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By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
Georgia Acevedo, Early Childhood Professional of the Year,
teaches Max Turetsky, right, to touch nicely rather
than to hit Kenneth Li.

Toddlers’ teacher is
no baby sitter

By Crystal Kua
Star-Bulletin

Georgia Acevedo gets excited every time a 2-year-old links the shape of a bicycle tire to the wheels of a buggy at school.

"For them to make that connection is really neat," Acevedo said. "Young children learn by doing and their experiences."

But Acevedo's early childhood education work, spanning 40 years, goes beyond the classroom.

"She has been a major advocate for children and family in this state," said Ursula Miller-Eisenpress, director of the University of Hawaii at Manoa Children's Center, where Acevedo has taught since the center opened in 1990. "She has helped write legislation, written letters, led committees and been a strong advocate for children and families."

Acevedo, 61, will be honored tonight at a ceremony at Washington Place as the 2000 Early Childhood Professional of the Year by the Good Beginnings Alliance, a nonprofit organization.

As a child who lined up her teddy bears and dolls to play school, teaching has been in Acevedo's blood since she was a youngster.

She has a doctorate in early childhood education and has taught students as young as 2 to those attending universities. She was a preschool director and also worked for PATCH, People Attentive to Children.

But with all her academic credits, knowledge and experience, Acevedo finds her greatest joy in working with the children.

"I really like the 2-year-olds because they're wonderful. They are the ones learning," she said. "Everything is new to them. They are discovering and I find that very exciting."

Acevedo has been influential in the lives of all the children she has taught, Miller-Eisenpress said.

"Every day she comes to work, she feels she truly is making a difference not just in the children, but in their families," Miller-Eisenpress said. "She brings them a level of skill that is rare to find in the industry. It comes from many years of doing it, studying it and teaching it."

Acevedo hopes the award will bring recognition to her profession and her peers. "I think making people aware that is a profession is important. People often don't look at us as early childhood professionals. They call us baby sitters. I've never sat on a baby."

More attention and funding needs to be paid to this field of work also, she said.

"We don't value early childhood like we should," she said, "and we don't put money there."