{"id":5948,"date":"2026-03-03T13:26:35","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T18:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/earlychildhoodny.org\/blog\/?p=5948"},"modified":"2026-03-03T13:26:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T18:26:35","slug":"lets-do-it-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/earlychildhoodny.org\/blog\/lets-do-it-together\/","title":{"rendered":"“Let’s do it together”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A mother-daughter achievement in early childhood<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Early childhood teachers Sheila Vargas (left) and her mother Ivette Lopez both graduated with their associate degrees from SUNY Empire in December 2025.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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When Ivette Lopez and Sheila Vargas crossed the stage to receive their diplomas at SUNY Empire State University in December 2025, they were celebrating more than graduation. They were honoring perseverance, family \u2014 and the belief that it\u2019s never too late to finish what you start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both women were longtime assistant teachers at Holy Cross Head Start in Buffalo, NY, when they decided to earn their associate degrees in early childhood education together. But Ivette and Sheila are more than just colleagues: Ivette is Sheila\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI graduated high school when Sheila was in my belly,\u201d Ivette says. \u201cI said, now, we\u2019re going to graduate together.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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\"A
Ivette Lopez at her high school graduation, two weeks before Sheila\u2019s birth.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

For years, both women balanced their full-time professional responsibilities with robust home and family lives. Sheila has young children; Ivette cherishes her summer trips to Puerto Rico to visit her mother. They both held Child Development Associate (CDA) credentials and loved their work \u2014 and they both wanted to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They decided to take the next step after consulting with a former Head Start colleague, Charla Smith, who\u2019s now a career advisor at the New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute\u2019s Career Development Center<\/a><\/strong>. Charla helped them navigate enrollment, funding options, and the logistics of balancing work, family, and coursework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was cheering them on along the way. I\u2019m so proud for them, but I also want to tell them: You should be so proud of yourselves,\u201d Charla says. \u201cYou\u2019re able to provide more for families and students. Look what you\u2019ve done for yourself and the community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because their program participates in\u00a0QUALITYstarsNY<\/a><\/strong>, the state\u2019s Quality Rating and Improvement System for early childhood programs, Ivette and Sheila were eligible for the QUALITYstarsNY Academic Scholarship, which awards funding for credit-bearing early childhood education courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI always wanted to start my degree, and the financial part always kept me back,\u201d says Sheila. \u201cWhen Charla talked about the program, we thought it was the perfect opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They had another motivation, too: each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt first,\u201d Sheila says, \u201cI was the one encouraging her: \u2018Mom, we\u2019ll do it together, we\u2019ll help each other out.\u2019 That\u2019s exactly what we did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They supported each other through long days, late nights, and even moments of doubt. Both agree that the courses helped them become stronger educators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI came back to school this year with brand-new ideas because of new information I learned,\u201d says Ivette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having earned their associate degrees, both Ivette and Sheila have now become lead teachers with their own classrooms. They\u2019ve brought fresh ideas, renewed confidence, and deeper understanding to their practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love<\/em> being a teacher,\u201d Ivette emphasizes. \u201cIf you could see my classroom this year, it\u2019s amazing. It makes a difference for the kids to have a motivated teacher who wants to be there and see them shine \u2014 and they are shining!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Sheila, learning sharpened her sense of purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI always wanted to be someone\u2019s first impression of what school is,\u201d she says. \u201cPeople say we\u2019re day care, we only play all day. But we\u2019re building the foundation of important skills for kids to be successful, and I love seeing how they develop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, Sheila, who notes that Charla was \u201calways there to help us,\u201d says she and her mother are playing a similar role with their own colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe learned together, and now we\u2019re helping others,\u201d she says, like helping co-workers apply for Educational Incentive Program (EIP) funding to complete their own CDA credentials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their journey reminds us what\u2019s possible when we support educators\u2019 investment in themselves \u2014 and in future generations. Says Sheila: \u201cI wanted my own daughter, who\u2019s 12, to see that no matter how much time passes, you can always go back to your dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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