BOCES student Kali VanAlen sits with Chloe Turner and Izabella Cronin during cookie time at the preschool in the F. Donald Myers Education Center. (ERICA MILLER/The Saratogian)
BOCES student Michaela Bowers plays with Andre Culpepper-Wehr during the BOCES preschool class. (ERICA MILLER/The Saratogian)
BOCES student Brittany McCarty plays with Madison Cuilla during the BOCES preschool class. (ERICA MILLER/The Saratogian)
Sam Ott looks up at BOCES student Jessica Colvin while he draws with his sister, Ellie, at a preschool led by early education teacher Cathy Brennan and her high school students. (ERICA MILLER/The Saratogian)
SARATOGA SPRINGS — There’s a colorful, buzzing classroom at the F. Donald Myers Education Center on Henning Road where the students in the class are also the teachers of a class.
It’s the on-site preschool led by early childhood education teacher Cathy Brennan and her flock of high school students.
Fifty students come from schools throughout the region to spend their mornings or afternoons five days per week participating in the program through the Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES.
In addition to fulfilling their high school credit requirements, the students gain practical experience by teaching the preschool, which is held twice a day on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students get about 180 hours of experience in the preschool over the course of the two-year program.
“It’s a hands-on operation,” said Leslie Ostrander, a Ballston Spa junior who attends the afternoon session at BOCES. “It’s fun, interesting.”
When they’re not leading sing-alongs, reading stories and playing with the children, the students spend the rest of class time creating their own lesson plans and critiquing the work of their peers.
A two-way mirror separates the preschool room from the classroom, and video and audio equipment allows the students to observe everything that’s going on while preschool is in session.
“When you’re here, you learn about the kids and you never know what to expect from them,” said Amanda Nolan, a junior at Cambridge High School.
Students also receive certification in CPR, First Aid and AED (automated external defibrillator).
“The high school students develop a lot of really great skills, but they also develop confidence that they can actually do the job,” said Brennan, who has seen hundreds of students graduate from the program. “Teamwork, collaborating, a lot of what we call soft skills, employability skills, is what they learn. It’s all couched on this preschool program that we run.”Continued...
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Some students go directly into entry-level positions in the child care field, but the majority attend college, said Brennan, who has spent years in her dual role as both the preschool and high school teacher.
Michaela Bowers, a junior at Saratoga Springs High School, said the early childhood education program is valuable for students interested in any kind of career — not just teaching — that involves interaction with children.
“I would recommend it to anyone interested in anything involved with kids, like a social worker or doctor,” she said.
Bowers said she signed up for the program not knowing what to expect.
“But I’m glad I did it,” she said. “You just get so much out of it. It’s such a great feeling to know that we’ve learned to help (the preschoolers) learn.”
At the same time, the program provides an accredited service to local families in need of child care for 3- to 5-year-olds. Because it is financed through BOCES, the preschool is available for free and there are no eligibility requirements to attend, Brennan said.
Linda Chiarello’s granddaughter, 3-year-old Sophie, just started attending the class. The Wilton woman said she and her daughter were thrilled to find the free child care was available.
“Some places it costs $175 a month to send them in for two days a week,” she said. “That’s a lot, and it’s only for eight days out of the month, not much.”
Although the program has been ongoing for almost two decades, Brennan refers to it jokingly as BOCES’ best-kept secret.
“It’s an extension of our classroom,” she said. “It’s a mutual growth experience because the high school students really see how the children are growing and developing through the work that they do with them.”
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