Over 300 educators gathered each day at Pacific Palms in City of Industry on February 6 and 7 for a unique professional development event designed specifically for early childhood professionals serving infants, toddlers and two-year-olds. At the Los Angeles County Office of Education’s (LACOE) second annual Early Head Start Institute (EHSI), “Rooted in Connection, Growing with Purpose,” they gained opportunities to hone practices and support rich family connections during the crucial first three years of life.

Participants included teachers, home visitors, family support specialists, coaches, administrators and consultants who work with infants, toddlers and their families, as well as participants in LACOE’s Family Development Credential and Career Development Initiative pathways—a new generation of early childhood professionals. Several early learning agencies that had participated in the 2025 event even scheduled Friday as a child-free professional learning day to ensure all of their staff could participate.

Welcoming these participants on Friday morning, Dr. Maricela Ramirez, LACOE Chief Education Officer, applauded them for “doing the work that is changing lives. I hope you recognize how amazing you are.”

Both days were filled with a variety of hands-on workshops, including sessions on toddler engineering, music and movement, enhancing interactions with families and reading children’s cues to improve regulation.

A special highlight could be found in the two hotel conference rooms transformed into model classrooms, where teachers could engage in interactive sessions to enhance their practices. The two-year-old room, jointly created by LACOE and Teaching Strategies, centered around a study of light, with various centers intentionally designed to help two-year-olds explore and experiment with reflection, colors and other properties of light in their daily environment.

Dr. Ruth Pérez, LACOE Deputy Superintendent, shared that this room brought tears to her eyes, because it summoned such wonderful memories of her own experience as a child in Head Start. She reminded all the educators: “Every tiny little life that walks into your center is going to remember that experience for the rest of their lives. Thank you for taking the time to be a willing participant here today.”

Next to the two-year-old classroom, LACOE and Kaplan designed a safe, nurturing space for infants, which also hosted workshops throughout the event. Following the conclusion of the ESHI, this classroom was donated and transferred to the Pomona Unified School District (PUSD), where it will serve infants at a treatment facility for women impacted by substance use, mental illness and domestic violence, one of LACOE’s Head Start programs operated by PUSD.

Planning for the third annual Early Head Start Institute in 2027 is now underway. For more on LACOE’s Early Head Start, Head Start Preschool and other early learning programs, please visit prekkid.org.