Research Report 2010

Research Report: Local Early Childhood Education 2010

Next Steps

For every dollar we invest in early childhood education programs, we get nearly $10 back in reduced welfare rolls, fewer health care costs, and less crime. -President Obama

Local Early Childhood Education Experts

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O	Chandra Alexandre Vice President of Development Bay Area Council See Bio Chandra Alexandre is Vice President of Development at the Bay Area Council, responsible for fund development strategies; facilitating and managing relationships with funders; handling research, writing, prospecting, pipeline development and reporting; and tracking and managing the foundation and corporate philanthropic giving as well as individual donor processes. She further works with the Strategic Development Committee of the Board of Directors to plan and effectuate strategic initiatives. Chandra also actively collaborates with the Director of Membership to promote and effectively market BAC (inclusive of the Bay Area Council Foundation) and handles fund development for the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, the research arm of the Bay Area Council. Previously, Chandra was Director of Operations & Development for KIPP San Francisco Bay Academy, a public charter middle school dedicated to helping underserved youth attain a college education. At KIPP, she met funding goals while helping to initiate technology, organic gardening and girls’ empowerment programs. Prior to her work at KIPP, Chandra was Senior Manager, Corporate Development at Knowledge Learning Corporation, the nation’s largest provider of child development services. In her earlier career, she served as Special Assistant for the Department of State at the U.S. Embassy in Switzerland under the Ambassador and US Representative to the IUCN-World Conservation Union. Chandra grew up in New York City and graduated from Columbia with an A.B. degree in psychology and philosophy. She holds an MBA in Sustainable Management from Presidio School of Management, an additional Master’s, and a doctorate in Asian & Comparative Studies from the California Institute of Integral Studies. She is fluent in French and a dedicated Sanskritist.

N	Rosemary Almand Executive Director CAPE Inc Community Association for Pre-School Education See Bio Rosemary Almand is the Executive Director of CAPE Inc Community Association for Pre-School Education. CAPE, Inc. now serves over 200 children and families at eight different sites in Livermore, Pleasanton, and Dublin.

N	Jaime Alvarado Executive Director Somos Mayfair See Bio Jaime earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of California-Santa Cruz. He is a life-long resident of Mayfair who began working with the Mayfair Improvement Initiative as Program Director in 1999, then as Associate Director. He became Executive Director in 2004, leading the organization through its successful transition to Somos Mayfair. Prior to joining Somos Mayfair, Jaime was the Executive Director of MACLA (Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana) and prior to that worked for 20 years as a journeyman electrician with the IBEW Local 332.

O	Soodie Ansari Project Coordinator San Mateo County Office of Education See Bio Soodie Ansari is the Project Coordinator for San Mateo County Office of Education. The San Mateo County Office of Education provides leadership and support to public schools through its three Divisions: Instructional Services, Fiscal and Operational Services, and Student Services.

O	Rachel Aoanan President/Founder Building Bridges Child Development Center See Bio An Americorps Alumni with extensive volunteer management and program development experience, who has served as an Early Head Start Home Visitor/Infant-Toddler Teacher, and who had a small infant day care program in Castro Valley, presently resides on San Francisco State University's Early Childhood Evidence-Based Research Committee and is currently pursuing her MA in Public Administration.

F	Christina Arrostuto Executive Director First 5 Solano Children and Families Commission See Bio Christina is a Vallejo native and lifelong Solano County resident who attended local schools and earned her AA Degree from Solano College in 1973, her BA Degree in Liberal Studies (Psychology focus) in 1991 and her Master of Public Administration Degree from CSU Hayward in 1996. Her public service career (launched as an Eligibility Worker I in Solano County in 1977) spans 32 years and four Counties, including Welfare Reform Planner in Contra Costa County, Social Service Department Director in Nevada County and Deputy County Administrator for Children and Families in Contra Costa before her appointment as Executive Director of First 5 Solano in 2003.Christina’s love of and dedication to children and family services includes work on programs to reduce young children’s exposure to violence, empower family self-sufficiency and increase fathers’ involvement in their children’s lives. At First 5 Solano she has helped the Commission successfully evolve from its start-up phase to its current status as a high-functioning, high-quality organization which, through its over 30 grantee organizations, serves about 20,000 children 0-5, their families and providers annually. Her devotion to the principles of interdisciplinary collaboration, fiscal integrity and program accountability through measurable results has resulted in First 5 Solano’s state and national recognition for its model programs and outcomes. Her deep appreciation for the synergy that develops when communities come together for children keeps her excited and optimistic about going to work every day. Christina loves her husband, Guy as well as films, theater and books, her large family (she’s one of six siblings and a devoted aunt), exploring the greater Bay Area and coast and spending time with friends.

N	Linda Asato Executive Director Wu Yee Children's Services See Bio Linda Asato joined Wu Yee in 2000 as the Executive Director. She has extensive experience in building partnerships between nonprofits and public agencies. Linda was the Director of Intergovernmental and School Linked Services for the San Francisco Unified School District, where she increased collaboration with parents, the community and the private sector. She also served as Assistant to the Superintendent. Prior to her work with the School District, Linda was the child planner for the Children’s Fund administered by the Mayor’s Office of Children, Youth and Families (now the Department of Children, Youth and Their Families), which continues today. In addition, she helped design the Beacon Center Initiative in San Francisco. Linda is a founding Board member of the Justice Matters Institute, was a fellow in the Annie E. Casey Foundation Children and Family Fellowship, and has been honored as a Next Generation Leadership Fellow with the Rockefeller Foundation. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and received her Masters in Public Administration from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs.

