Emerson Funding Helps Expand Innovative Training Program for Early Childhood Teachers in St. Louis

Did you know that 90% of a person’s brain development happens before age 5?  Yet in the United States, early childhood education – which is key to lifetime learning and success – does not get the attention it deserves. This is especially true when it comes to professional development for early childhood educators which, too often, is the exception, not the norm.  

Emerson believes strongly in the importance of early childhood education as critical preparation for K-12, college and life in general. For the past several years, we’ve supported the innovative work of LUME Institute, a nonprofit focused on improving early childhood education in the St. Louis area where our company is headquartered. 

An offshoot of the University City Children’s Center, LUME Institute’s mission is to transform the way families, educators and communities inspire young children to learn, grow and thrive. LUME’s approach addresses child and teacher dynamics that could otherwise inhibit children’s emotional, social and intellectual growth. LUME Institute’s training programs help early childhood educators understand the importance of building authentic, caring relationships with children. 

When children face adverse childhood experiences, which can range from physical abuse, neglect, or parental divorce to witnessing violence in the home or the incarceration of a parent or guardian, those traumas can have lasting effects on their health and ability to learn. It’s also not uncommon for educators to have experienced childhood trauma. Unaddressed trauma can affect a teacher’s ability to respond effectively to classroom mischiefs, and therefore less able to sustain a productive learning environment. The LUME professional development approach guides teachers in understanding themselves and children, and helps them develop their ability to create positive, nurture-oriented connections that support their student’s emotional well-being and readiness to learn. 

The LUME approach and positive feedback from participants has caught the attention of Harvard University. LUME Institute and University City Children’s Center were selected by Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child for inclusion in its Frontiers of Innovation portfolio of projects receiving its support. Harvard is providing technical assistance around data collection, program implementation and data analysis to help measure benefits and success with the LUME Institute’s professional development model. 

Emerson is encouraged by the positive impact and recognition the LUME approach is receiving. Through our charitable trust, in 2019 we were pleased to fund LUME Institute’s four-month long professional development program to benefit teachers and leadership from more than a dozen under-resourced public and privately-run early childhood education facilities in north St. Louis city and county. 

We look forward to continuing our support of the LUME Institute’s efforts to improve early childhood education in the St. Louis area, especially among providers who typically cannot afford professional development training. 
 

Read more:
Cutting Edge Awards: Teacher becomes the student with LUME Institute, St. Louis Business Journal, June 28, 2019 (subscription required)