New BLELC Director Believes Strong Home-School Connection Is Crucial

The Beverly Levy Early Learning Center of the JCC of Greater New Haven recently welcomed Lisa Bickford as its new Educational Director. Bickford brings more than 16 years of experience as a director of early childhood education centers and programs.

The first thing Bickford noticed when she visited the JCC and the Early Learning Center was a culture of warmth, openness and compassion. “It’s a very special place, a family community I knew I would love to join.”

“It was Beverly Levy herself who believed ‘that any place with children was a sacred place,’” Bickford noted. She said she too believes that school should be a “rich and vital experience in children’s lives and should reinforce, stimulate and expand children’s natural enthusiasm for learning and socialization.” Bickford believes that kids are active, self-motivated learners who learn best from personal experience. As a career early-childhood educator, Bickford also considers a strong and continuous home-school connection essential to a child’s successful educational experience. “We are all working together to ensure your children feel loved and safe in an environment that’s planned to encourage discovery, social interaction and independence,” Bickford said. “A supportive home-school connection will further set the stage for a child to grow up with a love for learning.“

Because parents are very busy, it’s often difficult for them to spend a lot of time in their child’s classroom. So Bickford has been exploring invitation only, secure online resources for private picture sharing so parents can have daily insight to their child’s classroom experience on an ongoing basis. She hopes this will generate great conversation and connections among families. Bickford strongly believes in an open door policy and she looks forward to getting to know all of the families.

Contact her at lisab@jccnh.org or (203) 387-2424, x279.

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