Dear Colleagues,
Reflection is essential for growth in the early learning field, as you likely know. So did John Dewey, the great education reformer, who once observed that “we do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience.” And the end of the year is a perfect time for early learning professionals to take stock of their successes, explore ways to serve children even better and think about what inspires them most. When we reflect, we look back to the past and ahead to the future, as the Council has done in a productive year marked by both nostalgia and innovation.
As we explore new ways to serve the early learning field, we draw impetus and inspiration from how far along we’ve come. This year, we marked the 50th anniversary of the Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™, our tenth Early Educators Leadership Conference and the Council’s 40th anniversary since its founding under the leadership of Dr. Carol Brunson Day, our CEO for 20 years.
Dr. Day recalls her experiences in the Council’s new book, The First Two Decades, released just a few months ago. In it, she reflects on how the CDA® has changed from a small federal program to a pillar of the early learning profession nationwide. It’s gained recognition in the regulations and licensing laws of nearly all states, along with widespread renown as the best first step toward success in our early childhood settings. And more than a million early childhood teachers have shown that they agree by earning a CDA.
The Council issued the millionth CDA under our current CEO, Dr. Calvin Moore, who attributes this milestone to Dr. Day’s legacy and pioneering steps. “Her work laid the foundation for the advances we see today, including the ongoing refinement of the CDA to meet the changing needs of educators and families,” as Dr. Moore writes in his foreword to The First Two Decades. “She envisioned a future where every educator is equipped with the tools, knowledge and support necessary to excel in their roles, and this vision continues to guide our efforts at the Council.”
We’re still exploring ways to serve educators even better, and this year we made several innovations. We have new digital CDA credentials that make it easier for educators to highlight their expertise in ECE. We’ve streamlined our CDA renewal process. We have a new Birth to Five CDA® Credential that allows educators to broaden their professional scope, and we have a new podcast, The Council Table. It brings you inside the discussions that are shaping our field, and we hope it will inspire you to help move ECE ahead.
The Council will also be moving ahead by taking new steps to support our educators next year. We will be partnering with the National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC) to boost the number of family providers who earn a CDA, so they can gain more credit for the vital service they provide to nearly three million children nationwide. Millions more need qualified educators, so the Council will also enhance the CDA decision-making process by no longer requiring a verification visit for candidates who achieve a qualifying level on the CDA® exam. This expedited process will preserve our credential’s high standards while more quickly producing the qualified educators that all children deserve, whatever their challenges or special needs. Inclusion, as you’ll read in a new blog, remains one of the central values that we champion at the Council.
Values are also among the issues Dr. Moore explores when he reviews the news about ECE in 2025. He covers recent surveys that point to the demand for child care and the impact of the child care shortage on families. He also describes how states are addressing the problem as birth rates plummet and gender pay gaps soar. But policy changes aren’t enough, Dr. Moore points out. Instead, we must reframe child care as a social value that makes communities strong and helps families put down roots. As we prepare to mark a new year, he urges us to reflect on how we can all make quality child care part of the American way.
Looking forward to fresh changes in 2026,
The Council for Professional Recognition
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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.
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 (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)
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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