Montgomery College to Host Conference for Spanish Speaking Child Care Providers
May 12 Event to Feature Training, Education, Networking, and Exhibits

Montgomery College’s Germantown Campus will host the First Annual Maryland State Conference for Spanish Speaking Child Care Providers on Saturday, May 12, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Centro Familia, a non-profit organization that promotes early childhood education and fosters the economic development of Latino communities in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, sponsors the conference.

The theme is "Sembrando Nuestro Futuro," or "Planting Our Future." The conference will enable participants to receive high quality training and education on issues that are critically important to child care providers, and to network with their peers, receive information about community resources, and visit with vendors. The event will also serve as a platform to announce the formation of the first Maryland Latino Child Care Association.

Guest speakers include Linda Heisner, director, Maryland Child Care Administration; Angelica Santacruz, coordinator, Office of Early Childhood Services for Austin, Texas; Delegate Mark Shriver, Maryland House of Delegates; and Linda McCart, director, Early Childhood Services, Montgomery County.

Classes and workshops will feature such topics as infant brain development, emotional intelligence, establishing partnerships with parents, games that encourage intellectual development, kindergarten preparedness, literacy development, and many more.

The conference fee is $25, which includes lunch. Registration deadline is May 3. Free transportation is available from the city of Baltimore, Anne Arundel County, and the Eastern Shore. For more information or to register, call 301-840-3222 or 301-840-3227 in Spanish.

The Conference for Spanish Speaking Child Care Providers is made possible by a grant from the Maryland Child Care Administration, in collaboration with the Family Services Agency, Inc., and Montgomery College.