Inclusion Action Ontario is proud to support the placement of two students from Fanshawe College’s degree program in Early Childhood Leadership.
Here is a little bit about about Elizabeth Iacoe and Cassandra Banitsiotis:
Cassandra Banitsiotis is a part of the Early Childhood Leadership program at Fanshawe College. She acts as an empathetic leader who values partnerships and inclusion throughout her practice. Her passion for teaching stems from the arts where she began to
teach children the art of dance. Since then, Cassandra has had much experience working with children in childcare classrooms as well as early elementary settings. She strives to continuously advocate for her values in hopes of providing resources for families in need. Cassandra’s goal is to provide a voice to allow children, families, and educators a part of the early years learning community to feel appreciated and heard.
Program Overview/Description
The Honours Bachelor of Early Childhood Leadership program is designed to provide students with a wide range of exposure to early years studies. This degree program encourages students to act as leaders in their learning, incorporating courses that examine child development, pedagogy, relational leadership, research, and curriculum development with hands-on, practical field experiences in various early years settings. There is great emphasis placed on leadership and advocacy, preparing students to effectively support children in their youngest and most fundamental years of development.
Solutions Placement Overview/Description
The Solutions Placement students are required to partner up with classmates and connect with an organization to work alongside from the duration of September to December. The outcome of this particular placement is to formulate a solutions project that best suits the organization’s mission and values. Students are encouraged to find an organization that supports a foundational tenant within the early years settings that they have interest in. At the end of the term each group of students will have the opportunity to present their solutions project in front of their professor and fellow classmates. Students will be graded on this final project and will be assessed on creativity and prevalence of the need of their project within the early years setting.
IAO looks forward to working with our students to achieve the program outcomes and provide insights into special education in Ontario and its interface with students and families. We will share their work when it is finished!