N	Claire Bainer Co-Director Blue Skies for Children, Inc. See Bio Claire holds an M.A. in Early Childhood Education (ECE) and has taught in pre-school classrooms and at the college level for 30 years. Her years of classroom experience strongly influence her adult teaching, as she has a clear understanding of classroom and family dynamics as well as academic theories that pertain to work with young children. In 2003 Claire was awarded a fellowship with Eureka Communities (now known as LeaderSpring), during which time she focused her study trip on learning and visiting programs where grass roots training programs like ours in ECE were being successfully implemented and influencing the early childhood community. Claire currently serves as the Vice President of the Alameda County Child Care Steering Council and is a member of the Early Childhood Mental Health Committee.

N	Judith Baker Family Resource Center Director South of Market Child Care, Inc See Bio Judith Baker, Director of Family Resources Program, has over thirty years in the early childhood field with thirty-two years at South of Market Child Care, Inc. She has an M.A. in Early Childhood Education, a Standard Teaching Credential, a Life Children's Center Supervision Permit, and is a certified trainer with the Program for Infant /Toddler Caregiving. She is an active member with a number of community organizations including: Child Care Provider's Association, National Association for the Education of Young Children, SOMA Youth Committee, Yerba Buena Consortium. Judith is also a mother of a daughter attending Sacramento State University, majoring in social work.

F	Sujata Bansal Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist First 5 Alameda County See Bio Sujata Bansal is a licensed clinical therapist with training and education in the early care and education (ECE) field. She spent 10 years as a preschool teacher. Her dual interest in ECE and mental health led her to the therapeutic preschools, where she spent 5 years as a teacher/therapist. She came to Every Child Counts in January 2003. She continues to provide direct child development and mental health support to families, while also providing trainings to various community agencies.

N	Angel Barrios Executive Director Institute for Human and Social Development See Bio Angel Barrios is the Executive Director of Institute for Human and Social Development, Inc. A non-profit organization, IHSD provides comprehensive child development services for children from birth through five years throughout San Mateo County. Through their child care centers, family child care homes, and home-visiting programs they offer early education and development services that are built upon the needs of the local children, families, and communities. In 2005 she earned an Ed.D. in International and Multicultural Education with an emphasis in Second Language Acquisition from the University of San Francisco. Other graduate degrees include a M.A. in Language and Literacy from San Jose State University.

F	Jim Becker Vice President of Development and Program Services Richmond Children's Foundation See Bio Jim Becker attended Grinnell College for his BA and University of Minnesota for his MA in Anthropology. He served as a senior program director for the Minneapolis YMCA. He moved to California in 1990 to serve as the Executive Director of the new Delta Family YMCA in Oakley, CA. In 1991, he joined Delta 2000 and served as its Executive Director until 1996. While at Delta 2000, he led several community initiatives including the establishment of the Village Drive Resource Center and the conversion of the old Antioch Police Station into a vibrant community services building. In 1996, he joined the Center for Human Development as its CEO, and led the organization to significant growth and national recognition for its work in community health services. He chaired the Contra Costa Tobacco Prevention Task Force which wrote the first county smoke free work place ordinances in the United States. He led the Family Preservation and Support Collaborative in North Richmond, which resulted in successful integration of county and nonprofit services. At the request of Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher, he served on a children’s services panel with First Lady Hilary Clinton, and also served on the State Advisory Board for Child Development and Home Instruction with California First Lady Sharon Davis. He joined Housing California, the State Association for Housing and Homeless Services, to serve as its Executive Director in 2001. After several years, the desire to work closer to home, and to truly engage community members in neighborhood transformation brought him the Richmond Community Foundation.

N	Star Bressler Experience Corps Consultant Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center See Bio Star has worked for the Experience Corps program since 2004. Star moved from Ithaca, New York to the Bay Area to complete one year of community service as an AmeriCorps VISTA. As the Sunset Neighborhood Volunteer Coordinator, Star observed the impact of the Experience Corps program on students, volunteers and schools. At the end of her VISTA term, Star was hired as the Experience Corps Field Manager. In her current role as Associate Director, Star oversees the daily operation of the Experience Corps program at 10 schools citywide, expansion efforts to new schools sites, and fundraising to support the program. Star previously taught outdoor education for at-risk and adjudicated youth with Outward Bound. She attended the State University of New York at Geneseo with a major in Psychology and a minor in Art. The Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center's mission is to is to provide supports and opportunities to ensure the healthy development of children, youth and adults in the Sunset District of San Francisco.

N	Lori Burns Director Santa Clara County Partnership for School Readiness See Bio Lori Burns is the Director at Santa Clara County Partnership for School Readiness. The mission of the Partnership is to act as a catalyst for the strategic use of resources to ensure that all children in Santa Clara County through the age of 8 are ready for school. She was previously Success By 6 Program Manager at United Way Silicon Valley and Product Marketing Section Manager at Agilent Technologies. She received her Masters in Electrical Engineering from University of California, Berkeley, and BA in Applied Physics from University of California, San Diego.

