As the Senate continues amending the Immigration Bill this month, the SED Center would like to highlight the important facts about the importance of adult education and the contributions that the immigrant community brings to the United States. Immigrants have been contributing to American society for years with their hard work and spending power. According to a White House report, immigrants make up 18 percent of all small business owners and these small business owners employed an estimated 4.7 million people in 2007. Many people hold the misconception that immigrants only hold low-wage jobs or contribute to the unemployment rate and use the nation’s welfare system disproportionately. Evidence, however, shows otherwise. According to the Partnership for a New American Economy, as of 2010, nearly one-fifth (18%) of all Fortune 500 companies had at least one founder who was an immigrant and these companies generated $1.7 trillion in annual revenue and employed 3.6 million workers.

How did these immigrants obtain such great economic success? There is a chance that they were given access to high-quality adult education classes. According to the 2000 Census, fluent English-speaking immigrants earn nearly double that of non-English workers and have significantly lower unemployment rates. These immigrants are either fortunate enough to have grown up bilingual, or have taken ESOL classes to improve their English language abilities. There are numerous advantages to learning English as an adult. English proficiency helps immigrants raise their wages and work productivity, participate in civil society as citizens and voters, and use their language skills to contribute to their new communities. There is evidence that investments in the education of one low-income or welfare parent could influence the school achievement of one or more of the parent’s children.  Similar research shows that better educated parents produce better educated children: higher educated parents yield children who will succeed in the K-12 school system, complete high school, attend college, and achieve higher levels of literacy as an adult. The SED Center offers a number of adult classes for immigrants and low-income adults. These classes include GED preparation, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), and computer training classes. Most of participants in the SED Center’s Adult Program are low-income, immigrant parents who are taking the first step in enhancing their education and contributing more to our society.

En el SED Center, conocer y atender a nuestras mamas es una prioridad para nosotros. Reconocemos el esfuerzo que hace cada mama para que su hijo crezca y pueda cumplir sus sueños. Para este Día De Las Madres les preguntamos a cuatro mamas que les gusta del SED Center, que cambios han visto en el desarrollo de sus hijos, y cuál sería el regalo ideal para ellas este Día de las Madres. 

Silvana Alcocer destaco el desarrollo académico de su hijo. En los 9 meses que ha estado en el SED Center ha visto a su hijo desarrollar su lectura. Esta “muy impresionada” en la forma que su hijo ahora puede reconocer un objeto y distinguir como se dice. Otros cambios, como ver a su hijo limpiar la mesa después de comer, demuestran la disciplina que se les inculca en el SED Center. Para este Día de las Madres, le gustaría que su hijo le regalara una de sus artes que hace en el salón de clase.

Nuestra siguiente mama, Sofía Alvarado, ha tenido a su hija en el SED Center por dos años. ¡Una de sus cosas favoritas del SED Center es poder venir a celebrar el cumpleaños de su hija!  Le encanta ver como su hija ha desarrollado su lenguaje y ahora se puede comunicar mejor con otros niños y personas. También ha mejorado su escritura y disciplina en el hogar. Ahora ha visto que su hija tiene mejor comportamiento, es menos agresiva, y puede dormir sola. Unos de los sueños de la señora Alvarado es preparar a su hija lo mejor que pueda para un mejor futuro. Para este Día de las Madres, le gustaría pasar más tiempo con su hija ya que por varios compromisos a veces no le puede dedicar todo el tiempo que quiere.  

Sujey Guillan, otra de nuestras queridas mamas del SED Center, ha visto varios cambios positivos en su hija durante los dos años que ha estado en el SED Center. Educativamente ha mejorado en todos los aspectos, pero ella dice que ha visto más cambios en su disciplina. Antes era de carácter fuerte y ahora es más calmada, domina su carácter con la familia y con otros niños, escucha mejor, y hace mas caso. Su sueño en un futuro es ver  que sea profesional en lo que le guste hacer. ¡Para este Día de las Madres, le gustaría que su hija se porte bien y este feliz!

Nuestra última mama, Wendy Evora, ha visto cambios impresionantes en su hijo y esta inmensamente agradecida por la atención que el SED Center le presta a su hijo. Debido a una enfermedad su hijo se retrasó en su vida escolar. A los dos años no decía más de cuatro palabras, dice la Señora Evora. Debido a la convivencia y socialización en el SED Center su hijo ha desarrollado su lenguaje más de un 90%.  Ahora puede comunicarse mejor con otros niños además de poder expresar sus emociones. La maestra, después de venir de vacaciones, dice que “este es otro niño.” En casa, está vinculando lo que aprende en el SED Center y expresa lo que ha aprendido.  Su sueño es ver que su hijo fuera científico o astronauta debido a que él no tiene límites en lo que puede cumplir. Ella sabe que él puede lograr lo que él quiera.  Lo que más le ha gustado del SED Center es la higiene, que las clases son bilingües, y que escuchan las opiniones de los padres. También esta agradecida que el SED Center ha permitido que su hijo tenga terapias en el centro. ¡Para este Día De Las Madres le gustaría ver que su hijo este con una sonrisa y que este saludable! 

