This year’s conference was held October 8-11 in scenic Stone Mountain, Georgia and focused on Accelerating Your Leadership. Based on the buzz that filled the conference halls, attendees definitely returned home accelerated, charged up, and armed with tools, knowledge and connections to forge ahead and take the next steps in their careers.
The conference provided relevant, thought-provoking topics to attendees for discussion, reflection and action. Over 200 attendees had an abundance of opportunities to model and practice wellness exercises for both body and mind while preparing for the crucial work to come.
Conference attendees also learned from and interacted with nationally and internationally renowned leaders and advocates in the early childhood field. In a wide range of exciting sessions, these industry stars showed their commitment to young learners and keen desire to make a difference in children’s lives. For example, Judy Jablon, Executive Director of Leading Children, struck a chord in the crowd as she spoke about nurturing relationships —listen to an excerpt of her message.
Dr. Valora Washington, CEO of the Council also discussed a powerful lesson about where leadership happens in her presentation, “Ready or Not 12 Years Later.” Her conversation about leadership and change left the attendees encouraged and ready to take this meaningful message back to their communities.
As many of you know, each year at the conference we recognize and honor those who embrace the Council’s mission and constantly lift their communities up through their stellar work. This year’s 2019 CDA Advocate Awardee is Milton J. Little, Jr. president and CEO of United Way of Greater Atlanta.
Mr. Little. became the first African American president of United Way of Greater Atlanta, the second largest in the national system, in July 2007. Altogether, he has helped raise more than half a billion dollars for local community needs and priorities. Before joining United Way, he served as chief operating officer and interim president and CEO of the National Urban League. He graduated magna cum laude from Morehouse College with a B.A. in sociology and earned an M.A. in urban sociology and social policy from Columbia University.
He is a member of many boards and advisory committees. Notable among them are the Center for Assessment and Policy Development, chair of the Southern Education Foundation, and as vice chair of the board of directors for Ways to Work. He is a member of the Atlanta Mayoral Board of Service, 100 Black Men of Atlanta, TechBridge Advisory Board, Siemer Institute for Family Stability Advisory Council, Atlanta Choice Neighborhoods Governing Body, Junior League of Atlanta Community Advisory Board, University of Georgia Advisory Board for the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, Atlanta Speech School Board of Advisors, Woodruff Arts Center Board of Trustees, Central Atlanta Progress, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Georgia’s Older Adults Cabinet, the Atlanta Early Education Leadership Council, Hope Atlanta Advisory Council, Get Georgia Ready Reading Cabinet, and Susan G. Komen of Greater Atlanta. In January 2018, he was selected to serve on Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ Transition Team.
Little is a native New Yorker and has two sons: Milton and Taylor, and three grandchildren: Joi, Miles and Langston. The Council congratulates and thanks Mr. Little’s for his continued commitment to his community and his tireless outreach to young people.
The EELC also welcomed Georgia’s Pre-K Teacher of the Year, Johnathon Hines. In a very inspirational interview, he shared his journey to winning this award as well as his love for his students. Congratulations and job well done!
In her keynote message, Dr. Washington provided insight and asked everyone to think about change and our responsibility as early childhood leaders.
Each of you are doing vital work and EELC offers you the opportunity to think about the status of your chosen profession in a new way and how you can effect change in our field.
If you couldn’t attend this year’s conference, stay tuned for news about next year’s event! Plans are already underway for the 2020 EELC October 13-16, 2020 in Leesburg, Virginia (the Washington DC area), on Oct. 13-16, 2020 — so save the date. Registration is starting now with early bird pricing for a limited time. We encourage early registration because we have sold out the past, leaving many disappointed that they could not attend.
Thank you to all our attendees CDAs, PD SpecialistsTM, presenters, thought leaders, Council experts, hotel staff — and a special thanks to our sponsors. Each of you played a remarkable part in making the conference a success! Finally take a moment to listen to Keisha McClendon. Ms. McClendon attended the 2019 EELC and shared her journey to becoming a CDA and her pathway to her next steps in becoming an early education leader.
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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.
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.
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