Hello!
My name is Marcia Hebert. For those of you who do not already know me, I’m happy to make your acquaintance!
I have spent the better part of my professional life in the field of early childhood education, as a teacher (infants through kindergarten), and as the director of several child care centers in Massachusetts. For twenty years, I was the Director of the John Hancock Child Care Center in Boston, which enrolled as many as two hundred children and had a staff of sixty!
For the last several years, though, I have been working with the directors and teachers of many, many early childhood programs – as a consultant.
Performance management consulting probably best describes what I do. Because I actually want to make a difference – a positive difference – as a result of my consulting, coaching, mentoring, and teaching. My goal is to inspire and motivate each team to try another way, a better technique, a way of working with children and adults that improves their performance.
My philosophy is to bring my best to work each day! So, I love working with programs whose director and teachers want to perform optimally as well. It’s a perfect fit!
So, while I provide workshops and training sessions that are written and delivered for each unique program and team, I also work for, and with, the director and management team. I observe and brainstorm possibilities and solutions around staff, parent, child, and environment issues; I facilitate discussion among teachers about developmentally appropriate curriculum, materials, and experiences; I develop strategic plans with directors for expansion, new space, new facilities, new organizational structure; I introduce new elements into the existing performance package, setting clear expectations and goals. And I am always available to talk with directors about anything and everything that happens in an early childhood program – in person, over the phone, or via email. I know life in an early childhood program – I lived it for more than thirty years! And, I learned much through my experiences.
Feedback these past three years has been consistently positive. I have received numerous emails and photos from teachers as well as directors – all of them excited to share their feedback, changes made, and improvements. New strategies have worked; new processes and procedures have made positive differences; organizational changes have been effective; and, teachers have recaptured their passion, enthusiasm, and joy in their work.
My consulting is about sharing what I have learned, connecting, building relationships, and supporting those who have chosen this leadership path. Teaching and caring for young children is an honorable profession. It is also an awesome responsibility, a humbling experience, and life-changing work. And, it demands the very best we have to give.
As a leader, you give of yourself every minute of your workday. As a result, you, too, need to be replenished, restored, supported and, yes, cheered on from time to time. Toward that end, I am available to assist, support, motivate, and hopefully inspire – both you, and your team.
I invite you to take a closer look at this early childhood leadership site. Get to know me through my writing and, if my words resonate with you, please contact me.
Let’s talk!
