LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Child Care Planning Council, in partnership with First 5 Lake, is expanding their Steps to Leadership program for early childhood educators.

Steps to Leadership offers stipends for completion of a year-long program designed to mentor early childhood educators, provide opportunities for professional growth, and reward those who are continuing their education.

Sessions will take place Tuesday, June 28, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., Lake County Office of Education, 1152 S. Main St., Lakeport; Thursday, July 7, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum, 16435 Morgan Valley Road, Lower Lake; Saturday, July 9, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., Lake County Office of Education, Lakeport; Tuesday, July 12, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., Lake County Office of Education, Lakeport; Thursday, July 14, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum, Lower Lake.

Thanks to a new funding opportunity through First 5 California, the 2011-12 program offers increased stipends, as well as additional resources.

Local early childhood educators will receive intensive training on the CLASS assessment tool.

CLASS is an evaluation tool that measures the quality of teacher/child interactions and the atmosphere of the classroom or program, based on decades of research that high quality teacher/child interactions and positive climate in the classroom both have a significant positive impact on student outcomes.

For the last two years between 45 to 65 Lake County early childhood educators have completed the Steps to Leadership program each year, earning annual stipends ranging from $150 to $1,100.

The 2010-11 program was completed on June 15, and collectively participants attended approximately 800 hours of professional growth, and nearly 175 college units were attained.

Professional growth was offered on a variety of topics ranging from supporting preschool students in the development of pre-math skills, to understanding how to support a family accessing needed services, to nutritional support and education.

Ample research demonstrates the importance of high-quality early childhood education during a child’s first five years of life.

Children who attend high-quality early childhood programs are more likely to graduate from high school and far less likely to be on welfare, become criminals or teen parents, or experience debilitating health and socioeconomic problems.

Studies focused specifically on California have shown that if high-quality early childhood programming were more widely accessible, juvenile crime would fall 19 percent and the high school dropout rate would decrease by 14 percent.

Nobel Prize winning economist James Heckman, concludes that, “the most cost-effective strategy for strengthening the future American workforce is to invest greater human and financial resources in the social and cognitive environments of children who are disadvantaged, beginning as early as possible.”

Steps to Leadership is holding five orientations for the 2010-11 Steps to Leadership program.

To register for an orientation, contact The Lake County Child Care Planning Council, 707-262-4161 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

You can also download more information at www.lakecountychildcareplanning.com and click on “Calendar.”