The ECDC would like to recognize and thank the hard work of the following state early childhood leaders who put the time and energy into developing a thoughtful response on their state's behalf.
| State | Organization | Name | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Alabama Department of Children's Affairs | Lori Frazier | ECAC Project Manager | Lori.Frazier1@dca.alabama.gov |
| Alaska | Head Start State Collaboration Office Alaska Department of Education and Early Development | Paul Sugar | Head Start Collaboration/ Early Learning Program Manager | paul.sugar@alaska.gov |
| Arizona | First Things First Arizona Early Childhood Development and Health Board | Judy Walruff | Senior Policy Specialist | jwalruff@azftf.gov |
| Arkansas | Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education Arkansas Department of Human Services | Shawn Glenn | Assistant Director | Shawn.Glenn@arkansas.gov |
| California | Early Learning Advisory Council California Department of Education | Scott Moore | Executive Director | smoore@preschoolcalifornia.org |
| Colorado | Early Childhood Leadership Commission Office of the Governor | Jennifer Stedron | Executive Director | jennifer.stedron@state.co.us |
| Connecticut | Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center Connecticut State Department of Education | Andrea Brinnel | education consultant | andrea.brinnel@ct.gov |
| Delaware | Early Childhood Work Group Delaware Department of Education | Jim Lesko | Work Group Director | jlesko@DOE.K12.DE.US |
| District of Columbia | Office of the State Superintendent of Education Government of the District of Columbia | Marica Cox | Professional Development Coordinator | marica.cox@dc.gov |
| Florida | Office of Early Learning Agency for Workforce Innovation | Stacy Howard | Program Manager | stacy.howard@flaawi.com |
| Georgia | Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning | Bentley Ponder | Research and Evaluation Manager | Bentley.Ponder@decal.ga.gov |
| Hawaii | Head Start State Collaboration Office Hawaii Department of Human Services | Christine Jackson | Director | cjackson@dhs.hawaii.gov |
| Idaho | Idaho Department of Health and Welfare | Larraine Evans Clayton | Early Childhood Coordinating Council | claytonl@dhw.idaho.gov |
| Illinois | Office of Early Childhood Development | Shannon Christian | Director | shannon.christian@illinois.gov |
| Indiana | Head Start State Collaboration Office Family and Social Services Administration | Susan Lightle | Director | susan.lightle@fssa.in.gov |
| Iowa | Iowa Department of Management Iowa Community Empowerment | Shanell Wagler | Director | shanell.wagler@iowa.gov |
| Kansas | Kansas Children's Cabinent and Trust Fund | James Redmon | Executive Director | james.redmon@srs.ks.gov |
| Kentucky | Governor's Task Force on Early Childhood Office of the Governor | Elizabeth Whitehouse-Miller | Policy Advisor | Elizabeth.Whitehouse-Miller@ky.gov |
| Louisiana | Office of the Governor | Allen Schulenberg | Allen.Schulenberg@LA.GOV | |
| Maine | Maine Department of Education | Jaci Holmes | Federal Liaison | Jaci.holmes@maine.gov |
| Maryland | Maryland State Department of Education | Dorothy Race | drace@msde.state.md.us | |
| Massachusetts | Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care | Sarah Harding | sarah.harding@state.ma.us | |
| Michigan | Great Start for Kids | Joan Blough | Vice President Great Start System Planning and Evaluation | jblough@ecic4kids.org |
| Minnesota | Minnesota Department of Education | Avisia Whiteman | Early Childhood Research and Evaluation Specialist | Avisia.Whiteman@state.mn.us |
| Mississippi | Office for Children and Youth - Mississippi Department of Human Services | Laura Dickson | Policy Unit Director | Laura.Dickson@mdhs.ms.gov |
| Missouri | Center for Family Policy & Research University of Missouri | Kathy Thornburg | Director | ThornburgK@missouri.edu |
| Nebraska | Head Start State Collaboration Office Nebraska Department of Education | Eleanor Kirkland | Director | eleanor.kirkland@nebraska.gov |
| Nevada | Head Start State Collaboration Office Office of the Director - DHHS | Margot Chappel | Director | mchappel@dhhs.nv.gov |
| New Hampshire | Head Start State Collaboration Office Division for Children - Youth and Families | Debra Nelson | Director | debra.j.nelson@dhhs.state.nh.us |
| New Jersey | Division of Early Childhood New Jersey Department of Education | Ellen Wolock | Director | ellen.wolock@doe.state.nj.us |
| New Mexico | Office of Child Development New Mexico Children - Youth and Families Department | Dan Haggard | Deputy Director | dan.haggard@state.nm.us |
| New York | New York State Council on Children & Families | Robert Frawley | Director | bob.frawley@ccf.state.ny.us |
| North Carolina | North Carolina Division of Public Health North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services | Deborah Nelson | ECCS Grant Coordinator | deborah.nelson@dhhs.nc.gov |
| North Dakota | Brandi Pelham | Contract Employee | brandipelham@yahoo.com | |
| Ohio | Early Childhood Cabinet | Alicia Leatherman | Director Early Childhood Cabinet | alicia.leatherman@jfs.ohio.gov |
| Oklahoma | Smart Start Oklahoma | Debra Andersen | Executive Director | debra.andersen@smartstartok.org |
| Oregon | Department of Health and Human Services | Sandra Potter-Marquardt | Early Childhood Comprehensive System Policy & Development Coordinator | Sandra.J.Potter-Marquardt@state.or.us |
| Pennsylvania | Pennslyvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning | Phillip Sirinides | Educational Research Associate | psirinides@state.pa.us |
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island Kids Count | Leanne Barrett | Policy Analyst | lbarrett@rikidscount.org |
| South Carolina | South Carolina First Steps | Susan Devenny | Executive Director | sdevenny@scfirststeps.org |
| South Dakota | South Dakota Head Start State Collaboration Office South Dakota Department of Education | Rayne Dosch | Director | rayne.dosch@state.sd.us |
| Tennessee | Governor’s Office of Children’s Care Coordination | Mary Rolando | Policy Analyst | mary.rolando@tn.gov |
| Utah | Office of the Governor | Christine Kearl | Governor's Education Policy Advisor | ckearl@utah.gov |
| Vermont | Vermont Department for Children and Families | Kathleen Paterson | Assistant Director | kathleen.paterson@ahs.state.vt.us |
| Virginia | Office of Early Childhood Development Department of Social Services | Zelda Boyd | Director | zelda.boyd@dss.virginia.gov |
| Washington | Washington State Department of Early Learning | Kelli Bohanon | Director | kelli.bohanon@del.wa.gov |
| West Virginia | Head Start State Collaboration Office West Virginia Department of Heath and Human Services | Traci Dalton | Director | traci.l.dalton@wv.gov |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction | Jill Haglund | Early Childhood Consultant | Jill.Haglund@dpi.wi.gov |
| Wyoming | Early Childhood Programs Division Wyoming Department of Family Services | Sue Bacon | Administrator | sbacon@state.wy.us |