Gomez new director of child center

CORNWALL — A couple of years ago, Sandy Gomez would have called herself a businesswoman. Her background was in retail, her education in counseling and social work. She was experienced in geriatric care.

On Monday, she welcomed preschoolers to the Cornwall Child Center, where she is the new director.

Gomez has dived in headfirst to a new career. It began at the end of 2008, when she was hired for her managerial skills to help the Housatonic Child Care Center in Salisbury complete its NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children) accreditation. A month later, she decided to go back to school full time, and has since taken 13 early childhood education classes.

“I absolutely love everything I have learned,� she said. “I also found things are completely different from when I was raising a daughter 20 years ago. Early childhood education is really a specialty now. What we’re doing here is no longer babysitting, but play-based learning.�

Gomez is continuing her education and will get a teacher certification. She replaced Director Pam Brehm, who retired.