b'Three members of the Early Childhood team (Emilee Transou, Melissa Lehman, and Elizabeth Wilson) were awarded a TEEF grant to travel to our nations capital to visit two prestigious Pre-K programs, attend the National Association for the Education of Young Children Annual Conference, and take a private tour of the Capitol. The Early Childhood team was interested in how our program compared to other high-ranked programs in the US.While visiting the National Presbyterian School and Sidwell Friends School, they were able to learn more about their curriculum, best practices for young children, and the latest research in our field.During our time at the NAEYC conference, we collaborated with other early childhood professionals, discussed young children and why their diversity matters, learned about ways we can build empathy and perspective taking, explored cutting edge technology, pedagogy, and research.Having the privilege to attend these Pre-K programs and the national conference gave us the opportunity to bring current information back to our colleagues and classrooms; ensuring that we are continually giving our youngest Bengals the best opportunity to learn and grow.We know that this will continue to enhance their learning experiences at GDS, and provide a solid foundation for them to become constructive contributors to the world.Tammy Alt attended the Harvard Summer Institute on College Admissions with support from a TEEF grant. Along with other college counselors, admissions counselors and members of community based organizations from around the world, she attended seminars, case study workshops and networking sessions over the course of a week in Cambridge, MA. Topics included, NCAA athletic recruitment, demographics and economic trends impacting college admissions, early action and early decision policies, updates on the Common and Coalition applications, how rankings impact admission and college/university decisions, and the use of social media in admissions. Faculty for the Institute consisted of Deans and Directors of Admission from Harvard, Cornell, Brown, MIT, Stanford, the University of Michigan, and Columbia as well as many other accomplished Directors of College Counseling from public and independent schools around the world. Mrs. Alt is pictured here with Dr. William Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Harvard University.Fifth grade science teacher, Mrs. Sarah Rose Mostafa was hands on with science as her TEEF grant took her to Raleigh to explore the Prairie Ridge Ecostation, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, and Fort Fisher at the coast. Mrs. Mostafa kayaked in the salt marsh estuary where the Cape Fear River meets the ocean hosted by UNCWs MarineQuest program. Mrs. Mostafa participated in a nursery fish collection and study using seine nets, as well as a salt marsh plant study. She caught plankton using a fine mesh net and catch bottle towed behind her kayak, then took the sample back to the lab to examine plankton under the microscope and was an active observer of a shark dissection, performed by one of UNCWs doctoral students studying shark brains.GDS Magazine | 45'