Photo By Amber Martin | FORT CARSON, Colo. — Denise Sanders, lead teacher, Ivy Child Development Center,...... read more read more
By Amber Martin
Garrison Public Affairs Office
Editor’s note: Child Development Centers (CDC) are still open and at full capacity as of Wednesday. Currently CDCs are not taking any new enrollments. If local conditions or the Health Protection Condition level changes, we will reassess this decision. For the most up-to-date information visit https://carson.army.mil/, and follow Facebook @USArmyFortCarson.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Eight children lined up and sang down the hallway March 13, 2020, as they followed Denise Sanders, lead teacher, Ivy Child Development Center (CDC), to classroom N. Upon entering the classroom, Sanders ensured each child washed their hands as they sang a song about hand-washing and then sat together on a blue mat on the floor.
Dora Maxwell, an experienced caregiver with Ivy CDC, cares for 4-5-year-old children in the room. She assists Sanders with the children in the Strong Beginnings program, which prepares the kids for kindergarten. The children learn through play and fun experiences, said Armanda Hunt, the Fort Carson Child and Youth Services (CYS) coordinator.
Fort Carson’s child care programs serve approximately 2,000 children a day. Ensuring each military child is cared for through learning and engaging activities is a huge task that CYS staff find both fulfilling and rewarding.
“I just want to be with kids,” Maxwell said. “I just love it. It’s a good feeling, especially when you walk in (the classroom) and everybody runs to you.”
While Maxwell loves her job, she said it does come with challenges. She finds that relating to each child really helps.
“You have to know each individual (and) what they like, because everybody is different,” Maxwell said. “You make it fun for (the children).”
When challenges arise, Maxwell said she works with her co-workers to try and come up with solutions.
Training
The Ivy CDC has a “good team environment” Maxwell said. While the center is focused on caring for the children, CYS also has a large emphasis on training and taking care of their staff. The teachers must complete 24 credits of training each year, including safety training courses.
Anita Russell, lead trainer, CYS, said it’s a good opportunity for military spouses looking to start a career in child care. CYS offers opportunities to people with no experience, however, they must be 18 years old, have a high school diploma and be able to read and write English.
“(CYS) trainers are highly trained educators,” Russell said. “Trainers work with the staff, the staff turns in online assignments (and) the trainers grade them. Trainers go to the classroom and observe … we give you a lesson, and we go in the classroom and see if you’re fulfilling it.”
People who are interested in becoming a caregiver would go through a competency-based training program through the Virtual Lab School online. There are 15 courses offered over approximately 18 months.
“After six months they receive a raise, and after 18 months they receive a raise based off of fulfilling those assignments and showing competency in the classroom,” Russell said.
The trainers also role model for the staff to teach them specific ways to work with and care for the children. Maxwell uses several techniques she learned from her training to teach the children how to clean their play areas in a way that’s fun.
One technique Maxwell learned is to turn cleaning into a game for the children. This method includes asking the children to find a certain color of toy to pick up and put away.
“Did you see that,” Maxwell said. “What color is it? Can you go pick that red (toy) up? Can you pick the yellow one up? What’s your favorite color?”
Another technique Maxwell uses is “the cleanup song.”
“Help our friends, clean up everybody, clean up,” she sings. “What kind of work? Teamwork.”
Maxwell said she is always determined to find a way to reach a child. She said she gets at their eye level and enjoys having fun with the children. If something she tried didn’t work one day, she figures out another way.
Caregiving is a job that takes a lot of energy Maxwell said. She said her team always supports her and that the training provided is “excellent.”
“It’s a good job; if you love kids, you can do it,” Maxwell said. “You have to get into the right age that you know you’re capable of.”
CYS positions available
Fort Carson CYS employs a staff of approximately 500 said Russell. CYS programs offer full-day care for children at the age of 6 weeks to 5 years old; after school care includes kindergarteners through fifth grade; and recreation programs are offered for fifth graders and students up to 18 years old.
CYS has always had a demand for child care services said Hunt. CYS works to meet those demands through numerous programs including full-day programs, half-day programs, before- and after-school programs and open recreation.
“I think it’s important for Families to remember our focus is to serve them,” said Estelline Miller, director of outreach, CYS. “One percent of the population in the U.S. has stepped up, so the least we can do is to provide quality child care so they can complete the Army’s mission.”
It takes a diverse staff to run these programs, and CYS has numerous opportunities for supervisory positions, training positions, nutritionists, nurses, custodial positions, maintenance, drivers, cooks, managers and teachers.
“We are resourced very well, in my opinion,” Hunt said.
Family child care
However, CYS is always looking for new hires to join the team. Hunt said CYS’ intent is to meet the needs of the military population assigned to the installation. One way CYS meets this intent is through Family child care, which is another option to full day care in a child care facility setting.
Family child care offers a smaller setting for children with comparable amenities to a child care center, but the care is done in the homes of trained caregivers. Fort Carson currently has eight family child care providers that offer up to six spaces in their home, depending on the ages of the children.
“(Family child care) does everything a facility would do as far as child care, with the exception that they can do extended after hours care, and they can do overnight care (for) up to 14 days for Families who are (on temporary duty travel) or going on a mini deployment, as long as they are on orders,” Hunt said.
The program also offers military spouses the opportunity to become mini-business owners, Hunt said. Family child care providers receive extensive training through CYS, which also provides oversight of the program. Hunt said they have a lending closet for providers just starting their business, where they can borrow the equipment they need to set up their home to mirror CDCs.
“We are always recruiting for family child care providers,” Hunt said.
The waitlist
CYS Fort Carson has a fluctuation of children coming and going each year due to Families changing duty stations. Miller said it’s important that Families coming to Fort Carson who need child care, put themselves on the waitlist. The waitlist is mandatory and Families who are dual-military and single parents have the highest priority for service.
“Their name comes up by priority, so that should be their first step,” Miller said. “The second thing is looking for all of their documents, making sure their children are up-to-date on shot records, and making sure we have a current physical for their child.”
Miller said the wait for child care depends on the age of the child — there is a long waitlist for infants. The wait can be 60-90 days depending on a Soldier’s priority for care and parent’s willingness to be open to sending their child to any of the centers.
“We encourage them to go on the waitlist for all of the centers as well as Family child care,” Miller said. “We are proud of our centers and have no hesitation in putting children in any of them.”
Families are eligible to get on any waitlist in the Pikes Peak region. Families can add their child to the waitlist at https://public.militarychildcare.csd.disa.mil/mccu/ui/#/.
Parents can pick up registration documents at the CYS office located in building 1590 or online at https://carson.armymwr.com/programs/cys-services.
Military kids are special, Miller said. She believes that good caregivers love children, believe they need to learn and grow and want to nurture them. Hunt said to keep good caregivers it’s important to have a happy and valued workforce, which leads to happy children and happy parents.
CYS is always looking to motivate its teaching staff through incentives, Hunt said. While the child care centers are very “child centric,” it is important for CYS employees to feel supported, heard and valued.
“The teachers, they are the bread and butter, that’s where it starts,” said Hunt.
| Date Taken: | 03.13.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 03.19.2020 13:17 |
| Story ID: | 365522 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 85 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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