Stacey Francois started her Early Childhood career as in assistant teacher in a toddler classroom while earning a bachelor’s degree in Applied Behavioral Sciences, and Master’s degree in Management and Administration Educational Programs. Although she’s been in many other classrooms through the years, to date, toddlers are her favorite age group. Is there anything better than watching little humans discover the world, witnessing their milestones, and getting their hugs every day?
Stacey’s personal belief is that it’s an honor that she, as an early educator, had the opportunity to be an integral part of children’s and families’ lives. Her career experience before joining the ELCHC included many other positions including Curriculum Specialist, Coach/Mentor and Professional Development Specialist. Stacey joined the Early Learning Coalition of Hillsborough County in 2012, where she was the Institute Coordinator and Manager of Training and IACET before her promotion to Director of Program Initiatives and Education. Stacey’s three proudest projects so far is bringing the INCENTIVE$ program to Hillsborough County, a salary supplement to help support early childhood educators while also rewarding continued educational growth; achieving IACET accreditation for ELCHC training and learning events; and most recently our collective work on Workforce Development. Outside of the office, Stacey loves traveling and seeing new places, and visits local museums when she does. She enjoys art festivals, live music, musicals, and if you challenge her on Golden Girls trivia or Scrabble, she will win!