California International Reggio Center (CIRC)

Since 1994, the Innovative Teacher Project (ITP), led by Dr. Susan Lyon, in collaboration with Reggio Children and US educators has provided professional development opportunities for educators, administrators and parents interested in the study of the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. Professional development is a core value of the Reggio Emilia approach—hence it is the mission of ITP to create a community for those interested in elevating the quality of early childhood education. The Innovative Teacher Project is nationally recognized in North America as a professional development network in Northern California. Today, the circle is growing—there are more than 20 public and private schools in Northern California that through ITP participate in the ongoing development of their teachers and educational programs inspired by the Reggio Approach to education.

Reggio Children is an international center for the defense and promotion of children’s rights and potentials. It was created with the intention of valorising and safeguarding the experience of  Reggio Emilia’s Municipal Infant-Toddler Centers and Preschools, known in Italy and throughout the world as the Reggio Emilia Approach®. Reggio Children promotes and experiments with quality education, diffusing it around the world through professional development, professional learning, publishing, exhibitions, research, and more.