The Promise of the High School CDA®
Millions of young people are searching for the path from high school to careers. In recent years, the percentage of young adults who hold jobs has reached historic lows. In 2018, more than four million 16- to 24-year-olds were “opportunity youth,” neither employed nor in school. From spring 2019 to spring 2020, unemployment among young adults spiked from 8.4 percent to 14.4 percent. And now the COVID-19 pandemic has plunged the youth labor market into an even greater crisis.
To make matters worse, COVID-19 has also hurt their chances to attend college as families face crushing financial burdens. “The past year has brought unprecedented challenges and uncertainty to everyone, and high school students are feeling this uncertainty as they navigate the transition to the next phase of their lives,” said Christine Roberts, head of student lending at Citizens Financial Group.
Recently, Citizens and Junior Achievement conducted a survey of 2,000 students aged 13 to19, as well as 500 who graduated from high school last year. It found that parents were cutting back on financial support for college, especially among families of color. While 45 percent of white high school juniors and seniors said their parents were reducing their financial input, nearly 60 percent of Black and Hispanic teens said the pandemic will affect how they pay for college. And this lack of opportunity could widen the school-to-prison pipeline that sucks in far too many young Black students.
It doesn’t have to be that way if we build strong bridges between high school and the work world. Career and technical education programs offer a smooth transition by allowing young folks to gain a skill and a credential in their field of choice. CTE programs also prepare students for higher education and can count for college credit if—and when—students do decide to return to college. So, we should build apprenticeship programs, such as the CDA, into our high schools. This will ensure that there is a skilled workforce right out of high school, especially in professions where there’s a pressing need.
Early childhood care and education is one of those in-demand fields, even more so as parents look to return to work after the COVID lockdown. So, this month was a perfect time for the Council to launch our new effort to help more high schoolers earn their CDA. Our launch event featured a panel of early childhood leaders who have guided students in earning their credential, along with Alexys Barfield, a recent high school grad, and now a college student, who talked about how the CDA helped her get ahead.
The launch also marked the release of our new, hot-off-the-press CDA Handbook for High School, an essential tool for high school CTE leaders in launching or sustaining a CDA program. Besides setting out policies and procedures, it also describes the benefits of the credential. Students take coursework that translates into college credits and inspires them to keep on learning. They gain confidence as professionals in the early childhood field and have the competence to meet families’ needs for a safe, enriching place where they can leave their young children while at work.
High school grads who take on this key role are on the path to productive lives: purchasing a home, starting a family and planning for a better future. The CDA is a great solution for the many young folks who are flailing in the fallout of COVID-19 since it prepares them for an in-demand career. It also allows them to leave a lasting mark on young learners, as extensive research shows. There’s wide consensus that children who receive education from competent, caring teachers—like those who earn a CDA—are also more likely to have stable homes and productive lives as adults.
High school CDA programs make an impact on the future—while opening doors for young people now, as Alexys pointed out at our launch event. “Get your CDA,” she urged the nearly 2,000 people who registered for the launch. “It’s something that can change your life.” In our post-pandemic world, the CDA puts the promise of rewarding careers within the reach of our high school students. And they, in turn, will have the skills to help young children also reach their own promise. The high school CDA offers high hopes for the young adults of today and tomorrow.
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Vice President of People and Culture
Janie Payne is the Vice President of People and Culture for the Council for Professional Recognition. Janie is responsible for envisioning, developing, and executing initiatives that strategically manage talent and culture to align people strategies with the overarching business vision of the Council. Janie is responsible for driving organizational excellence through strategic talent practices, orchestrating workforce planning, talent acquisition, performance management as well as a myriad of other Human Resources Programs. She is accountable for driving effectiveness by shaping organizational structure for optimal efficiency. Janie oversees strategies that foster a healthy culture to include embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion into all aspects of the organization.
In Janie’s prior role, she was the Vice President of Administration at Equal Justice Works, where she was responsible for leading human resources, financial operations, facilities management, and information technology. She was also accountable for developing and implementing Equal Justice Works Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategy focused on attracting diverse, mission-oriented talent and creating an inclusive and equitable workplace environment. With more than fifteen years of private, federal, and not-for-profit experience, Janie is known for her intuitive skill in administration management, human resources management, designing and leading complex system change, diversity and inclusion, and social justice reform efforts.
Before joining Equal Justice Works, Janie was the Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer for Global Communities, where she was responsible for the design, implementation, and management of integrated HR and diversity strategies. Her work impacted employees in over twenty-two countries. She was responsible for the effective management of different cultural, legal, regulatory, and economic systems for both domestic and international employees. Prior to Global Communities, Janie enjoyed a ten-year career with the federal government. As a member of the Senior Executive Service, she held key strategic human resources positions with multiple cabinet-level agencies and served as an advisor and senior coach to leaders across the federal sector. In these roles, she received recognition from management, industry publications, peers, and staff for driving the creation and execution of programs that created an engaged and productive workforce.
Janie began her career with Verizon Communications (formerly Bell Atlantic), where she held numerous roles of increasing responsibility, where she directed a diversity program that resulted in significant improvement in diversity profile measures. Janie was also a faculty member for the company’s Black Managers Workshop, a training program designed to provide managers of color with the skills needed to overcome barriers to their success that were encountered because of race. She initiated a company-wide effort to establish team-based systems and structures to impact corporate bottom line results which was recognized by the Department of Labor. Janie was one of the first African American women to be featured on the cover of Human Resources Executive magazine.
Janie received her M.A. in Organization Development from American University. She holds numerous professional development certificates in Human Capital Management and Change Management, including a Diversity and Inclusion in Human Resources certificate from Cornell University. She completed the year-long Maryland Equity and Inclusion Leadership Program sponsored by The Schaefer Center for Public Policy and The Maryland Commission on Civil Rights. She is a trained mediator and Certified Professional Coach. She is a graduate of Leadership America, former board chair of the NTL Institute and currently co-steward of the organization’s social justice community of practice, and a member of The Society for Human Resource Management. Additionally, Janie is the Board Chairperson for the Special Education Citizens Advisory Council for Prince Georges County where she is active in developing partnerships that facilitate discussion between parents, families, educators, community leaders, and the PG County school administration to enhance services for students with disabilities which is her passion. She and her husband Randolph reside in Fort Washington Maryland.
Chief Operations Officer
Andrew Davis serves as Chief Operating Officer at the Council. In this role, Andrew oversees the Programs Division, which includes the following operational functions: credentialing, growth and business development, marketing and communications, public policy and advocacy, research, innovation, and customer relations.
Andrew has over 20 years of experience in the early care and education field. Most recently, Andrew served as Senior Vice President of Partnership and Engagement with Acelero Learning and Shine Early Learning, where he led the expansion of state and community-based partnerships to produce more equitable systems of service delivery, improved programmatic quality, and greater outcomes for communities, children and families. Prior to that, he served as Director of Early Learning at Follett School Solutions.
Andrew earned his MBA from the University of Baltimore and Towson University and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland – University College.
Chief Financial Officer
Jan Bigelow serves as Chief Financial Officer at the Council and has been with the organization since February of 2022.
Jan has more than 30 years in accounting and finance experience, including public accounting, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. She has held management-level positions with BDO Seidman, Kiplinger Washington Editors, Pew Center for Global Climate Change, Communities In Schools, B’nai B’rith Youth Organization and American Humane. Since 2003, Jan has worked exclusively in the non-profit sector where she has been a passionate advocate in improving business operations in order to further the mission of her employers.
Jan holds a CPA from the State of Virginia and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lycoming College. She resides in Alexandria VA with her husband and dog.
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