Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month!
Dear Colleagues,
We’re now marking National Hispanic Heritage Month, when we acknowledge the key role Hispanic people have played in our country. George Washington might not have won the decisive Battle of Yorktown against the Brits without the donations he received from Cuban supporters. The balance of power would have been different during World War II without the quarter-million Hispanic men and women who served in the U.S. armed forces. And our economy would suffer without Hispanic entrepreneurs who start more small businesses than anyone else, leading to a flood of jobs.
More opportunities for employment mean more equity, a value the Hispanic community has embraced by fighting for social justice. Cesar Chavez devoted his life to improving the treatment and pay of farmworkers, still a struggling group that dreams of a better life for their kids, as you’ll see when Dr. Moore shares some thoughts on Head Start. Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice, is known for her deep concern about defendants’ rights, reform of the criminal justice system, and issues of race and ethnic identity. Sylvia Mendez played a central role in Mendez vs. Westminster, which banned segregation in California public schools and paved the way for the national ban on segregated schools in Brown vs. Board of Education.
You can learn more about Mendez in our tribute to Hispanic/Latinx ECE champions. Check it out to meet heroes like Isabel Garcia, executive director of RCMA, a group that works to make the dreams of young kids from farmworker families come true. You can also read about Nydia M. Velázquez, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to the U.S. Congress. She’s a firm proponent of equity in early childhood education who thinks that “no parent should lose sleep worrying that their child will miss out on a safe and nurturing early childhood education.”
Sadly, many children aren’t getting the early care and education they need as COVID-19 continues to take its toll on our early childhood settings. So, the Children’s Equity Project (CEP) and Council for Professional Recognition are working together to increase equity in education for America’s youngest learners. While the current crisis has widened the learning divide, “this issue is not going away and is particularly challenging for Black, Latinx and Native American children,” says CEP founding director Shantel Meek. So, she calls on policy makers and leaders to “make meaningful change that builds a stronger, more equitable learning system for our youngest children.”
Strengthening the early childhood system requires commitment and coordination from all stakeholders, says Gloria de Llovio-Domínguez, an early childhood pioneer in Puerto Rico. We profile her efforts on both the program and policy level as she works to remodel the island’s child care system. “We need to bring Head Start, private child care services, preschool services within public schools, home visiting programs, child abuse prevention agencies and public health services all together in common projects,” she pleads, “so every child can be ready to succeed.”
And our nation’s own success may depend on how we serve our young Hispanic learners, one of the fastest-growing segments of the population. By 2050, one-third of the total population is projected to be Hispanic. Today’s Hispanic children will be many of tomorrow’s taxpayers, parents, voters and leaders. So, as we look back on the community’s impressive past, we should also look ahead to its impact in coming years. Hispanic children will play a key role in our country’s future.
Un cordial saludo,
The Council for Professional Recognition
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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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