N	Ninive Calegari Chief Executive Officer 826 National See Bio Nínive Calegari is the cofounder of 826 Valencia and the CEO of 826 National. She is a veteran public school teacher who has had ten years of classroom experience. Before teaching in her family's hometown in Mexico, Nínive worked at Leadership High School, San Francisco’s first charter school, where she also served on the Board of Directors. She holds an MED in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. Ninive was coauthor of Teachers Have it Easy: the Big Sacrifices and Small Salaries of America’s Teachers. She was also the recipient of Edutopia’s 2007 Daring Dozen award.

N	Katherine Casey Program Manager, Bay Area Education Pioneers, Inc. See Bio Katherine joined Education Pioneers because she believes that creative, collaborative, and connected leaders can transform American education. While pursuing her degree in History at Stanford, Katherine gained a life-changing experience in youth development working with the Women and Youth Supporting Each Other (WYSE), the East Palo Alto Stanford Academy (EPASA), and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project. After graduating, she advised student leaders and co-taught a course on service ethics in education reform at Stanford’s Haas Center for Public Service. Through the Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs, she studied public policy at the Mayor's Office, California School Employees’ Association, and San Francisco School Alliance. Most recently, as Grants Manager at the Silver Giving Foundation, Katherine supported and learned from schools, after-school programs, and education reform advocates throughout the Bay Area. Katherine is an Alumna of the New Leaders council, a Full Circle Fund Community Fellow, and serves on the Board of Directors for the Mission Learning Center.

R	Joya Chavarin Senior Research Associate WestEd See Bio As a Senior Research Associate for WestEd’s Center for Child and Family Studies, Joya Chavarin is the project lead for Early Head Start technical assistance and strategic research tasks funded by First 5 California. Chavarin is responsible for conducting and coordinating research efforts to assess California's capacity and systems for the care and development of children, birth to 5 years of age. Chavarin assists in managing analysis efforts to identify trends, needs, gaps, and options regarding early childhood practice and policy recommendations. She is also an expert advisor for the California Department of Education's Early Childhood Educator Competencies project.

F	Pearl Cheng Education Program Manager United Way Silicon Valley See Bio Pearl Cheng is the Education Program Manager for United Way Silicon Valley, where she manages programs serving at-risk youth countywide. She was the former president at Santa Clara County School Boards Association, where she served all 33 school districts in the county. She has been trustee at Cupertino Union School District (CUSD) Board of Education for 8 years. She was a member of the Education Coalition of Santa Clara County. She was a consultant for EdSource, a nonprofit organization for educational research and analysis. She was awarded Woman of the Year 2004 from Assembly District 22. She studied at University of Iowa and Stanford University.

R	Carne Clarke Senior Research Associate WestEd See Bio Carne Clarke (or Barnett-Clarke), Senior Research Associate at WestEd and Director of Math Pathways and Pitfalls, is involved in the development and investigation of effective, engaging, and pragmatic instructional materials for teachers and students. Clarke's current work, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), involves the development and research of a versatile online professional development program for mathematics teachers. This work grows from considerable experience conducting professional learning institutes for teachers and leaders, with emphases on mathematics, content standards, student misconceptions, and effective and equitable classroom teaching practices. Recently, Clarke was the principal investigator of two research grants, one funded by NSF and the other by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES). Findings from these studies documented significant impacts on the mathematics achievement of diverse students. The IES study focused on outcomes for students in schools with high ratios of Latino students (more than 70%) and English learners (more than 50%). In addition to mathematics learning, this study documented positive effects on students' mathematical language development and use. As part of this study, Clarke spearheaded work to develop an operational academic language framework and prototype items to assess mathematical language development and use. Prior to joining WestEd in 1989, Clarke served as a teacher in urban settings for more than a decade and then joined the faculty at the University of California, Berkeley, where her pioneering work with case discussions for mathematics teachers began. Continuing this work at WestEd, Clarke developed two casebooks and models for using cases to conduct professional learning and leadership experiences. She is the lead author of Developing an Essential Understanding: Rational Numbers, which is a book in a series being published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. She has published articles and chapters for publications such as the Journal of Teacher Education, Teaching and Teacher Education, the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Sixty-Sixth Yearbook, The Case for Education, and Mathematics Teachers in Transition. She also has written various K-8 mathematics supplementary materials and textbooks. Clarke received a BS in mathematics education from Kansas State University and an MA and EdD in mathematics education from the University of California, Berkeley.

N	Kokomon Clottey Executive Director Attitudinal Healing Connection, Inc. See Bio Kokomon co-founded the Attitudinal Healing Connection (AHC) in Oakland, California, an organization that is recognized globally for its work in racial healing. Kokomon also co-founded an Attitudinal Healing Center in Ghana, West Africa. He is a visiting professor at the University of Creation Spirituality in Oakland, California.

F	Karen Corzine Executive Director Coastside Child Development Center See Bio Karen has been a director at CCDC since 2000. Karen's educational background includes a B.A. in Psychology from Western Washington University, as well as a B.A. in Human Development with a concentration in Child Development from California State University, Long Beach. Karen also earned a M.A. in Clinical Psychology/Marriage and Family Therapy from Golden Gate University. She has 15 years experience in child care and the education of children ages 0 to 6. Karen also has over 8 years of experience working in the mental health field, addressing the issues of child abuse, trauma, domestic violence, families, and infant & child mental health. Karen is the founder and director of Project REACH in which supplemental services are provided to children and families based on need.

