I have lived in San Francisco’s Bayview – Hunters Point neighborhood almost my entire life. My daughters and nephew attended Wu Yee Children’s Services’ Kirkwood Early Learning Center on Hunters Point Hill.
My younger daughter Jiya experienced a speech delay which impacted her social interactions. It wasn’t until Jiya was enrolled at Wu Yee that I was able to learn more about her language development and work with the Wu Yee team to learn about ways to better support her. I felt like it was a sign that it was time for me to not only be more involved in my child’s life, but it was time for me to actually understand what it’s like to educate young children in my community.
I wanted to be a teacher but I just didn’t know where to start.
I decided to join Wu Yee Children’s Services’ IRISE early childhood education apprenticeship program because I saw it as an opportunity to be a better parent, and also as a way to increase representation for black and brown children in our community.
I am now a substitute teacher at Wu Yee’s Kirkwood Early Learning Center, the same center that my daughters and nephew attended when they were younger.
Growing up in and now working in the Bayview, everyone feels like family. If I don’t know the parents at the Center, I know someone related to them. I want to better my community and to be a representation. It’s nice to be somewhere where someone looks like you, whether it be a child or a co-worker. I hope to bring more representation and hopefully some peace of mind to parents knowing I’m from the Bayview and that my daughters attended this center.
My future goal is to become a center manager. I can see myself creating programs within Wu Yee for parents to get them more involved and to help them become better parents.
