Q & A With...Jackie Copeland

It started out with a dream to become a journalist. It's one dream that Jackie Copeland isn't sad to see die. She is very happy with the career she chose and has been a part of for nearly four decades. Copeland, who will be 60 in April, has worked for the past 38 years as a teacher (preschool and kindergarten – the latter before the town offered full-day kindergarten) at Childcare Learning Center in Stamford and she has no plans to retire. While she may not have any children of her own, Copeland can count hundreds and hundreds of children as her own throughout her career.

Q: Why did you become an early childhood teacher?

A: “I really had no intentions – I wanted to be a journalist. I majored in English and minored in Spanish and biology. I was looking for a job and my cousin said there was an opening at CLC on Broad Street [was known as Child Care Center at the time]. I always liked kids – so I applied and I'm still here 38 years later. When they built the new facility on Palmer Hill, we saw the plans of the new building and we got to pick out our rooms. I've been in Room 5 ever since.”

Q: Do you ever regret not pursuing the journalism career?

A: “No, not really. I was here early one day and thought, 'this is where I belong; this is the job I should be doing.' These children, I would meet them as as babies, when we used to have a lot of babies here. I knew them as infants. I've been invited to their weddings, graduations, bridal and baby showers. I've had children come back and visit and they are in their 30s! One of my former kindergartners works in the fiscal office for CLC. I don't feel like I'm aging; I have a very different view on aging. I still write journals and stories, but I do that on my own.”

Q: What steps did you take to get to this point in your life? Do you plan to pursue your master's degree?

A: “I have my bachelor's in English and 12 credits in early education from Norwalk Community College. I have to go back to school because NAEYC requires 36 credits in ECE. I have until 2015 to do it. I plan on still being here in 2015! As for my master's degree, not at this point in time.”

Q: What is the best part of your job? The worst?

A: “The best part of the job is dealing with the kids and absolutely working with the staff. I've always gotten along with my staff. The worst is when there are so many changes brought up . An example would be the education requirements.”

NOTE: Carol Sargent, director of the child development program at CLC, says there have been a lot of changes, including funding changes and three executive directors in the past few years. NAEYC, she said, has made changes in the classrooms to make adaptations to, and Head Start, School Readiness and private and state-funded programs are all within the same building; all requiring their own needs.

Q: What changes have you seen in the field since you started?

A: “The kids themselves. The kids used to be so naïve. Now they see movies I don't see, stay up later than me and when you say to them 'that's a pretty skirt,' they say, 'I got it at Target.' They are more mature; they are exposed to more in society. They watch the news. After 9/11, they were crashing blocks into each other. The educational requirements have changed too and everything has to be documented. You spend more time doing that and less time with the kids. There's a tremendous amount of paperwork."

Q: Anything still the same?

A: "I think everyone is here because we want to be here for the kids. The dedication hasn't changed."

Q: How long have you been with CLC?

A: “The whole 38 years. Now it's Childcare Learning Centers. Up until about six years ago, it was known as Childcare Center and it was known as Stamford Daycare Center for a long time before that. It was going through a name change to Childcare Center when we were on Broad Street. It originally started as Stamford Day Nursery in 1902. I remember when I started, we couldn't wear pants. We had to wear skirts. I wore koolots once and got in trouble!”

Q: What has made you stay for 38 years?

A: “The people and the administration – I have a lot of respect for them. My love of children has kept me here too. I also like seeing the progress made. And I've been happy here.”

Q: When do you plan to retire?

A: “I have no plans yet – nothing is solidified in my mind for retiring.”