F	Raquel Donoso Executive Director Latino Community Foundation See Bio Ms.Donoso is an accomplished community and public policy leader with over a decade of policy advocacy experience at the state and regional level. She has devoted her career to policy issues affecting women and families. Prior to joining LCF she served as the Associate Director of Latino Issues Forum, a statewide policy and advocacy organization. At the Latino Issues Forum she championed campaigns to increase health access, improve environmental conditions and address education equity in the Latino community. She also authored four publications, including pioneering primary research on reproductive health issues. Ms. Donoso is the Co-Founder and Board Chair of California Latinas for Reproductive Justice, a statewide reproductive health rights coalition. She serves on the boards of the East Bay Regional Parks Foundation and the RYSE Center, a Richmond-based youth center chaired by Contra Costa Supervisor John Gioia. In 2006, Ms. Donoso was appointed to the California Department of Health Services Women's Health Advisory Council by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ms. Donoso holds a Master's degree in public health and an undergraduate degree in Anthropology both from the University of California Los Angeles.

N	Tara Dorabji Co-Deputy Director Streetside Stories Inc See Bio Tara Dorabji came to Streetside Stories in 2005. She brings with her several years of grassroots organizing experience with Tri-Valley Cares in Livermore. Tara graduated with honors in Environmental Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz. She is a dedicated social justice activist who works on peace, disarmament, environmental and education issues. Tara is a spoken word poet. She’s also worked with youth teaching organic gardening and developed youth programs and curriculum.

N	Erin Drake Program Director Super Stars Literacy See Bio Erin Drake oversees the successful execution of Super Stars Literacy curriculum at its five school sites. She brings extensive knowledge of the needs of students and schools in underserved areas to this role. A Teach for America alumna, Drake continued working at Budlong Elementary School in South Los Angeles after completing her service years there. She spent a total of three years in this school teaching kindergarten and first grade. While earning her Master’s Degree in Education from UCLA, she also served on the school’s leadership council, earning valuable planning skills she exercises in leading the growing Super Stars staff and implementing and further formalizing the Super Stars Literacy program. Additionally, her experience in working as a Corps Member Advisor with Teach For America has contributed to the implementation of Super Stars new lesson planning templates, school day curriculum alignment and updated coaching model support for its Group Leaders. She is currently in progress of receiving her Administrative Credential from California State University, East Bay.

N	Larry Drury Executive Director Go Kids, Inc See Bio Larry Drury is the Executive Director for Go Kids, a nonprofit agency that envisions communities where every child has the support they need to reach their greatest potential.

N	Cory Ervin-Stewart Director of Development Palo Alto Community Child Care See Bio Beginning her position with PACCC in August 2007, Ervin is the head of the Development Department. She is responsible for providing fundraising and marketing direction and leadership for the agency. Through events, appeals and community partnerships she is invested in promoting PACCC and increasing its revenue and supporter base. She has worked in the non-profit arena for over 10 years with an emphasis in marketing, public relations, event execution and donor cultivation. She holds a BS in Communications with an emphasis in Marketing/Public Relations and English, as well as post- graduate education in Media Studies encompassing Communications and Psychology.

F	David Fleishman Early Learning Program Specialist First 5 San Mateo County See Bio David Fleishman is the Early Learning Program Specialist for First 5 San Mateo County. The First 5 San Mateo County Commission was established in March 1999. It is led by Commissioners who are appointed by the County of San Mateo Board of Supervisors. First 5 San Mateo County is governed by nine-member commission that includes public officials and community leaders from the fields of early childhood education, health care, and family support. Since its inception, First 5 San Mateo County has invested more than $68 million in local programs and has served over 26,000 children prenatal through age five and 14,000 parent and primary caregivers.

N	Kerry Forbord Executive Director Oakland Ready to Learn Inc See Bio Kerry Forbord's passion is early childhood education. She has worked directly in Head Start programs (management) as well as serving on the Policy Committee, preparing for Federal Reviews, conducting staff development, providing parent education and children’s learning activities at multiple sites. She has also also started a bilingual literacy program for Head Start families. In the capacity of Executive Director at a nonprofit organization, have brought multiple resources, cultural events and parent engagement activities to Head Starts and State Preschool programs. She started her career as a preschool special education teacher and developing the district’s first full inclusion program set her on the track of working with children 0-5 and their parents. As a West Ed PITC Trainer she has had the chance to work with many ECE staff in the 0-3 area. For the past 9 years she has directed a nonprofit focused on early childhood education in inner city areas. From staff development and mentoring, school readiness, to launching culturally specific parent/child programs, this position has expanded her knowledge of resources, research and best practices. During her tenure, programs have been developed that serve Head Starts, State pre-K and Even Start programs. Launching the first Native centered ECE program in her community with Intertribal Friendship House was another successful experience.

O	Linda Galliher Vice President, Education and Healthcare Bay Area Council See Bio Linda is responsible for the Bay Area Council’s public policy advocacy on a wide range of education and healthcare issues. Her work on Education includes Early Care and Preschool, K-12, Higher Education, and Workforce issues. In the Healthcare area, Linda has focused on legislation to reform healthcare access and financing with particular attention to cost controls, prevention, and consumer protections.

