Tennessee Association for
Children's Early Education
Reaching Potential Together
P 615-279-0111
The 2023 TACEE Conference
BE THE CHANGE, BE THE DIFFERENCE MAKER
September 9, 2023
Murfreesboro, TN
A Message from TACEE's President
Many of us feel as though the last couple years have robbed us of our JOY. What happened to us as professionals? We’ve worried about the future, experienced job insecurity, worked under pressure, returned home to unbelievable stress, and wondered if the world was ever going to be “normal” again. Our world may not return to "normal," but that should not stop us from finding our joy! As early childhood educators, we can choose to find joy in the simple everyday events we witness in children’s lives.
At TACEE, we are on a mission to see our fellow professionals find ways to make our work a part of our joyful celebration of all the exciting moments we witness in children’s daily lives, moments we encourage through thoughtful interactions and intentional teaching strategies. We invite you to join us in preparing for and supporting the education of young children using developmentally appropriate practices. As you dive deep into new ideas and concepts you can use in and out of the classroom, we want to encourage you to look for and find JOY like you have never experienced before.
We hope you will relax, de-stress, while you build relationships with other professionals just like you. Share your success stories and benefit from hearing about the experiences of others facing similar situations. Let’s work together to rediscover our “happy place” while working with young children. They need us to find our joy!
Cathy Waggoner
TACEE President
TACEE Statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
As a welcoming and caring organization that respects diversity, equity, and inclusion, TACEE has a duty and responsibility to work for a better, fairer and more just world for Tennessee’s children, their families, and the professionals who care for them. We will continue to take assertive action to identify, acknowledge, and break down oppressive racist systems that harm our members, the children and families in our care, and corrode our communities.
Therefore, we are resolved to explicitly and publicly affirm our identity as an anti-racist organization.
We are resolved that our anti-racism commitment be reflected through our policies, programs, and practices as we continue to learn about racism.
We resolve to recommit ourselves to develop and work to implement strategies that dismantle racism within all aspects of the early childhood education community.
We look forward to sharing our strategic plan for putting our anti-racist commitment into action.
