FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Alexandria, VA — As Northern Virginia faces an influx of new childcare centers — 32 in Old Town Alexandria alone over the past decade, many of them for-profit corporate chains — Hopkins House is redoubling its commitment to excellence by investing heavily in the professional development of its Preschool Academy educators and administrators (pictured above). While many of these new providers operate at low cost and low quality, Hopkins House is setting itself apart as a consistently high-quality nonprofit preschool by focusing on educator expertise and strong managerial accountability to achieve ambitious developmental outcomes for its young scholars.
At the end of August, Hopkins House closed its Preschool Academy for two days of intensive staff professional development. This is the first of a series of ongoing intensive trainings throughout the year. Educators participated in workshops on social-emotional and relational development, serving children with special needs, parent engagement, child supervision, curriculum implementation, and lesson planning, among other subjects. Administrators received parallel training focused on accountability, leadership, and organizational policy and procedure.
“High-quality early learning is firmly built on the strength of its educators,” said J. Glenn Hopkins, President of Hopkins House. “Families deserve more than low-cost, low-quality care for their children. Families deserve highly skilled early childhood educators who can guide their children’s growth and development at the highest level.”
Hopkins House maintains among the most rigorous standards in the region for educator qualifications. A bachelor’s degree is required to hold the title of Teacher at the Preschool Academy, and an associate degree is required for Assistant Teacher.
Entry-level educators must earn a Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™ within 120 days of hire or forfeit employment at the Preschool Academy. The CDA — the most widely recognized credential in early childhood education — validates an educator’s ability to support children’s developmental, social, emotional, physical, and intellectual growth from birth through age five. These standards reinforce Hopkins House’s longstanding reputation for employing the most skilled and experienced early childhood educators in Northern Virginia. Currently, nine newly hired entry level educators at the academy are pursuing their CDA, while six others are enrolled at Northern Virginia Community College working toward an associate degree.
“We’re not just childcare, we’re a preschool academy, preparing our young scholars for high achievement in school and life,” said Hopkins, “and that requires highly skilled educators who have a thirst for continuous learning and self-improvement, and who know how to care for young children and keep them safe. We’ve been at this now for more than 86 years, and we have a remarkable legacy of success to prove our effectiveness in nurturing the full potential of our young scholars. Our alumni include some of the most accomplished individuals this community has to offer.”
Looking ahead, Hopkins House has established a board-level committee to develop a community outreach campaign as a long-term strategy to educate parents about the markers of high-quality childcare, underscoring that excellence in the teaching staff should be the defining measure.
“Parents deserve to know what makes a childcare program truly high-quality,” added Hopkins. “The more they know about high-quality childcare and the developmental outcomes they should expect, the more likely they will choose the best for their young scholars, and the Hopkins House Preschool Academy is among the very best in Northern Virginia.”
