McCormick Institute for Early Childhood

BY | May 14, 2019

Our founder, Paula Jorde Bloom, created Leadership Connections™National Conference as a place where early childhood professionals from across the country (and around the world) could connect and learn together in an interactive experience unlike any other. This year’s theme was, “A Framework for Success.”

Below is a recap of the 2019 conference. Explore #lcnc19  on Twitter to find golden nuggets attendees shared during the conference.

Pre-conference, Wednesday, May 8

A man in a suit and tie is giving a presentation to a group of people.
A woman is standing in front of a group of people holding a piece of paper.

Walter Gilliam (The Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Yale University Child Study Center), presented a full-day session on “The Edward Zigler Center in Child Development.” Also, Susan MacDonald (Inspiring New Perspectives) presented a full-day session on “Inspiring Early Childhood Leadership: Strategies to Ignite Passion and Possibility.”

Taking Charge of Change cohort #26 participants presented their quality improvement plans to their fellow colleagues and mentors. This marked the end of their 10-month cohort and the beginning of cohort #27. ( Apply to join cohort #27 by May 31, 2019!)

In the evening, networking events kicked off the conference. Many early childhood leaders traveled by bus to Chicago for a guided tour of the city.

Day 1, Thursday, May 9

Myra Jones-Taylor and Libby Doggett smiling at the Opening Keynote Luncheon.

Myra Jones-Taylor and Libby Doggett at the Opening Keynote Luncheon.

Donna Jacobson, Executive Director of the McCormick Center, opened the conference with thank yous and the 2019 Visionary Leadership Award was presented to Libby Doggett.

Myra Jones-Taylor, Chief Policy Officer at ZERO to THREE, gave a passionate keynote address about systemic racism and how systemic racism affects early childhood education. She encouraged the audience to move away from using the terms “vulnerable” and “at-risk” and instead use the terms “families furthest from opportunity,” and “overburdened and underresourced” when referring to families in need of services.

In the evening, Marketplace opened. Vendors greeted attendees with early childhood apps, professional learning books, early childhood classroom furniture and supplies, clothing, and jewelry. Participants had an opportunity to get professional headshots as well.

Libby Doggett shared her visionary leadership journey, at the Leadership Colloquium in the evening.

 

 

 

Day 2, Friday, May 10

Aisha Ray at a podium

Aisha Ray speaking at the Public Policy Forum.

At the Public Policy Forum, participants heard a keynote from Aisha Ray, Professor Emerita of Child Development at the Erikson Institute, Dr. Cynthia L. Tate, Executive Director, Governor’s Office of Early Childhood Development, and Ashley Nazarak, Vice President, Learning and Evaluation, The YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago, about the state of racial equity in early childhood education. After the keynotes, participants were given the opportunity to ask questions to a panel of speakers about the topic. The panel as included Teri Talan, Senior Policy Advisor for the McCormick Center of Early Childhood Leadership.

Special interest sessions were held at the end of the day and were an opportunity for participants to explore different topics using the “Jigsaw Method,” so that participants could discuss various aspects from a broad range of perspectives. Some of these sessions included topics on administrative leadership, challenging child behaviors, coaching, and early childhood workforce issues.

Conference participants also had a second chance to take an option trip to Chicago on a guided tour with dinner and wine.

 

 

 

Day 3, Saturday, May 11

Two women are posing for a picture and one has a name tag that says ' a ' on it

Participants wrapped up the conference with two final sessions and headed home to share what they learned with others and put their new knowledge into action.

 

 

 

 

 

Save the Date

Join us next year, April 28 – May 1, in Wheeling, Illinois, for the 2020 Leadership Connections National Conference. Subscribe to our email list to receive Leadership Connections announcements. If your inbox is overflowing, connect with us on social media. We’re on Facebook , Twitter , or LinkedIn.

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The AI-Enabled Administrator: Reclaim Valuable Time

By Dr. Neal Green • February 8, 2026
Tools: Gemini Gems, NotebookLM, Perplexity Spaces Overview The evidence is clear that early childhood professionals' most significant challenge is a lack of time. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, when used strategically, can give administrators some of the time they desperately need, allowing them to focus more on their staff and the children and families in their care. This approach aligns with the foundational goal of strengthening leadership effectiveness and program impact (Abel, Talan, & Masterson, 2023). When I scan the AI landscape of available products and platforms, it becomes overwhelming. There are so many options that it is impossible to keep up with every new development. Focusing on a limited number of AI tools backed by organizations with strong infrastructure and fiscal stability is a wise place to start your AI journey. McCormick Institute for Early Childhood’s (MIEC’s) upcoming professional development sessions will focus on three AI tools. These include Gemini Gems, NotebookLM, and Perplexity Spaces. Think of Gemini Gems as your customized AI assistant that you "train" to follow your rules and meet your goals. Gemini Gems are the right tool to tackle Internal Operations . NotebookLM is perfect for creating Family Support resources that stick. NotebookLM is a powerful AI tool that uses only the documents or other resources you add to generate specific, focused output. Perplexity Spaces is a fantastic choice to address Marketing demands. Like many AI tools, you can toggle back and forth between open web searches and focused documents that are specific to your work. Gemini Gems: The “Specialist Teammate” Gemini Gems allow you to create templates you can use repeatedly for agendas, HR policies, and more. If you have used AI in the past, you know that writing an effective prompt takes time, and they can easily get "lost" if you use AI often. Gems removes that challenge and lets you save your most effective prompts without having to rewrite them every time you use Gemini. It is up to you to decide if you want to create several smaller Gems to tackle common challenges you face or create larger Gems that encompass large swaths of your work. For our purposes, we will focus our Gem work on Internal Operations, addressing Program Administration Scale (PAS) Item 9: Internal Communications (Talan & Bloom, 2011). Imagine using a Gem to turn messy staff meeting notes into professional minutes with clear action plans in minutes or less! NotebookLM: The "Walled Garden" NotebookLM is an excellent tool for Family Support for your center, addressing PAS Item 17: Family Support and Involvement (Talan & Bloom, 2011). After uploading documents and resources, such as your parent handbook or community referral lists, to your Notebook, you can create several resources that parents/guardians of your center students will love. Just a few of the impressive features available with NotebookLM include audio (podcast) summaries, video summaries, and reporting functions with templates or the option to create your own report with metrics that matter most to you. Perplexity Spaces: The "Research Librarian" Perplexity Spaces is a perfect AI partner for Marketing your early childhood education (ECE) program, addressing PAS Item 18: External Communications (Talan & Bloom, 2011). You can build your own centralized repository, with control over branding to ensure consistency and present a professional, current image. Adding specific instructions to your space eliminates the need to format documents constantly and saves valuable time. The consistency that a Perplexity Space offers in this regard allows you to upload messages that are the "voice” of your brand. Your marketing efforts are not only more aesthetically pleasing but also enable you to track trends at similar centers in your area, helping you assess the competition. Strategies for Success: Audit your Internal Communications: Identify one repetitive task, such as creating staff meeting agendas (PAS Item 9), and automate it with a Gemini Gem. Curate your Family Resources: Gather three to five existing documents to "feed" a NotebookLM project for more responsive family support (PAS Item 17). Standardize your Brand: Use a Perplexity Space to ensure all public relations tools project a consistent, professional image (PAS Item 18). Reflection Questions: Which administrative task takes the most time away from your interactions with staff and families? How might centralizing marketing materials (branding) impact the professional image to prospective families? Table 1: AI Tools for ECE Professionals
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