T.E.A.C.H. TALKVOLUME 5 •  JUNE 2021

T.E.A.C.H. EARLY CHILDHOOD® NORTH CAROLINAQUARTERLY NEWSLETTER

A MESSAGE FROM THET.E.A.C.H. NC TEAMThe T.E.A.C.H. staff at Child Care Services Associationtip our hats to all of the early childhood educators andadministrators across our state for your sacrifices,dedication and love for teaching young children. Youare our heroes for the children, families andcommunities in North Carolina. We hope this summerwill be filled with moments to relax and laugh, and thatyou feel worthy and appreciated for what you eachday in the lives of the children you teach and care for.

TAKE A PEEK!RECIPIENT

SPOTLIGHT - 2

SPONSORSPOTLIGHT - 3

OTHER

ANNOUNCEMENTS - 3

SEMESTERREMINDERS - 5

MEET YOUR T.E.A.C.H.

NC TEAM - 8

Page 1

PROPOSALS TO CHANGE PELL GRANT MAYGET NEW LIFE

"As the needs of the post-pandemic economy evolve and new Democratic leadership getssettled in Washington, several fabled ideas for revamping the Pell Grant program could havenew life pumped into them. Three proposals now in play would transform the Pell Grant as itapproaches its 50th birthday. The proposals would expand eligibility to short-term certificateprograms, allow DACA students to apply and increase grants by $400. "Students whose families earn less than certain thresholds can use Pell dollars on programs thatspan at least 600 clock hours over at least 15 weeks. Congress sets the annual maximum astudent can obtain — $6,495 for the 2021-22 academic year — but the amount a student receivesvaries based on need and other factors. The program was initially designed to pay forassociate’s and bachelor’s degrees, but many vocational programs are also eligible." Read morehere.

T.E.A.C.H. Scholarship enhancements will be discontinued effective July 1, 2021, due toincreasing numbers of T.E.A.C.H. sponsors resuming pre-COVID operations.

T.E.A.C.H. COVID-19 ENHANCEMENTS TO BEDISCONTINUED

Page 2

RECIPIENT SPOTLIGHT

"My name is Terry Whitworth. I am the proud ownerof Kids Cabin Family Child Care Home in Cherryville,North Carolina. We are a four-star program. TheT.E.A.C.H. program has played a major role in my life!I am a T.E.A.C.H. scholarship recipient for both myassociate and bachelor's degree. I received myAssociate Degree in Applied Science in EarlyChildhood Education in 2017 from ClevelandCommunity College in Shelby, North Carolina. I amcurrently attending Gardner-Webb Universityworking on my Bachelor of Science degree in Birth-Kindergarten Education. I will be graduating in theSpring of 2022. T.E.A.C.H. has helped me pay for mycollege tuition and books, and the counselors arevery encouraging and helpful.

"All of this has given me more confidence in thisprofession. When parents bring their children to me,they know that they are receiving high-qualityeducation. I am going to give back everything that Ihave learned through the years to make sure theirchild receives the best foundation possible. I am sothankful for T.E.A.C.H helping me, so I can continueto help our children. Education makes a difference!"

Page 3

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTST.E.A.C.H. CHECK PAYMENTS MOVING TO ELECTRONIC PAYMENTS VIAACH

CCSA is transitioning to Automatic Clearing House (ACH) to issue direct electronic paymentsto scholarship recipients and sponsoring employers who participate in the T.E.A.C.H. EarlyChildhood NC Scholarship Program. This transition is currently underway and we hope to havemade significant progress before the start of the Fall 2021 semester, but we need your help inorder to accomplish this. If you are an active scholarship recipient or sponsoring employerand you have not submitted the completed ACH form along with a voided check or letter fromyour banking institution on letterhead, please send it in. This transition to direct electronicpayments will eliminate reissue of lost checks and be a smoother process in distributingmonies to scholarship recipients and sponsors.

Irene Wortham Early Learning Center is adevelopmental day program serving children withdisabilities alongside typically developing peers. Theuse of T.E.A.C.H. has provided funding for teachers tocontinue their education in early childhood withoutfinancial hardship. With Irene Wortham providingpaid release time, our teachers have stated that itlessens the time away from their families to be ableto complete assignments, making continuing theireducation more enjoyable, and easier to be able tofocus and put into practice the information they arelearning.

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT

Page 4

Page 5

SEMESTER REMINDERS

RECIPIENT CHECKLIST

Send in your signed contract to activateyour scholarship. This document MUST bereceived before any scholarship activitycan occur. Send your Request for Permission toRelease Information. You must check oneof the boxes, granting or denying uspermission to release personalinformation. Remember to sign and datethis document.You MUST send your Form B with itemizedreceipts for tuition and book, ifapplicable, every semester. You should beable to access itemized tuition statementsfrom Self Service or Web-Advisor.Itemized book receipts should beobtained from the bookstore or youronline purchaser.

T.E.A.C.H. NC wants to help ensure your academic success by including an abbreviatedrecipient checklist in this section of semester reminders. These reminders are our way ofcalling your attention to some of the more important aspects of the scholarship process. Thesechecklist items, if ignored, can pause or delay your scholarship process. If you need furtherexplanation about any of these items please feel free to contact your scholarship counselor.

