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The Culture of Family: How a Model Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Program Navigates a Limited Context

This article examines an extraordinarily successful early childhood education teacher preparation program at an urban 2-year college struggling with retention. The Early Childhood Education Program in this case study is able to maintain a graduation rate that is over four times greater than that of the college average and has a reputation for producing high-quality early childhood educators. The faculty and students in the program explain that the key to the program's success is a “culture of family,” a strength-based approach that appreciates and builds upon the assets of the faculty and students, fosters meaningful relationships by focusing on the whole student, and creates a strong commitment to the program. The findings are especially impressive, given the extremely limited institutional context of the 2-year college. Considering the demand for high-quality early childhood teacher preparation and the fact that many students seek this training at the accessible 2-year college, it is important to examine the potential of these programs to produce student success. This case study provides a starting point in examining how quality early childhood teacher preparation can exist within the limited confines of the 2-year college.