Educational First Steps

Congratulations to our 2026 David Munson Award Recipients!

At this year’s Educators Conference, we had the privilege of recognizing three outstanding early childhood professionals whose dedication, leadership, and commitment to children and families make a lasting impact in their communities.

🏆Home-Based Provider of the Year
Teressia Whitehead-Blair, Nanna's First Childcare

🏆Teacher of the Year
Tinaundra Davis, Pace & Ross Learning Center

🏆Director of the Year
Kenyatta Henderson, YaYa's Yuniversity

These exceptional educators embody excellence in early childhood education and inspire those around them every day.

Please join us in celebrating their incredible achievements and the difference they make in the lives of young children.

We are thrilled to welcome Shawneequa Blount to the Educational First Steps family!

Shawneequa joins us as Managing Director of Programs and Partnerships and brings over 15 years of early childhood education leadership to our team.

Most recently, she served as Director of Child Care Innovation at Child Care Associates, where she led program strategy, grant management, and stakeholder engagement across the early childhood sector. Prior to that, she spent five years as Director of Early Childhood Programs at Crowley ISD, where she launched and licensed childcare centers and ensured compliance with Texas Child Care Licensing and NAEYC Standards.

We are especially excited to have Shawneequa because she is a true ECE expert with deep, long-standing relationships with providers, funders, and champions throughout Tarrant County. Her passion for expanding access to quality care aligns perfectly with our mission — and our families and community will feel her impact from day one.

Welcome, Shawneequa! 💚

We want to give a huge shoutout and heartfelt thank you to all of the sponsors supporting this year’s Educational First Steps Educators Conference!

Thank you , , , , Capable Cleaning, Pathway Consultations, , Celebrate SEL , Mother Daughter Duo Crafts, and Mend & Abide for your generosity and partnership. Your support helps make this conference possible and allows us to continue investing in educators and early childhood learning throughout our communities.

We are so grateful to have each of you as part of this event!

We are thrilled to welcome Mend & Abide as the Presenting Sponsor of the 2026 Educational First Steps Educators Conference!

Led by our keynote speaker, Tonya Williams Clark, Mend & Abide is dedicated to helping educators and leaders build a culture of rest that fuels sustainable performance, wellness, and impact. Their mission reminds us that caring for ourselves is essential to caring for others — especially in the important work of early childhood education.

We are so grateful for their partnership and excited for the inspiration and encouragement they will bring to this year’s conference!