If you receive an invoice please makesure it is paid on or before the due date. Ifnot, this may pause your scholarship. Ifyou are not able to pay the invoice in fullplease call our office to discuss paymentoptions. Send your unofficial transcript at the endof each semester. Please make sure youridentifying information and the school'sidentifying information are on thedocument. Please DO NOT write orhighlight on the document itself.

MASTER'S DEGREE

Jessica BakerMiranda BraunJennifer CuaSheen KlausBrittany MackNicole Mohney-MarshallKristen ShatleyKathy SmithAlyse StehlyKimberly WilkensLeeAnn Wright

Page 6

KUDOS AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

BACHELOR'S DEGREE

Keisha BakerSarah CrawfordPatricia Dilworth Rose FishMegan MintonMekia Roberson Kristy SpruillBarbara Wade

ASSOCIATE DEGREE

Davita BrownAllison CorpuzJessica FarmerChristy JohnsonAmy MauckJilvonna McLeodMaesha ParrishTamara PellotShomika PhillipsJohnnie TaylorBridgette WareWanda WeatherfordAngelica Woodbury

BIRTH-KINDERGARTENLICENSURE

Patricia DilworthGorsha Pierre-Louis

This section is dedicated to our Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 graduates. We are so proud ofyou!

Page 7

T.E.A.C.H. NC STAFF MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Name: Shakeerah Miles

Position: Admin II

Education: Bachelor’s in Liberal Studies from LivingstoneCollege

Experience in Admin: Two years professional, two yearsvolunteering in the Business Office Office of LivingstoneCollege, and a six-month Intern at North RowanElementary School

Time with T.E.A.C.H.: Two weeks

Fun Fact: I graduated high school as a junior, I was onthe yearbook committee at Livingstone College and thejudicial board, and I enjoy spending time with family andshopping!

Page 8

MEET YOUR T.E.A.C.H. NC TEAMEdith Locke, Division Vice President

Amy Duffy, Program Manager

Kimberly Bynum, Program Manager and Primary Counselor for recipients on our Master’sDegree, LITL and Preschool Add-On Scholarships, and those attending Central CommunityCollege, Edgecombe Community College, Johnston Community College and LenoirCommunity College

Takeasia McArn, Scholarship Counselor III and Primary Counselor for receipts attendingDurham Technical Community College, Piedmont Community College and StanlyCommunity College

Pam McGowan, Scholarship Counselor III and Primary Counselor for recipients attendingEast Carolina University, Forsyth Technical Community College, Guilford TechnicalCommunity College, Shaw University, UNC-Greensboro, University of Mount Olive andWestern Carolina University

Tomonica Rice-Yarborough (leaving in early July), Field-Based Outreach Coordinator andPrimary Counselor for recipients attending Alamance Community College, Barton College,Brevard College, Catawba College, Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville StateUniversity, Gardner Webb University, Greensboro College, North Carolina Central University,UNC-Chapel Hill, UNC-Charlotte, UNC-Pembroke, UNC Wilmington, Wake TechnicalCommunity College, Wilson Technical Community College, Vance-Granville CommunityCollege and Winston-Salem State University

Felica Olds, Scholarship Counselor II and Primary Counselor for recipients attending A-BTechnical Community College, Blue Ridge Community College, Caldwell TechnicalCommunity College, Catawba Valley Community College, Cleveland Community College,

Continued on page 11...

Kathy Thornton, Quality Control Systems Coordinator and Primary Counselor for recipientsattending Appalachian State University, Central Piedmont Community College, College ofthe Albemarle, Fayetteville Technical Community College, Haywood Community College,Sandhills Community College, Wayne Community College and those on our ChildDevelopment Associate (CDA) scholarship models

Schquita Battle, Administrative Department Manager and Primary Counselor for recipientson our Community Specialist Scholarship, and those attending Beaufort County CommunityCollege, Bladen Community College, Brunswick CommunityCollege, Cape Fear CommunityCollege, Carteret Community College, Coastal Community College, Craven CommunityCollege, Halifax Community College, James Sprunt Community College, Martin CommunityCollege, Nash Community College, Pamlico Community College, Pitt Community College,Robeson Community College, Rockingham Community College, Sampson CommunityCollege and Southeastern Community College

Christie Warren, Administrative Assistant II

Shakeerah Mills, Administrative Assistant II

...Continued from Page 10

Davidson County Community College, Gaston Community College, Isothermal Community College, McDowell Technical Community College, Mitchell Community College, Montgomery Community College, Randolph Community College, Richmond Community College, Rowan- Cabarrus Community College, South Piedmont Community College, Southwestern Community College, Surry Community College, Tri- County Community College, Western Piedmont Community College and Wilkes Community College

Page 9

MEET YOUR T.E.A.C.H. NC TEAM

Child Care Services AssociationT.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® North Carolina Scholarship Program

PO Box 231, Chapel Hill, NC 27514Phone: | Fax: 919-967-3272 919-967-7040