The Davenport Institute, a three-year, $1 million grant program at Danville Community College (DCC), concluded this summer on July 31. A total of 174 students completed the program during that time, with 35 graduates coming directly from DCC.
“I am so proud of what the Davenport Institute has accomplished,” said Traci Daniel, DCC assistant professor and director of early childhood education. “It has been amazing to see all the support and excitement from everyone involved: Students, providers, stakeholders, community members, and college faculty and staff. A major goal of this program was to increase the quality of care our young children receive and I do believe that was definitely achieved. Students in the program received access to the community college, one-on-one mentoring, direct classroom support, and knowledge to improve their practice. I am excited to see what else is in store for early childhood locally and at the state level.”
The Davenport Institute for Early Childhood Development was created in partnership with Virginia's Community Colleges (VCCS) and The Virginia Foundation for Community College Education.
DCC's accreditation site visit from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is scheduled for November, which was one goal of the program. A decision is expected from the NAEYC by March 2021. This designation would further add credence to the graduates of DCC’s early childhood education programs, which have recently been revamped to fit the stackable pathways model of gaining credentials to match career objectives and adding more for career advancement.
“Transferability for the program is growing as we continue to hold meetings with four-year schools in Virginia regarding articulation agreements. I think the Davenport Institute really highlighted the early childhood education program and field as a whole, so I’ve seen so much happening over the last few years,” Daniel added.
These agreements add to the more than 40 existing guaranteed admissions agreements between VCCS and major four-year institutions such as the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech. These agreements allow students to complete a two-year associate degree at DCC that includes most of their major prerequisites and allows them to fully focus their last two years in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree on coursework related to their chosen major.
“We have had the opportunity to support our students both as early childhood professionals and as adult learners; allowing us to impact classrooms and communities,” said Kim P. Gregory, director of the Davenport Institute for Early Childhood Development. “Focusing on community college access and success for the early childhood professional is part of a bigger movement in Virginia, improving the quality of care and education for children aged 0-5.”
The Davenport Institute, which was launched in fall 2016 in honor of the VCCS 50th anniversary, was made possible entirely by a generous donation from Ben and Betty Davenport of Chatham. A total of four community colleges participated in the program, including DCC, New River, Patrick Henry, and Virginia Western. The VCCS System Office provided project oversight.
“This investment provided us the opportunity to create and implement a model program which supports community college access and success for teachers of young children,” Gregory said. “Because of this, we have supported over 200 teachers in earning college credits and credentials, supporting their own personal and professional growth. These outcomes benefit our communities by increasing the quality of care and validating the important role that these teachers play in the lives of the children and families in their programs. We are so grateful to the Davenports for their investment and confidence in our project and know that the impacts are far reaching and long lasting.”
The project developed a model that supports community college access and success for teachers of young children. In doing so, the program also uplifted and upskilled early childhood professionals throughout Virginia's communities, thereby improving classroom quality.
“We were able to support them both academically through college level onboarding, enrollment and advising support but also coached them in their early childhood classrooms, helping to bridge community college course concepts to early childhood program application,” Gregory said. “This project also served as a model of cross college collaboration and supported the influence and presence of our programs in local and statewide early childhood initiatives.”
Additional highlights of the Davenport Institute:
• This work informed and supported the G3 initiative, the stackable pathways model outlined by Virginia Governor Ralph Northam
• Was recognized by the First Lady of Virginia
• We had 10 Fellows participate across the 4 colleges (1 from DCC)
• Created a model of a program that supports teacher education for incumbent workers in early childhood
• Our work and project lead to other opportunities and involvement in statewide initiatives including the Preschool Development Grant, Mixed Delivery and others.
• The External Evaluation was cited heavily in a proposal lead by George Mason University in supporting the use of content specific navigators, coaches/mentors in early childhood classrooms and supporting the transition from community college students to four-year schools in Virginia.
Danville Community College is a two-year institution of higher education under the state-wide Virginia Community College System. DCC's service area includes the City of Danville, Pittsylvania County, and Halifax County. For more information about the college’s nearly 100 programs of study, visit www.danville.edu.