QUALITYstarsNY Celebrates 2025 Child Care Council of Westchester Hall of Heroes Award Winners

Education Coordinator Yasmill Ledesma of Discovery Village, Teacher Sandra Jenkins of St. Peter’s Child Care Center, Inc. and Sonilvia Garcia of Nina’s Daycare, Inc. were recently honored with the Child Care Council of Westchester Early Education Hall of Heroes award.

This award recognizes early childhood professionals who invest significantly in the future of our youngest learners and their communities. Yasmill, Sandra and Sonilvia talked with QUALITYstarsNY about what this award means to them, the lessons they have learned throughout their career and what they look forward to.

What does being a Hall of Heroes award recipient mean to you?

Yasmill: It means being there for everyone in my community—that I’m always available, always present, always willing to lend a helping hand and give advice. When I received it, I looked back at my career and I saw that there was a common denominator. No matter how stressed I was with the things that always come up in everyone’s lives, I always knew I was there for my colleagues, my community, the families and the children. I never gave up, even when I wanted to. I knew there was a bigger purpose. I knew when someone was coming to me for help, it was for a reason and that they could trust me, whether it was for lesson planning, handling a sticky situation with a family, or anything else. This honed my leadership skills. I earned teachers’ trust because their concerns were heard.

Sandra: I am so honored to have been nominated. I am just happy to be able to continue doing what I love. I have a passion for working with children! I’m 71, and I’ve worked here for 38 1/2 years as a teacher! I see people in the community that I taught years ago. They still come up to me and thank me. I had some children in my classroom whose parents were my students. Even one of my colleagues here at St. Peter’s was once my student. I feel that being a teacher is the purpose that God gave me. Even as a little girl, I always wanted to teach. I always wanted to work with children. I love my job!

Sonilvia: Being a Hall of Heroes awardee is a true honor. It means my love and dedication to children and families is recognized, and it inspires me to keep making a difference in their lives.

What meaningful lessons have you learned throughout your career as an educator?

Yasmill: I’ve learned the importance of getting to know the actual person. Whether teacher, parent or student—getting to know them as a whole person before trying to teach them something. I know I must get to know someone’s story and their individualized style. Then I’ll know how to better approach them and help them. When I went to school, it was a setting where I was supposed to learn everything exactly how everyone else was learning. It was frustrating. When I got into early childhood, I learned that’s not a sustainable way of learning.

Sandra: You have to like and really love children because each one is so different. They learn differently, so you have to use a different approach with each one. Of course, you have to have patience with each child in your classroom, too. I learned that I have to observe what each child is doing; look closely to see the learning going on and how they learn. That way, I know how to approach that child. I get involved side by side with them. Some need more one-on-one instruction than others. Some need to be told, and some need to be shown. Each one learns differently, and I can learn from them! They are so curious and creative. I am in awe of what they do.  I know I need to be a role model for them, too. Things have changed a little bit. Children are more into technology, and we have new ideas and strategies to learn from all the time. I’m committed to always staying engaged and always learning.

Sonilvia: I’ve learned that every child is unique, and with patience, love, and support, they can thrive. I’ve also learned the value of partnering with families to build that strong foundation together.

How has your participation in QUALITYstarsNY helped you grow as an early childhood professional?

Yasmill: Immensely! Through Miriam Kerness as my Quality Improvement Specialist, my fascination with brain development grew. I had never worked with infants and toddlers, and when I learned more about brain development, I realized the huge amount of connections young children make and how it shapes them as they go into the preschool years and beyond. I learned how important the responses to a young child are. This has helped me dig deeper into understanding brain development. Also, QUALITYstarsNY provides amazing scholarships and funding opportunities through the Career Development Center. I wish I had known that years before when I was paying for my degree!

A huge takeaway is about the environment. I’ve gained knowledge of the Environment Rating Scale (ERS) so that I better understand what goes into a high-quality environment. This has increased my ability to help teachers design the spaces in their classrooms. I’ve also learned through the ERS about having materials accessible and why that is important! Through being part of QUALITYstarsNY, I learned that the right amount and variety of materials differ from my old notions and that the classroom environment could reflect the home.

Sandra: QUALITYstarsNY has helped by providing further education and training for us! We have had great trainings here. Also, the materials and equipment that QUALITYstarsNY has provided help the children grow in all areas of development. The materials expand their thinking! Miriam has come into my classroom and given me some very helpful feedback at times as we try to make our classroom aligned with the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale indicators, and I appreciate that a lot.

Sonilvia: QUALITYstarsNY has helped me grow by giving me guidance, resources and support to improve the quality of care I provide. It has pushed me to keep learning, reflecting and striving to be the best I can for the children and families I serve.

What are you looking forward to as you continue making a difference in the lives of the children in Westchester?

Yasmill: My goal for the year is that our center will have more partnerships in the community. Being raised here, right in Tarrytown, there were so many things not available to children. If we had more centers like ours and more programs in QUALITYstarsNY, there would be more widespread love of learning! I want to extend what we do here, for example, by having a presence at more community events. Last summer, we partnered with the Tarrytown Farmers Market and provided open-ended art projects there! Some of our teachers volunteer with Community Wardrobes, a clothing bank (initiative of the Sleepy Hollow PTA and the Village of Sleepy Hollow). Discovery Village Owner Shira Liebowitz is part of the Tarrytown Chamber of Commerce, and we plan to create even more connections with the community through her involvement. We want to give families that don’t go to Discovery Village a glimpse of that joy of learning and respect for each child’s curiosity that flows through our classrooms and outdoor spaces each day!

Sandra: I have an associate degree in early childhood already, but I want to continue to grow in my own education and practice. I especially want to stay very aware of what each family needs for their own growth. Because we are a Head Start program, we have family advocates who also work with the families. I partner with them to continue building relationships with each family and each child here in the community. I also want to learn more in the area of science to provide more science experiments and activities in the classroom. This year, QUALITYstarsNY was able to buy small fish tanks for each classroom, and I’m so excited about that because the children will learn so much from observing our fish. I want to keep my mind trained on all the things that are happening and that are new. I wouldn’t trade this for anything!

Sonilvia: As I continue this journey, I look forward to seeing children grow into confident, unique individuals and knowing I played a part in shaping their foundation. What inspires me most is not just the children’s progress, but also the strong bonds built with families—walking alongside them, celebrating milestones together and supporting them through challenges. It is a blessing to be part of their story, and I am excited to keep making a difference in the lives of the children and families of Westchester.

Congratulations to Yasmill, Sandra, Sonilvia and all 2025 Child Care Council of Westchester Early Education Hall of Heroes awardees!