Muchas gracias a todas las mamas en el SED Center por todo lo que hacen por sus hijos!

We are continuing Teacher Appreciation Week by featuring some of the Children's Program teachers here at the SED Center. Today it is our pleasure to introduce Dora Saravia and Aseel Hakim.  

Dora is an important member of the team of educators here at the SED Center. Taking care of the Infant A Classroom, Dora cares for our youngest children who are 3 months to 6 months old. Dora says that she wants to continue being a teacher because of the love she receives from children. She says, "It is very heartwarming and gives me motivation to want to help these children learn. In return, I learn as well as I gain patience and discover different forms of how to care for the different personalities that each child has. It is important to recognize that each child is different and therefore their needs are different." 

Aseel teaches in Classroom 3B and describes her experience as a teacher as being life-changing for both her and her form of teaching. She explains how caring for so many children at once has provided her with different strategies on how to care for her own children. When asked how teaching has changed her life she said, "My life has changed because aside from it helping me with my children, it has been helping me as an individual by motivating me to study more about education. I am studying about early childhood education. I have a bachelor’s degree in business administration and ever since I started working here it has encouraged me to improve my knowledge in education so that I can learn more and help me teach the children more." 

Aseel began visiting the SED Center when she enrolled her daughter into the Children's Program. She wanted to give her daughter the opportunity to be a part of a Head Start curriculum and due to our outstanding referrals, she chose SED! Aseel was inspired to start her career path at the SED Center with motives to provide young developing minds with a high quality of care and instruction. 

The SED Center is proud to have such wonderful teachers who hold an inner passion towards making sure every child receives a quality education. In the spirit of gratitude, the Center would like to thank Dora and Aseel for demonstrating outstanding devotion to their roles as both mothers and educators!

Dora and Aseel plus Carmen, Milagro, and Gledys (who we featured earlier this week) are just a few of the 20 amazing Children's Program teachers at the SED Center.  We thank them during Teacher Appreciation Week, but truly, we appreciate them all year long as they do their very important work.  

It's Teacher Appreciation Week and we would like to highlight some our fantastic Children's Program teachers:  Carmen Ramos, Milagro Posada, and Gledys Hernandez.

Carmen from Classroom 3D has worked with the children from the SED Center for over 10 years. Carmen enjoys being both a mother and a teacher and appreciates her profession. She says that being a teacher has helped her become a better mother because of the patience and experience she has with her class.  One of the most rewarding joys she receives from working with children is the fact that she gains satisfaction from knowing how happy the children are. Sometimes they are so happy that they do not want to leave the classroom!

Milagro from Classroom 3A has been with the SED Center for over 34 years and describes her experience as a teacher as the best gift she could ever receive in life. When asked what led her to become a teacher at the SED Center, she replied by saying: "When I came to this country, I came to work as a substitute. I wanted to work as a teacher because I love the children and I am given the opportunity to enter a different world. I enter the world of the children because the children cannot enter the world of the adult. The adult needs to enter the world of the child in order to be able to teach them. Entering this world, you forget about everything else because you are in a new atmosphere where everything is innocent and sincere." 

Milagro describes the SED Center as a wonderful environment for the children to learn in and is grateful to be given the opportunity to teach children and watch them grow. 

Here at the SED Center, we pride ourselves on being the first bilingual preschool in Washington, DC. Gledys, Milagro's co-teacher in Classroom 3A, describes working at the SED Center as a life changing experience. She states: "My life has changed because I have learned things about many different cultures and the different ways people live. The children that have different cultures have taught me to be informed in how they live and it has transferred into my own ways of living that has helped me grow as an individual." 

Based on how our teachers have described their experiences as educators, it is safe to say that their profession benefits both the children and the teachers. It is important to acknowledge these women for playing such an important role in the children's lives and credit them for their amazing work! 

Thank you Carmen, Milagro, and Gledys! The SED Center appreciates and loves you dearly!

Sean Reardon of the New York Times wrote an article Monday titled “No Rich Child Left Behind,” highlighting the idea the children of the rich are outperforming the children of the middle class and the poor in school. Although the population as a whole is learning at a faster rate (for example, the average 9 year old today has the math abilities equal to those his/her parents had at the age of 11), the achievement gap between the rich and poor is greater than the achievement gap between white and minority students. 

