighter tomorrow.
The Summit not only brought together experts and new perspectives in early childhood education but engaged a community around commitment to excellence in the field.
It allowed us to foster mutual learning with the collective goal to optimize ECE by expanding knowledge, igniting innovation, inspiring passion, and creating extraordinary impact in the lives of the children and families we serve.
The first day of the Summit featured a high-impact keynote address from Michael Bonner, an internationally recognized educator, author, and speaker known for transforming leadership, culture, and team development at the highest levels. Bonner’s electrifying address challenged attendees to rethink how they build authentic relationships and create elite organizational success through vision-driven leadership.
The schedule for day two was filled with opportunities for participants to learn from and interact with additional keynote speakers, attend small group workshops, and network, providing a balance of knowledge-building and inspiration.
Participants first heard from Jon Gordon, a best-selling author of The Energy Bus and renowned leadership speaker. Gordon described ways to develop positive leaders, organizations, and teams to deliver optimal results.
“The key to growth is to be a lifelong learner,” Gordon said. “So when you’re coming to events like this, you’re learning new things. And one idea, literally one idea, could change the course of your career in the course of your life.”
The audience left the address empowered with a positive mindset and leadership skills to overcome challenges, build a culture, and lead with purpose to make a greater impact at work and home.
To expand on the topics of focus, attendees participated in morning breakout sessions based on their profession, which included:
- Sensory Processing Integration and Strategies: Building understanding of how children receive and respond to sensory information and leverage evidence-based practices to support sensory processing development, led by Prerna Richards of Together We Grow.
- Involving Fathers in their Child’s Education: Equipping practitioners to draw in and encourage fathers as they support their children’s education and development at school and at home, led by Dr. Latrice Rollins.
- ECE 101: Understanding Your Impact from Outside the Classroom: Helping adults outside the classroom identify and understand the importance of their potential impact on child learning and development, led by CHS New Danville Center Director Jessica Bailey, Dr. Hannah Mudrick of Penn State Harrisburg, and Dr. Shannon Wanless of the University of Pittsburgh.
- Difficult Conversations: Managing Relationships with Colleagues & Families: Facilitating improved communications across lines of difference and managing challenging conversations with colleagues, families, and other stakeholders, led by Krista Beljan of DAME Leadership.
Following lunch, the afternoon general session was focused on innovation beginning with a panel discussion with early childhood education leaders about how they are leveraging creativity to advance solutions in early education both locally and across the country. The panel featured Pennsylvania Early Learning Investment Commission Executive Director Andrea Heberlein, Bellwether Senior Associate in the Policy and Evaluation practice Bonnie O’Keefe, Work Wisdom Executive Coaching Assistant Maria Hoover, and CHS Executive Director Senate Alexander.
“It’s really important to remember, especially in the service and support industries, that we too need that self-care and a focus on wellness so that we can fill our cups in order to make sure that others have what they need,” Hoover said.
The discussion of ways to apply innovation in early education transitioned directly into an inspirational keynote from Duncan Wardle, former Head of Innovation and Creativity at Disney and current CEO & Founder of ID8, to generate creativity and ideation. Wardle challenged attendees to think differently, overcome barriers to creativity, and harness tools that drive transformation in the field of early childhood education.
Attendees further expanded on the event’s focus topics during afternoon profession-specific breakout sessions including:
- Strengths-Based Approach to Promoting SEL and Reducing Challenging Behaviors: This session will support educators in advancing social-emotional learning and managing classroom behaviors through an approach that focuses on children’s strengths, led by Debi Mahler from the Center for Resilient Children.
- Addressing the Child Care Staffing Crisis: This session will help leaders manage teams and reduce burnout through innovation, operational solutions, technology, and engagement, led by Jill Cox, Laurie Strouse of Better Kid Care, and Rose Snyder of PennAEYC.
- DEIB Beyond the Classroom: Using a dignity model, this session will focus on operationalizing equity and other core DEIB principles for ECE professionals outside the classroom, led by Dr. Joseph Valente.
- Transitions and Early Intervention: This panel session will explore interventions to improve transitional periods and supports for early childhood learners, led by Tammy Shoff, Christine Trautwein, and Dr. Juliet Ashton-Luckey.
- Trauma-Informed Lens on Challenging Behaviors: This session will equip educators and health services professionals with tools and techniques for supporting healing and learning for children affected by trauma, led by Dr. Beth Shaw and Dr. Danielle Newkam.
Milton Hershey School students interested in a career in early childhood education and working toward achieving their Child Development Associate credential attended the Summit, representing the bright future of the field.
The 2025 ECE Leaders Summit also offered PQAS, Act48, and CEU professional development hours for attendees. To stay up to date for ongoing professional development content and resources, access and subscribe to the CHS professionals blog.
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