PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Preschools, as well as grades K-12, are dealing with a dire shortage of teachers, and in response, the Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando counties is offering free tuition to whoever wants to pursue their early childhood education certification, thanks to a federal grant.

“We have several zip codes that just have some critical shortages for high quality educators, so I volunteered our coalition to pilot an apprenticeship program in partnership with Marchman Technical College, which is connected to Pasco schools, just to try to educate our younger teachers and any teacher in our community,” said Dr. Steve Knobl, executive director of the Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando Counties, Inc.

One preschool in Holiday has already hired several graduates from that program, and its owner said having these qualified teachers ready to work is helping ease the shortage already.

Alexis Cimmino is the assistant director of Little Rascals Preschool in Holiday. Her class starts the day playing a quick game of “Pirate Ship,” and while she admits she’s always loved kids, her initial goal wasn’t to work with them.  

“I always would babysit my cousin and nephew and stuff, and I was always good with kids," Cimmino said. "Originally, I wanted to be a nurse, but I wasn’t good at chemistry. I was good at kids."

Then, when she had her daughter Mia Rose, she discovered her true calling — working in early childhood education. 

Cimmino is a graduate of Marchman Technical College, and she was able to attend and receive her certification thanks to the federal grant that paid for her tuition.  

“I ended up working at McDonald's, I wasn’t even going to go back to childcare, but I missed coming to work and actually having fun, not coming to work like, 'Dang, I have to go to work.' " Cimmino said. "I was actually able to come, and shake my sillys out and have fun with the kids.” 

Cimmino's boss, Little Rascals Preschool owner Janette Walker, said a lot of her employees were in similar situations, and lately, finding certified teachers to hire is almost impossible. But thanks to this grant, now she has five teachers working on their certifications. 

“You have to love children to be in this field because it’s very frustrating, and it’s not like your own children," Walker said. "You’re a mandator, and you have to keep your eyes and ears open to everything with what’s going on with children and what’s happening in society today.”

While the job can be tough, Cimmino said there’s a lot of opportunity in early childhood education. She plans to go back to Marchman to get her child care director's certificate.

“I know a lot of people are like, 'Oh, it doesn’t pay good.' But if you find the right boss, and you are CDA certified, and they see your work, it is manageable," Cimmino said. "Sometimes it can be a little stressful, but it is manageable, and you can only go up.” 

Now, Cimmino and Mia Rose can grow together, which Cimmino said is the most rewarding part — not only seeing her daughter learn and grow, but knowing she’s an important part of each of these children’s lives.