Sarah Roebuck took the stage at the 2025 Early Educator Leadership Forum wearing a dress made of newspaper clippings celebrating early educator achievements that offered a bold visual reminder that early childhood educators are making headlines—and making change.

A graduate of the Maryland Early Childhood Leadership Program and executive director of three Goddard School locations in Maryland, Roebuck offered a clear message to Leadership Forum attendees: we are not aspiring leaders—we are leaders. Now.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world,” she said, quoting Margaret Mead. “Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

Roebuck’s remarks were framed around five lessons she’s learned on her leadership journey, each one rooted in experience and aimed at fueling collective growth.

Lesson 1: This is a fight for justice.

The struggle for equitable early childhood education, she said, cannot be separated from systemic racism and unequal distribution of power. “This is not a personal fight for pay or recognition—this is a collective fight for justice,” she said. “Our groundwater is contaminated. And there is a lot of work to do.”

Lesson 2: We need each other.

Roebuck emphasized the value of community of practice as a vehicle for systemic change. Real progress, she reminded the room, depends on relationships: “We must never brave the storm alone… We need each and every one of you.”

Lesson 3: Leadership is a marathon.

As someone who completed a major leadership program while running high-quality centers and navigating life’s curveballs, Roebuck called on her peers to pace themselves. “Slow and steady wins this race,” she said. “Use a calendar, honor your bandwidth, and say no when needed.”

Lesson 4: Don’t delay. And it’s never too late.

It took Roebuck four years to apply for the leadership program. “I was passionate, but afraid to ask for a recommendation,” she admitted. Today, she stands not only as an accomplished leader but as someone unafraid to speak, fail, and grow. “Now, I’m hardly afraid of anything. Not even presenting in a dress made out of newspapers!”

Lesson 5: You’re already a leader.

“My goal isn’t to become an early education leader,” she said. “I am one.” That mindset shift—from aspiring to be a leader to owning that she is one—transformed how Roebuck saw herself and her role in the field. And it’s a mindset she encouraged others to claim.

Leading for Change in Early Care and Education was developed by Early Education Leaders and anchors all of our programs. Participants learn how to lead for change to improve program quality and promote equity in early care and education. Leading for Change is currently offered to early educators in Massachusetts at UMass Boston and also in partnership with the MA Department of Early Education and Care through its statewide network of StrongStart Professional Development Centers. Leading for Change is also offered to early educators in Maryland through the Maryland Early Childhood Leadership Education Program at the Shriver Center at the University of Maryland Baltimore County and in Pennsylvania through the Pennsylvania Key and Pennsylvania’s Office of Child Development & Early Learning. It was offered to educators in California through a pilot program.