a community engagement initiative of Waverly Community Unit District #6
Right off the bat, Jessie Davis stresses the importance of nailing educational milestones right at the foundational level, which begins in Pre-K. According to Jessie, if children aren’t offered a robust early education, they put the wrong foot down. “If they fail to get it right in Pre-K and beyond, they are starting off with a shaky foundation,” she says. In a community that appreciates the Pre-K program in the district, this should resonate with us viscerally but also give us pause. We should routinely remind ourselves that nearly all of a child’s academic and social life is built on the efforts of Pre-K specialists working with them in these early years.
This is Your Brain on Pre-K
Brittney Caufield
Jessie Davis
One such mover and shaker is Brittney Caufield, who believes the difference between students who enter Pre-K and those who skip it is observable. “If they didn’t come to Pre-K, they’re missing out on the social skills with children their own age…you can see the difference.”
Brittney and Jessie are part of the empathetic operation that is Waverly’s Pre-K program. Though they entered early childhood education through different lifepaths, they represent the universality of a wish to encourage severe medical hardships for both her parents, which affected the stability of her young life, created the urge to work with student populations who might have behavioral issues and undiagnosed development delays due to family trauma. Jessie now sports four degrees in sociology, criminal justice, and counseling psychology from Blackburn College. Brittney started her foray into early childhood ed as a daycare teacher after giving birth to her son in 2013. The new arrival started a chain reaction, and she eventually kept working at daycare until she received her bachelor’s degree in education. She came to us not long after her post-bachelor Teacher Certification Program at the University of West Florida, and this is her second year at Waverly.
A key component of their work revolves around early intervention, a quad-county initiative that offers social and emotional screening, hearing and vision testing, and other resources to catch developmental delays in children early. If a family is in need, people like Jessie can connect them to services like speech or occupational therapy. Early intervention serves as an extra layer of support for our communities. Most of Brittney and Jessie’s efforts are home visits, where they’ve become full-blooded family members. The familiarity and raw emotion of their work emphasize their role is to ensure families have access to resources like those in metropolitan areas.
The labor is emotionally rewarding. Brittney talks about how Pre-K can serve as a comforting transition for children who are anxious or scared, easing them into the school process at a slower pace. The team also notes the rewarding experience of witnessing children move from their Pre-K programs to grade school. “It’s a privilege to be a part of their lives when they’re in their threes, fours, and fives,” Brittney remarks.
Brittney and Jessie close out our roundtable, stressing the need for education advocacy and equity. In their eyes, their work aims to ensure that kids, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, have the resources and support they need to succeed. The first few years of education set the course for a lifetime, and Brittney and Jessie’s bustling presence is an invaluable lifeline for families in need. Through their relentless commitment and informed approach, they’re not just laying down the bricks of early education, but building hulking stone giants of a resilient community.
It’s a privilege to be a part of their lives when they’re in their threes, fours, and fives.
