Roseanne’s journey from trainee to early careers manager shows that the sky’s the limit

When Only About Children Early Careers Manager and OAC 2022 National Excellence Awards winner, Rosanne Grieco, began her career in early childhood education and care (ECEC), she could only imagine where she finds herself today. 

 

In the piece below, Ms Grieco explains how she went from being an early childhood trainee to supporting and managing other trainees and educators with their career goals and pathways, helping to foster the next generation of empowered ECEC professionals.

 

Her ECEC career began with a traineeship, which she says provided her with an opportunity to engage in the key theoretical components of working with children, while applying them in a practical setting. 

 

At the end of the traineeship she was keen to further develop her knowledge and skills, and enrolled in a dual early childhood and primary degree. 

 

“Enrolling in the dual degree provided me with extensive employment options within and beyond early childhood. I was also keen to understand what children were going to learn beyond birth to five years so that I could ensure that I was supporting and preparing them as best as I could before their exciting transition to an academic/school context,” she explained. 

 

Finding a job advertisement for an educator position with Only About Children (OAC), Ms Grieco was drawn to the idea of working for a larger employer with opportunities to move into roles inside and outside of working directly with children. 

 

“I was amazed by the opportunities available at OAC. I knew that joining a large organisation with multiple locations and roles would support my career journey and be conducive to my career goals, whereby I wanted to eventually manage a service,” she said.

 

She joined OAC seven years ago as an educator, progressing into a room leader role, a nursery manager role, where she supported two nursery rooms, and then moved to another OAC location as Assistant Director. 

  

“I was eager to explore other roles in early childhood and wanted to know more about how the business operated beyond the campuses,” she said. “I also wanted to be able to support other educators with their careers and development more broadly.”

 

“I was fortunate enough to be provided with an opportunity to join the OAC Support Office, where I took on a Learning and Development/Traineeships Coordinator role. I was then promoted to a Program Lead role for traineeships, and now I work as the Early Careers Manager. My role spans across the three states that OAC operates in and enables me to work across a number of key areas.”

 

A key part of her role is the management of OAC’s traineeship program – a full circle moment. 

 

“I take pride in welcoming our new trainees at OAC and supporting them as they establish their career journeys within the early learning sector,” Ms Grieco shared. 

 

“I’m able to share my own experience and knowledge from when I worked as a trainee, and within various roles within OAC Campuses.”

  

“My role is incredibly rewarding, and I feel so lucky to be able to engage in work that I find meaningful and relevant. I have been fortunate enough to work in a variety of roles with OAC, and my experience in each of these has been a massive attribute to my career progression, particularly the work I do in my current role. I am very lucky to be able to work in a role that I genuinely love, and in a workplace that I honestly look forward to working in and being part of each and every day.”

 

Learn more about OAC career options here.