O	Margo Hunkins Child Development Alameda County Consultant California Department of Education See Bio Margo Hunkins is the Child Development Alameda County Consultant for California Department of Education. The California Department of Education is a California agency that oversees public education. The Department oversees funding, testing, and holds local educational agencies accountable for student achievement. Its stated mission is to provide leadership, assistance, oversight, and resources [in form of teaching and teaching material] so that every Californian has access to a good education.

F	Greg John Education Director Elbridge Stuart Foundation See Bio Greg John joined the Stuart Foundation as their Education Director on July 2009. Greg has most recently served as principal and instructional leader in two Bay Area schools, most recently as Principal for John Muir Elementary School in the Berkeley Unified School District. In this leadership position, Greg’s worked to shape and sustain a team charged with designing, aligning, and implementing a focused effort to close the achievement gap and improve academic performance for every child. As Principal for Treasure Island School in the San Francisco Unified School District, he worked closely with the central office to transition the school as part of the district’s Dream School Initiative. Greg’s experience in public education also includes classroom teaching, coaching and program development for a county office of education, and leadership in school-based restructuring. Greg began as a high school teacher in 1984, where he realized that strategic changes to the educational system could yield vastly improved results for children, educators, parents, and the community at large. In 1997, Greg brought his experience as a classroom teacher and a reform coordinator to the Bay Area School Reform Collaborative where he served as Director of the School to Career Initiative. He worked with numerous high schools, district offices, foundations, and county offices to implement innovative reform plans. Greg earned a Masters Degree in English from San Francisco State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from University of California, Santa Barbara. He also serves as board president for a local conservation foundation.

F	Laurel Kloomok Executive Director First 5 San Francisco See Bio Laurel is the Executive Director of First 5 San Francisco, which is part of the statewide First 5 California movement to assist public agencies, non-profit organizations and parent groups in nurturing early education, pediatric healthcare, systems change and family support. She served as Regional Director of Parents Place/Jewish Family and Children’s Services since 1996 and was responsible for the development and operation of the agency’s Family Resource Centers and Early Childhood Mental Health Programs. She spent her early career as an early childhood special education preschool teacher and then as an early childhood special needs program coordinator.

N	Susan Kraemer Program Administrator Northern California Presbyterian Homes & Services (NCHPS) See Bio Susan Kraemer is the Program Administrator for The Northern California Presbyterian Homes & Services (NCHPS). NCHPS is a not-for-profit organization committed to enhancing the quality of life for older adults by offering senior housing and community services in the San Francisco Bay Area and Mendocino County.

F	Nancy Lee Director, Early Care and Education First 5 Alameda County See Bio Nancy Lee is the Director, Early Care and Education at First 5 Alameda County, an organization that serves Children from age zero to five and their Families throughout Alameda County.

O	Cassandra Lewis Consultant California Department of Education See Bio Cassandra Lewis a consultant for the California Department of Education, which is a California agency that oversees public education. The Department oversees funding, testing, and holds local educational agencies accountable for student achievement. Its stated mission is to provide leadership, assistance, oversight, and resources [in form of teaching and teaching material] so that every Californian has access to a good education.

N	Michael Lombardo Chief Executive Officer Reading Partners See Bio Michael Lombardo joined Reading Partners in 2006 after 5 years in senior administrative positions at the University of California, Berkeley. Under his leadership, Reading Partners has grown from serving 6 schools in Silicon Valley to 24 schools throughout the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Sacramento. In that same period, Reading Partners tripled its revenue, raised $600,000 in growth capital to fund its statewide expansion, and increased the size of its volunteer tutor corps from 250 to over 900. Michael serves on the board of directors for the Foundation for Self-Reliance, an organization providing educational services to refugees from Afghanistan. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and lives in Oakland with his wife and two young children.

F	Meera Mani Program Officer, Children, Families and Communities Program David and Lucile Packard Foundation See Bio Meera joined the Packard Foundation in February 2009 as program officer in the Children, Families and Communities (CFC) program. In her current role, she is leading the Foundation’s preschool grantmaking strategy. Prior to joining the Foundation, Meera served as research director for Preschool California, where she monitored and advised national and state research and evaluation efforts, provided expertise and strategic support to ensure effective policy development, field operations, communications and messaging. Meera joined the Packard Foundation in February 2009 as program officer in the Children, Families and Communities (CFC) program. In her current role, she is leading the Foundation’s preschool grantmaking strategy. Prior to joining the Foundation, Meera served as research director for Preschool California, where she monitored and advised national and state research and evaluation efforts, provided expertise and strategic support to ensure effective policy development, field operations, communications and messaging. Between 1999-2001, Meera led and managed the day-to-day operations of Educare Colorado, now known as Qualistar Early Learning, a statewide initiative dedicated to improving children’s early learning experiences through the implementation of a quality rating and improvement system. Additionally, Dr. Mani served on various task forces, committees and collaborative projects including the Mayor’s Early Childhood Education Commission. Meera has a master’s degree in child development from M.S. University in India and a doctor of education in Educational Leadership and Administration from Boston University.

