Anita Zucker Center faculty Mary McLean highlights advances in early childhood intervention practices in keynote speech at a national conference in Melbourne, Australia.
Mary McLean, a core faculty member of the Anita Zucker Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Studies and a professor of special education and early childhood studies in the School of Special Education, School Psychology, and Early Childhood Studies at the University of Florida College of Education, was invited to deliver a keynote address on September 8th at the Early Childhood Intervention Australia (ECIA) 12th Biennial National Conference in Melbourne. The ECIA is the professional body established to promote awareness of early childhood intervention and to represent and enable professionals and organizations that work with young children with developmental delay and disabilities and their families.
Dr. McLean’s presentation was centered on the Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Recommended Practices and their application in advancing the practice and the science of early childhood intervention. Dr. McLean was instrumental in the development of each of the three versions of the DEC Recommended Practices, which provide evidence-based guidance for practitioners and families relative to early intervention and early childhood special education services. Dr. McLean’s invitation to present at the national conference in Melbourne was the latest event in an ongoing collaboration with the early learning leaders of Australia.
This collaboration began in 2012, when the Anita Zucker Center invited the renowned Chief Executive Officer of Noah’s Ark and leader of early learning inclusion throughout Australia, John Forster, to visit local early childhood centers and give a presentation to the University of Florida community on Australia’s early childhood inclusion initiatives.