Tammy Sneed is a passionate early childhood educator.
She has been in the field for over 20 years and served in many roles.
Tammy began her journey in early childhood as a parent and
advocate for her own children in 1989. She pressed herself to learn ways
to teach her children to find a love for learning as they grew and developed in
their natural environments. In 1998, Tammy began working in a local childcare
center as a substitute teacher. The center had begun the process of
preparing for the star rating license that the state of North Carolina would
soon embrace as the standard. Like many of her co-workers, Tammy tested
out of the required NC Credentials for Early Childhood. It was a bridge
to an all too familiar place, a love for learning and achievement.
Tammy continued to develop as a teacher and develop skills at
different age levels of teaching. She worked as a toddler teacher for five
years and then moved on to teach three-year-old. Her children at home
became more independent so Tammy re-enrolled in school at Wake Technical
Community College in 2005. Tammy had once attended the college right
after high school for an associate degree in Business Administration. While
being a student, Tammy ran for office as NCAEYC Board of Governors Student
Representative. She won and served the state of North Carolina’s finest
early educators, families, and children. She also excelled in school and
everything she learned was applied to her classroom. She began to apply
NC Foundations to her lessons and goals for each child in her care. She began
sharing the information with her co-workers as the reasons why she taught the
way she did. Tammy had great success in the classroom. She graduated with
an associate degree from Wake Technical Community College in 2010 with honors
in Early Childhood Education. It was the beginning of her on-going formal
education and professional development.
In 2015, Tammy enrolled in the University of North Carolina at
Greensboro (UNCG). She sought out a bachelor's degree in Human
Development and Family Studies and a minor in Early Childhood Education.
Tammy graduated from UNCG in 2018 Cum Laude while working full time and raising
three amazing children. By this time Tammy had taught more than 20 years
and began the work of an educational coordinator as well. She mentored
educators, assisted with training educators, and fostered amazing relationships
with families. Tammy believed that early childhood education includes the
educators, the child, and the family to be a success.
In 2019, Tammy left the classroom to join the administrative
team of a childcare center in Raleigh, NC. In 2020, she joined a team of
early childhood advocates, The Legacy Leaders, as the work of equity in early
childhood was pushed to the forefront. In January 2020, Tammy enrolled in UNCG
for a 2nd time as a student in the Master of Education
program. She is currently working on her final year of her master’s
program while working as the director of a childcare center in Durham, NC where
she lives with her husband. Tammy works hard advocating for educators, children
and families and knows that the work she does today sets a course of positive
community connections for the people she serves.
Tammy Sneed: As I recall our first meeting as NCAEYC Board of Directors members we connected. From those meetings, I gleamed your commitment to the profession as an educator which prompted to ask you to present during in-service for students enrolled in the Early Childhood Education program at NCCU. The students were engrossed with content and hands-on experiences that could implement during student teacher placement. You are a talented, beautiful, successful, important, and smart Black woman educator who exemplify her given skillset to the fullest. Thanks for allowing me to have your story in the series of Black Women Educators.
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