“It Takes a Big Heart to Help Shape Little Minds!” –Anonymous
Dear Colleagues,
Week of the Young Child kicked off at the start of this month in early learning programs across the country. They marked the week’s events in their own way, and Children’s Village Preschool of Orange, California, had a fun take on Work Together Wednesday. They proclaimed it to also be Sports Day. So, the preschool encouraged children and staff to dress for their favorite sport or show team spirit for their favorite team by wearing a team jersey, uniform or shirt.
And team spirit matters in the early childhood profession, so this is also a time for our early childhood teachers to speak out for the concerns of their field. And the National Association for the Education of Young Children suggested some ways for them to mark Music Monday, early in the month, by joining the chorus for change. Teachers could work with their state’s advocates to help lawmakers sign proclamations that honor and advance the ECE profession. Once they have secured a proclamation, teachers can share it on social media, tag the elected officials who signed it and thank them for being champions of the early childhood profession.
Educators deserve kudos for the way they support our nation’s diverse young learners. Our educators are also diverse, including a few we would like to acknowledge as we mark Arab American Heritage Month. Najwa Dahdah, Ines Ben Cheikh and Fatima Boubina come from a culture that holds our field in high esteem. “A teacher,” as the Koran points out, “is like a candle that consumes itself to light the way for others.”
And teachers also need someone to light the way for them so they can advance in their careers. So, this month we profile two early learning professionals who are making it possible for more people to take CDA® courses and have more access to the PD Specialists they need to earn the credential. They both live in Nebraska, a state where there is a large gap between supply and demand for the child care that working families need.
So, Linda Reddish supports the workforce behind the workforce as a liaison for Nebraska’s Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™ Professional Development Specialist initiative. She looks at the big picture in ECE as she partners with the Council and Nebraska Department of Education to provide PD Specialists statewide. Together, they’ve mapped out a plan for areas where PD Specialists are scarce and waged a recruitment campaign that has raised their number. “And I also go out and do visits,” Linda says, “since I want to stay grounded in the day-to-day reality of our educators’ lives.”
Jené Chapman is also in touch with teachers statewide as a program specialist at the Nebraska Department of Education Office of Early Childhood Training Center. Providers, as she’s seen, are often too busy to be aware of their chances for growth as professionals in ECE. So, Jené gets the word out about opportunities for training, mentoring and assistance building a child care business. She has also formed a CDA Roundtable where she teams up with colleagues across Nebraska to break down the barriers that stop people from earning their CDA.
Teamwork also leads to success for children, as they learn when playing sports. Games like baseball, basketball and soccer give them great chances to pick up character traits like confidence, self-control and a sense of cooperation, as Dr. Calvin Moore relates this month in his blog. He also reveals the life lessons he’s picked up from playing tennis, and he’s using them to make a full court press for equity in early learning. It isn’t easy, but we have to persist, as the great Billie Jean King understood. “Champions do not quit,” she once said. “They keep playing until they are successful.” So, let’s all go to bat for young children every week of the year.
Cheering you on,
The Council for Professional Recognition
SPONSORED BLOG The task of sitting down and writing out all of your early childhood education career goals can feel daunting. Where should you start? How far in the future should you plan? And, once...
Shinichi Suzuki believed that “all children have the ability at birth to become persons of high ability,” and held a “Grand Concert” to convince the world it was true. On a sunny day in 1955,...
To our followers – We want to bring your attention to an important matter regarding communication from the Council for Professional Recognition. Recently, a Facebook account impersonating the Council for Professional Recognition responded to people...
SPONSORED BLOG Whether you’re embarking on professional development (PD) to meet state requirements, or you want to invest in your own growth, PD has a number of benefits. First, it helps ensure you’re keeping up...
In the world of early childhood education, there’s a remarkable achievement that more people should know about – earning a Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™. The Council for Professional Recognition, a nonprofit that supports early...
SPONSORED BLOG Whether you’re just starting out in the early childhood field, or you’ve been teaching for years, chances are you’ve heard the term CDA at least a few times. The Child Development Associate® (CDA)...
SPONSORED BLOG Excitement. Jitters. Uncertainty. The new school year comes with a multitude of emotions and challenges — but thankfully there are things you can do ahead of time to prepare and ensure it’s the...
Language and literacy skills are fundamental building blocks for a child’s development, enabling effective communication, social interaction, and academic success throughout grade school and beyond. For young children with disabilities, however, traditional educational models may...
The Council for Professional Recognition’s Council Alumni Network (CAN) recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. This free community boasts 1200+ members. CAN is a diverse group of stakeholders in early childhood education (ECE) across the U.S....
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.
Read our monthly e-newsletter and keep up to date on all Council programs and services, as well as the latest news in the world of early care and education. Subscribe today to stay connected with us. You’ll receive timely information on events, webinars, special promotions, and more.