N	Grace Manning Orenstein Executive Director The Link to Children See Bio Grace Manning (PhD) is the Executive Director for The Link to Children, a nonprofit organization based in Alameda County. They support the healthy emotional development of children 0-5 years of age within a culturally relevant context so that young children will be able to learn to their full potential, even in difficult times and under difficult circumstances by providing early intervention mental health services at child care centers in Alameda County.

R	Roxana Marachi Assistant Professor San Jose State University See Bio Dr. Marachi earned her Ph.D in Education and Psychology from University of Michigan in 2003 with a research focus on School Climate and School Violence Prevention. Her current research interests intersect the fields of Biology, Psychology, and Education with a focus on emotional psychophysiology, stress, and coping in relation to school climate, motivation, and student behavior. Dr. Marachi currently serves as Co-Chair of the Safe Schools and Communities Special Interest Group for the American Educational Research Association. She has presented at numerous conferences including the International Society for Research on Aggression and the World Conference on Violence in Schools and Public Policy.

R	Cheryl McElvain Lecturer Education Department Santa Clara University See Bio Cheryl McElvain currently teaches first and second language acquisition, psycholinguistics, and literacy development classes in the teacher education program for Santa Clara University. Her higher education experience is supported by 30 years of teaching K-8th grade multilingual populations in northern California public schools. She has also worked as an educational consultant in the San Francisco Bay Area and provided district-wide English Language Development staff trainings. Dr. McElvain has presented teacher workshops in second language literacy development at NABE, CABE and CATESOL conventions. Recently she was invited to present her paper on Transactional Learning Communities at the Oxford Roundtable on Literacy in England. In 2006, Dr. McElvain collaborated with a literacy delegation from the People to People Ambassador Program to review reading reform initiatives with the South African Department of Education, the University of South Africa, and the University of Capetown. In December 2007 she will again be traveling with People to People as a peace initiative delegate to Egypt. She is currently the director of The Bridge Project, a poverty intervention program focusing on overcoming barriers leading to the intergenerational cycle of poverty among first and second-generation Mexican immigrants. The major focus of her research is in the areas of literacy instruction for underserved English language learners, and developing transactional learning communities for second-generation immigrants. Dr. McElvain is currently collaborating with the South County Housing Non-profit Corporation to provide after school tutorial programs for at-risk preschool-high school English language learners and their families.

N	Paul Miller Executive Director Kidango Inc See Bio Throughout the 30+ years of an extraordinary career in education, Paul Miller has successfully led Kidango to become one of the leading educational institutes for children in the San Francisco Bay Area.

N	Derek Mitchell Chief Executive Officer Partners in School Innovation See Bio Born and raised in Chicago, Derek attended Pomona College in Claremont, CA and later earned a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles. While at UCLA, Derek worked at the Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards and Student Testing (CRESST), helping to pioneer school and district information management systems and data-driven technologies. Derek then served as the Director of Technology and Student Achievement for the Oakland Unified School District where he addressed equity-related challenges in assessment, technology and achievement. Subsequently, he joined the Stupski Foundation and managed efforts to support district-wide reform across the country, including in districts such as Jackson Public Schools in Mississippi and the Baltimore City Public Schools System in Maryland. Most recently, as Executive Director of the Opportunity Zone in Prince George's County in Maryland, Derek led critical efforts to instill innovative school options as a core component of district-wide reform. When not working towards educational equity, Derek enjoys science fiction, fantasy novels, martial arts and movies.

N	Michael Mowery Executive Director Junior League of Oakland East Bay Inc See Bio After a long career in senior legal roles for Bay Area telecommunications and technology companies, Mike transitioned to the nonprofit sector as Executive Director of Super Stars Literacy in October 2007. Mike’s background with both large corporations and small startups going through a rapid growth process is serving Super Stars Literacy well as it moves into its expansion phase. Mike brings over ten years of community non-profit experience to this role. He currently serves on the Youth & Education Committee of the Oakland Rotary and, until recently, was a member of the Board of Directors of Destiny Arts Center, an Oakland nonprofit, teaching violence prevention to Oakland’s at-risk youth through dance and martial arts training. Mike and his wife, Patty, direct a donor-advised fund at the East Bay Community Foundation in memory of their daughter, Danielle, supporting youth and education programs. Mike has also been a member and project lead for two engaged philanthropy organizations: Full Circle Fund and Social Venture Partners. Mike received his law degree from University of Toledo and earned his B.A. in Political Science from The Ohio State University.

F	Lorne Needle Vice President United Way of the Bay Area See Bio Lorne is a vice president on United Way’s Community Investment Team, which is responsible for investing donor contributions in top-performing Bay Area nonprofit programs. The team also partners with business, government and nonprofits to address our community’s greatest needs and implement the most effective solutions.

N	Malaika Parker Director of Community Action Justice Matters Institute See Bio Malaika Parker is the Director of Community Action at Justic Matters Institute. Justice Matters is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco whose mission is to bring about racially just schools by developing and promoting education policy rooted in community vision.

F	Diane Parnes Executive Director Sobrato Family Foundation See Bio Diane Parnes is the Executive Director for the Sobrato Family Foundation. It invests exclusively in nonprofits that serve low-income or underserved clients and beneficiaries that live and work in Santa Clara, Southern San Mateo and Southern Alameda counties.