The problem, he explains, is that children from rich families are much more prepared than children from poorer families by the time they enter kindergarten. Experts say that at the age of 5, a child’s brain is 90% developed, which gives them the potential to learn numerical concepts, good behavior, and how to get along with other children. Parents today realize the importance of children’s cognitive development from the earliest ages and those who have resources and wealth are investing in said development. While it is important that these rich parents invest in early education and the early development of their children, children of less fortunate parents are left behind. Most parents do not have the time to devote the necessary time to their child’s cognitive development and also usually lack the funds to send their children to successful centers or preschools. 

However, programs like the SED Center can help parents with lower socioeconomic standing give their children the necessary tools to close the achievement gap. The SED Center provides quality daycare and preschool at a lower subsidized rate for families in need thanks to funding from the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) and Head Start. Quality Head Start programs have been proven to improve the school readiness for children from all ethnic, racial, and economic backgrounds. A study of former Head Start participants demonstrated that these children were more likely than siblings not participating in the program to graduate from high school and attend college. The participating children were also less likely to suffer from poor health associated with poverty and to repeat grades. It is crucial that children of all socioeconomic statuses have access to quality early childhood education. As Sean Reardon stated in his article, “the more we do to ensure that all children have similar cognitively stimulating early childhood experiences, the less we will have to worry about failing schools.”

The week of April 29 to May 5th is national Screen-Free Week. Screen-Free Week is a celebration where children, families, schools, and communities spend seven days turning off entertainment screen media and spend more time actively learning. 

Children under three have needs which cannot be met by TV, videos or computers.  The SED Center’s Children's Program makes sure to devote time to let infants and toddlers explore the outdoor world. Older infants sit and explore toys and natural objects while toddlers use the open area of play space. Active learning, such as exploring and looking at books, is essential for the development of a young child’s brain and body. The SED Center provides both indoor and outdoor free-play time along with story-time for children in the preschool program. These types of active learning activities help ensure the children’s social, physical, and intellectual well-being. 

For more information on Screen-Free Week and how to participate visit http://www.screenfree.org/.

The "Gang of 8" proposed an immigration bill last week that is currently accessible to the public. The current bill allows for the Secretary to allocate $50 million in grant funds for nonprofit programs that can help immigrants apply for citizenship status.

The SED Center is primed to meet this need as soon as the legislation passes. In particular, our Adult Program, which serves over 700 individuals each year, is equipped to provide the following services outlined in the current bill:

• Assistance in civics and civics-based English as a second language
• Education, literacy, or career training programs (including vocational training) that are designed to lead to placement in postsecondary education, job training, or employment through which the immigrant is working towards such placement
• An education program assisting students either in obtaining a regular high school diploma or its recognized equivalent under state law (including a certificate of completion, certificate of attendance, or alternate award), or in passing a General Education Development exam or other equivalent State-authorized exam

Our existing ESOL, GED, and computer training programs could meet many of these needs, however, additional funding would allow us to expand our program offerings and create classes for students embarking on the path to citizenship. 

It is important to keep in mind that the United States Senate has not yet passed the bill and is planning on starting markups in May. We believe adult education is a key component of immigration reform and hope this funding will remain part of the legislation. 

Since 1970, Earth Day has been celebrated internationally on April 22. With value towards awareness and concern of living organisms, Earth Day is a special time of the year at the SED Center. The children absolutely love growing their very own plants and flowers while learning how to care for such delicate, living creatures. 

In honor of Earth Day, the preschool students at the SED Center have been learning about the environment and will continue to celebrate the rest of the week. With activities that focus on social and emotional development, the children will be learning about the Earth and the process of growing and changing. Activities throughout the week consist of watering their bean plant science projects, and daily readings and discussions about the Earth, recycling, and how to protect the planet.

This week, the SED Center will be celebrating the Week of the Young Child, an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). 

Each day, a different preschool classroom will be making a presentation on some of the things they've been learning.  The week will end with a celebration and book distribution made possible thanks to donations from FirstBook and Reading is Fundamental.  

In addition, we'll be sharing daily facts about early childhood education and our children's program on Twitter using the hashtag #WOYC and posting photos on Facebook and Instagram all week so please remember to follow us! 

Yesterday, the teachers, staff, and volunteers of the SED Center rallied along with thousands of others in support of immigration reform. The rally was filled with national unions, companies, nonprofits, and community groups as well as local supporters. 

Key speakers included Casa de Maryland's Executive Director Gustavo Torres and the President  of the Leadership Council on Civil and Human Rights:Wade Henderson. Bob Mendez (D., N.J.), one of the eight senators working on writing the immigration reform bill briefly attended the rally to declare his support for reform. The President of the Service Employees International Union, Mary Kay Henry, also attended and spoke of worker solidarity and perseverance. 

While the official title of the rally was "Time Is Now," rally attendees also chanted "Si Se Puede," "Education Not Deportation," and "No More Families Torn Apart." The SED Center was proud to be part of this important and historical rally and to be able to march in solidarity with thousands of supporters of immigration reform. 

Visit our Facebook page to view more photos from the rally.