Family child care providers often learn best from one another. That’s the idea behind Connected and Confident, a new peer mentorship pilot developed by Kay Storck, NECC’s Lead Child Care Workforce Development Specialist, as part of her doctor of education (Ed.D.) program.
The month-long pilot pairs eight experienced family child care providers with eight providers who want to strengthen their advocacy skills. Through weekly meetings, goal setting, and peer support, participants will build confidence, strengthen professional relationships, and learn how to advocate for children, families, and the early childhood profession.
Connected and Confident is the focus of Kay’s doctoral dissertation, which explores how peer mentorship can support family child care providers. The project is grounded in improvement science, a research approach that focuses on making small, meaningful changes alongside the people being served to create lasting improvements.
“Research shows that family child care providers learn best professionally when they’re in community with other providers,” Kay said. “Connected and Confident is an opportunity for providers to learn from one another while building the confidence to advocate for the issues that matter most.”
The pilot begins in August with mentor training and a kickoff event where participants will be matched with their peers and set goals for the month ahead. Mentors and mentees will meet weekly throughout the program before coming together in September to celebrate their progress and reflect on what they learned.
For Kay, the project represents more than a milestone in her doctoral journey. It is an opportunity to explore new ways to support Nebraska’s family child care providers while contributing research that could help shape future professional development and advocacy efforts.
NECC is proud to support innovative research that strengthens Nebraska’s early childhood workforce. We look forward to following Kay’s research and seeing the impact Connected and Confident has on the providers participating in the pilot!