BEMIDJI, Minn. (Feb. 23, 2011) — Registration is now open for Bemidji State University’s 33rd Annual Early Childhood Mega Conference, hosted by the Child Development Training Program on March 10-11. Registration is open through Tuesday, March 8, but early registration at a discounted rate ends Thursday, March 3.

Conference participants come from across Minnesota to attend educational workshops designed for individuals from Head Start, ECFE, ECSE, Learning Readiness, nursery school, public school, and child care centers, as well as family child care programs. The Mega Conference is famous as “a marketplace of ideas for early childhood professionals and parents,” and a forum where individuals can gather and discuss issues vital to those who serve young children and families.

The keynote and closing presenters for this year’s Mega Conference will be children’s recording artists Colleen and Uncle Squaty. The duo of Colleen Hannafin and Brian “Uncle Squaty” Schellinger has performed together for nearly 20 years and has won two Parent’s Choice awards from “Parent’s Choice” magazine and a Director’s Choice Award from “Early Childhood” magazine.

Other presenters at this year’s conference include the University Center for Early Education Development, which will give a presentation on the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (ClASS); Larry P. Aitken presenting on infusing Native American curriculum into the classroom; Minnesota State Representative and Bemidji State alum John Persell presenting on advocacy issues; and documentarian Milt Lee presenting “Video Letters From Prison: The Fatherhood Connection.”

A complete schedule of events is available at the Mega Conference website.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Northern Minnesota Head Start Advisory Council.

Information on the Mega Conference and registration forms are available on the conference’s website, or by contacting Zoe Ann Wignall, coordinator of the Bemidji State Child Development Training Program, at (218) 755-3779 or (888) 234-1305.

Attendees who pay an additional fee for tuition can earn one semester of university credit for the conference. Lodging is available at most Bemidji hotels at a special conference rate. A list of hotels and rates is available at the conference website.

On the Web:
• Mega Conference: http://www.bemidjistate.edu/conferences/mega
• Colleen and Uncle Squaty: http://www.colleenandunclesquaty.com