R	P. David Pearson Dean, Graduate School of Education UC Berkeley See Bio David Pearson’s research interests include practice and policy in literacy instruction and assessment. A member of the National Academy of Education, he is a former dean of the College of Education of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he also co-directed the Center for the Study of Reading. Before coming to Berkeley he was the John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor of Education at Michigan State University. He has served as president of the National Reading Conference and on the boards of directors for the International Reading Association, the National Reading Conference, and the Association of American Colleges of Teacher Education. His honors include the William S. Gray Citation of Merit from the International Reading Association, the Oscar Causey Award for Contributions to Reading Research from the National Reading Conference, and the Alan Purves Award from the National Council of Teachers of English. Among his books and articles are the Handbook of Reading Research, now in its third volume; and Learning to Read: Lessons for Effective Schools and Accomplished Teachers (with B. Taylor, 2000).

O	Matt Regan Vice President, Government Relations Bay Area Council See Bio Matt Regan is the Bay Area Council’s Vice President of Government Relations and his responsibilities include promoting the Bay Area Council’s legislative and political agendas at the local, state and federal levels. Matt staffs the Council’s Government Relations Committee and the Council’s Early Chilldhood Education Committee which is a major policy priority for the Council. Matt has over 15 years experience working in the political arena and prior to joining the Bay Area Council Matt worked as a contract lobbyist, an in house Government Affairs specialist for a large bank, a State Assembly legislative aide and a field organizer for several high profile elections across the Bay Area. Matt is a native of Ireland. He attended the Middlesex University School of Law in London where he earned his LLB and the University of Ulster School of Business where he graduated with a Post Graduate Degree in Marketing.

F	Diane Sanchez Director of Grantmaking and Donor Services East Bay Community Foundation See Bio Diane Sanchez is responsible for the Foundation’s grantmaking activities and programs as well as grantmaking services to the Foundation’s donors. A veteran Program Officer and a former member of the Board of Directors at the East Bay Community Foundation, Diane Sanchez had a consulting practice in organizational development for 14 years before coming to the Foundation in 2000.

F	Pat Sasso Raising a Reader Initiative Officer Silicon Valley Community Foundation See Bio Pat oversees the implementation of Raising A Reader®, a parent involvement “read-aloud” book bag program, in San Mateo County. Pat develops and delivers technical assistance and training to Raising a Reader sites and acts as a lead conduit for local communication to the organization's national headquarters. Pat also assesses, orders and distributes the book bag materials local sites need to implement the program. Before joining Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Pat worked as a child development center site director serving mostly low-income families, many of whom were immigrants. There she found forming partnerships with families both a rewarding and effective way to increase the quality of early childhood education for the center's children. She has also taught middle school language arts, elementary school reading classes and early literacy curriculum in preschools. Understanding the power of literacy and the essence of family engagement, she has spent a significant part of her professional journey researching methods that most effectively support families to encourage their children's early literacy development. Pat has a bachelor's degree in English and a master's in early childhood education. Pat enjoys reading, both fiction and non-fiction, walking the Bay Area's coastal paths and going to the theater. She and her husband have a son in college and a daughter in high school. Time spent with her family is particularly precious.

N	Janice Shaul Executive Director Palo Alto Community Child Care See Bio Shaul was appointed Executive Director of PACCC in May 2007. As Executive Director she is responsible for maintaining the mission and vision throughout all aspects of the agency including Programs, Finance, Development and Outreach and works closely with the agency Board to do so. Shaul joined PACCC in 1993 as Director of the Neighborhood Infant-Toddler Center and quickly rose to Program Coordinator of PACCC's Infant-Toddler and Preschool programs before being named Associate Director of PACCC in September of 2001. Shaul's first task upon assuming her new role as Associate Director was to ensure a smooth integration of three new child care programs into the PACCC family. This integration was fully successful and has enriched the program offerings of PACCC. Shaul received a Bachelor's degree in Child Development from San Jose State University. She is a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and has served as Local Assessor and Validator for the NAEYC Accreditation Program. She continues her work in promoting high-quality programming by working with PACCC staff to maintain accreditation status and to fulfill requirements as established by the State of California Child Development Division and Community Care Licensing.

F	Jolene Smith Executive Director FIRST 5 Santa Clara County See Bio Jolene Smith is the Executive Director of FIRST 5 Santa Clara County. Based on sound research in early child development, FIRST 5 Santa Clara County supports the healthy growth and nurturing of children prenatal through age 5. By working with parents, community leaders, social service and healthcare agencies, FIRST 5 funds and sponsors essential services for young children and their families.

F	Jeff Sunshine Program Officer, Children, Families, and Communities Program David and Lucile Packard Foundation See Bio Jeff joined the Packard Foundation in 2007. He is a program officer in the Children, Families, and Communities Program. He is responsible for grantmaking in both the preschool and after-school portfolios.

N	Jennifer Sweeney STEM Program Manager Silicon Valley Education Foundation See Bio Jennifer Sweeney is a Program Manager in the Pre K Department. Since joining SVEF in 2006 she has engaged in school readiness through direct staff management, community engagement and partnership development in the Franklin McKinley School District. Before coming to SVEF Jennifer managed a county-wide federally funded demonstration project focused on the overlap of domestic violence and child maltreatment. Jennifer and her husband Mark live in Santa Clara and are the proud parents of two year old boy/girl twins.

