Released: September 16, 2016
Seasoned administrator leads expanded early childhood program
Santa Fe Community College announces that Michelle Rosen-Hatcher has been selected as the Director of Kids Campus. Rosen-Hatcher has a wealth of experience as an educator, having spent more than 25 years with Santa Fe Public Schools as a teacher and administrator.
“We’re thrilled to have Michelle Rosen-Hatcher as the Director of Kids Campus. We value her guidance and expertise to continue to raise the level of excellence at Kids Campus,” Dr. Jennifer Duran-Sallee director of the Early Childhood Center of Excellence (ECCOE) said.
Rosen-Hatcher taught in special education and gifted programs at several elementary schools: Wood Gormley, Atalaya (where she created a much-needed after school program and served as director), E.J. Martinez and Carlos Gilbert. She also has served as an assistant principal at Santa Fe High School. While principal at Chaparral, Rosen-Hatcher launched a successful pre-K program. During her teaching career, she received two Fulbright scholarships that offered her the opportunity to travel to India and Japan where she learned more about those country’s cultures and educational systems.
Rosen-Hatcher’s educational background includes a bachelor’s degree in psychology from City College of New York, a master’s degree in education from New York University and Administrative Licensure in Transformational Leadership from New Mexico Highlands University.
The Kids Campus at the ECCOE serves as a learning laboratory and demonstration site for those studying early childhood education as well as serving children from 8 weeks to five months old with a positive and nurturing environment for learning. SFCC’s Kids Campus, open to the community on a space-available basis, serves 105 children. “Recently, we opened three new classrooms,” Duran-Sallee, ECCOE director, said. “Previously we served 70 children. With the opening of additional classrooms we’re pleased to serve more children of SFCC students. One of our new classrooms serves bilingual students.”
Kids Campus is accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and maintains a Five-Star (best possible) license with the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department.
“It’s exciting to work with the diversity of children at Kids Campus. I love seeing the infants and children as they explore and learn. Sometimes they can get really messy, but that’s how they learn,” Rosen-Hatcher said. “We know that it’s in the earliest years of development that children get their love of learning and develop coping skills that will serve them throughout their lives.
“It’s important that children get core foundational skills for future success. They learn about how to self-regulate their emotions and actions, as well as negotiate with their peers,” Rosen Hatcher added.
For more information about Kids Campus visit kidscampus.sfcc.edu or call 505-428-1354. To contact Rosen-Hatcher either call 505-428-1380 or email michelle.rosen@sfcc.edu.
For more than 35 years, Santa Fe Community College has been the gateway to success for individuals and the community by providing affordable, high quality educational programs that serve the social, cultural, technological, and economic needs of a diverse community. SFCC is a designated Best for Vets and Military Friendly school. The college serves more than 12,000 students per year in its credit, noncredit and adult programs. For further information, visit sfcc.edu or call 505-428-1000. Follow us: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn.
