Dear Colleagues,
Did you know that President Lyndon Baines Johnson once worked as a teacher? And he’s not the only teacher who would become a political leader. President Barack Obama was a law professor for 12 years after earning his J.D. from Harvard. Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s first job after college was teaching children with disabilities at a public school. Tim Walz, Minnesota governor and current nominee for VP, taught high school for 20 years. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington State was a preschool teacher and mom who got inspired to enter politics when a male state lawmaker scoffed at her efforts to fight budget cuts to early childhood education.
The lawmaker told her she couldn’t make a difference since “she was just a mom in tennis shoes.” But Murray didn’t let these dismissive words stop her. In response, she organized a grassroots coalition of 13,000 parents that fought successfully to save many preschool programs in the state. So, it was no surprise decades later that Murray scored big wins for children in the Senate Appropriations Committee, where she serves as chair. In 2024, for instance, she used her gavel to add $1 billion in a single year for early learning and care, including a $275 million hike in spending for Head Start, the federal program that Johnson launched in 1965 to assist low-income children.
Like Johnson, Murray wants to “make sure that all kids get a good education,” as she pointed out. “This is always something I focused on. So, when I took on the chair of Appropriations and looked across the wide spectrum of bills that I would be in charge of writing, I thought, ‘Here is where we can finally really make a difference.’” Still, you don’t have to serve in the Senate to make an impact on the early learning field, as Murray had shown through her grassroots campaign. And this month, we feature two members of our profession who are taking steps to advocate for early childhood teachers and the children they serve.
“Advocating for early childhood learning doesn’t have to involve lobbying and taking steps that seem really hard,” Lisa Plotkin says. “It could be talking to someone on the bus or in your family about the vital role that our educators play. It could be setting up a phone bank or sending an email to your state reps”—all small acts that Lisa talks about with members of her grassroots group, Virginia Early Childhood Advocates. “VECA’s goal is to help educators understand the advocacy process,” Lisa says. “For example, how can we support one another as advocates for the early childhood field? How do you talk to lawmakers? What do the discussions you have with them mean? And can you make an impact?”
Rochelle Wilcox is convinced that you can and inspires other educators to join her at For Providers By Providers in New Orleans. She keeps her sense of conviction by recalling this phrase from author Alice Walker: “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” And Rochelle has shown the power of our field by persuading city lawmakers to make hefty investments to expand access to child care. She has also worked to give children skilled teachers by offering CDA® training. And policymakers should provide funding to help teachers earn credentials, Usma Mohamed points out when we review her study on the roadblocks educators face to pursuing professional training.
The Council is knocking these obstacles down as it speaks out in the policy realm and scales up the CDA under the leadership of Dr. Calvin Moore. And this month, Dr. Moore marks Lyndon Baines Johnson Day in his blog by showing how Johnson’s time as a teacher for underserved children shaped him as a leader who strongly supported education. As a young man, Johnson never dreamed he would be in a place to help children like the ones he taught, and once he had the power to do so, he said, “I intend to use it.” The Council does, too, as we ramp up our work to build a skilled early learning workforce and raise the status of our profession. Now, we urge all our teachers to join us and tap into the power they have within to be leaders.
Happy Lyndon Baines Johnson Day,
The Council for Professional Recognition
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Vice President of Product
Mackenzie Pelland serves as Vice President of Product at the Council. In this role, she oversees the Council’s product strategy and portfolio, including credentialing programs, educational publications, professional development resources, and branded merchandise, ensuring offerings are sustainable and responsive to the evolving needs of early childhood educators and the broader early care and education field. Her work focuses on building scalable, user-centered products that strengthen quality and integrity across the Council’s credentialing, educational, and professional learning offerings.
Prior to this role, Mackenzie served as Director of ECE Observation Systems at the Council, where she oversaw the observation portion of the CDA® credentialing assessment process and led the ECE Observation Team. She also worked to support, refine, and strengthen the Professional Development Specialist community to better meet the needs of a diverse CDA® candidate population.
Before joining the Council, Mackenzie was Senior Director of Monitoring and Compliance Systems at Acelero Learning, where she led the development and execution of monitoring systems related to federal grant compliance, child care licensing, health and safety, incident management, and facilities compliance across Head Start programs nationwide. She also previously served as Program Accountability and Policy Implementation Manager at New York City’s Department of Education within the Division of Early Childhood Education.
Mackenzie is recognized as a credentialing specialist by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence. She holds a master’s degree in education policy from Teachers College, Columbia University, a Certificate in Education and Program Evaluation from Georgetown University, and a bachelor’s degree in politics and education from Occidental College.
Vice President of Strategic Alliances
Elisa Shepherd is the Vice President of Strategic Alliances at the Council, where she leads initiatives to advance the Council’s mission and strategic plan through designing, managing, and executing a comprehensive stakeholder relationship strategy.
With over 25 years of experience in early childhood education (ECE), Elisa has dedicated her career to developing impactful programs, professional development opportunities, and public policies that support working families, young children, and ECE staff. Before joining the Council, Elisa held numerous roles within the childcare industry. Most recently, she served as Associate Vice President at The Learning Experience and as Senior Manager at KinderCare Education, where she influenced government affairs and public policies across 40 states.
Elisa’s commitment to leadership is reflected in her external roles on the Early Care and Education Consortium Board of Directors, the Florida Chamber Foundation Board of Trustees, and as the DEI Caucus Leader for KinderCare Education. She has been recognized as an Emerging Leader in Early Childhood by Childcare Exchange’s Leadership Initiative.
Elisa earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a focus on child development from Pennsylvania State University in State College, PA.
Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)
Janie Payne is the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) 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 (COO)
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 (CFO)
Janice brings more than 20 years of experience in accounting and strategic financial management, with an extensive background spanning global associations, nonprofits, and technology organizations. She most recently served as CFO/COO for a global association advancing women in commercial real estate. Prior to that, she was the CFO at Achieving the Dream, a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting community college success, and Director of Finance at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Controller for two technology companies.
A Maryland-licensed CPA, Janice is deeply engaged in the profession through her service on the AICPA Governing Council and leadership roles with the CFO Leadership Council. In 2025, she was recognized as an AICPA Global Woman to Watch. She holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs & Public Policy from UC San Diego and a B.A. in International Affairs & Economics from The George Washington University, bringing both financial expertise and a global policy perspective to her work.
Janice’s journey is uniquely shaped by global and mission-driven experiences. Before transitioning into accounting, she spent a decade managing refugee programs in the United States and abroad, including roles with the International Rescue Committee and the Maryland Office for Refugees & Asylees. She has also lived and worked internationally in both Japan and Uganda.
Outside of work, Janice is a dedicated endurance athlete who completed a full Ironman triathlon in 2024, bringing the same discipline and determination to her personal pursuits as she does to her professional impact.
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