N	Rachel Talamantez Senior Program Manager Youth and Family Enrichment Services See Bio Rachel Talmantez is currently the Program Manager of Early Childhood Mental Health at FIRST 5 Santa Clara County. She is also a Reflective Facilitator at Infant-Family Early Childhood Mental health Certificate Program / Kidango (contract position), and a Marriage Family Therapist at Rachel Talamantez, LMFT. She was previously the Senior Program Manager, Early Childhood Services at Youth and Family Enrichment Services, Mentor - Reflective Facilitator at University of Massachusetts / Infant Parent Mental Health Post Graduate Certificate Program, and Program Assistant / Coordinator at Family Paths (formerly Parental Stress Service). She studied at Argosy University San Francisco Bay Area, Child Trauma Institute, San Francisco, and Napa Infant-Parent Mental Health Fellowship.

F	Sandra Treacy Executive Director W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation See Bio Sandra Treacy is the Executive Director of W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation. The areas of interest for the Foundation are education, with an emphasis on teacher development; early childhood education, and youth development. The Foundation concentrates its giving in Chicago, the San Francisco Bay Area, New York and Boston. She was formerly executive director of the San Francisco School Volunteers.

F	Carol Welsh Gray Executive Director Thrive Foundation for Youth See Bio Carol Welsh Gray is the Executive Director of Thrive Foundation For Youth. Carol brings 20 years of experience as a senior executive and entrepreneur in nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. Carol has transitioned to Thrive Foundation after ten years as a leader in the community foundation field, first at Peninsula Community Foundation and then the newly merged Silicon Valley Community Foundation in 2007. Within her community foundation role, Carol was the founding Executive Director of Raising A Reader®, a national nonprofit that scaled, under her tenure, an award-winning early literacy and family bonding program across thirty-three states and 175 communities. As one of the earliest pioneers of "venture philanthropy" practice, Carol managed the 21st Century Education Initiative of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network, a partnership of business and K-12 education that began in 1995. In the volunteer sector, she initiated Daybreak Shelter for Homeless Youth, a program that has transitioned 86 percent of its graduates from the streets into productive lives. In 1995, Carol founded the Center for Venture Philanthropy at Peninsula Community Foundation. During her eight-year tenure developing the Center's mission, she crafted new avenues for community investors to engage in philanthropy with an emphasis on measurable return on civic investment. Carol designed the highly acclaimed Venture Van, a series of "tours-on-wheels" of the nonprofit world, and she launched five multi-million dollar social venture funds-award-winning initiatives to help low-income families develop assets, to promote early literacy, to build local environmental stewardship and to address the crisis in the foster care system. Carol designed a national template for applying venture philanthropy strategies to the individual development account field, helping the Center win the Innovation Award from Washington D.C.'s Corporation for Enterprise Development, for its social venture fund, Assets for All Alliance. Raising A Reader, three-time winner of the Fast Company Magazine Award for Social Entrepreneurship, has grown into a $3 million nonprofit business with twelve independent evaluations demonstrating results. Carol has won the Robert J. Koshland Award for Community Service, the J.C. Penny Golden Rule Award, the 100 Volunteers of Distinction Award at the 100th anniversary of the Association of Junior Leagues International, and she was twice named by San Jose Magazine and the San José Business Journal as one of the most Influential Women of the Year. Named a 2002 German Marshall Fund fellow, Carol was an ambassador to European communities building local community foundations. She holds a B.A. and M.S. from Stanford University. Carol is the proud parent of six thriving young adults.

N	James Willcox Chief Executive Officer Aspire Public Schools See Bio James Willcox follows Founder Don Shalvey as Aspire’s second Chief Executive Officer. Prior to his appointment as CEO, Mr. Willcox was Aspire’s Chief Operating Officer. As the COO, he managed human resources, operations, facilities, fund-raising and communications. During his tenure as COO, Aspire grew from 17 to 21 schools serving over 6,000 students. Prior to joining the management team of Aspire, Mr. Willcox was the founding Chief Operating Officer for Education for Change (EFC), a nonprofit charter management organization founded to restructure underperforming district schools as independent charter schools within the Oakland Unified School District.

N	Patty Wipfler Executive Director Hand in Hand Parenting See Bio Patty Wipfler was born, raised and educated in California, graduating from Occidental College in 1968, and is the mother of two sons. The focus of her work since 1974 has been teaching basic listening, parenting, and leadership skills to parents. She directed The School, a non-profit parent co-operative preschool in Palo Alto, and later directed Neighborhood Infant Toddler Center for Palo Alto Community Child Care. She has led over 400 residential weekend workshops for families and for leaders of parents in the U.S. and in 23 countries.

N	Kevin Wooldridge Founder & CEO Education For Change See Bio Kevin Wooldridge was most recently an Executive Director in the Oakland Unified School District supervising 13 elementary schools. He has been a bilingual educator for 26 years, working in three Bay Area school districts at school sites, including 12 years as a site administrator and several years as a senior central office administrator. Mr. Wooldridge has a master’s degree in Education and serves on the state of California’s Curriculum Commission. He also has many years of experience implementing and supporting programs that use the arts to extend and enhance core literacy and English language development programs. In addition, Mr. Wooldridge has been a speaker at both state and national conferences on Bilingual Education, Full Inclusion and Educational Leadership and is currently the co-chair of the Voices for African American Students Committee.