“I try to be my best for the young children I serve,” Taylor says. “I want to prepare them for life by helping them become the best people they can be and by teaching them right from wrong. So, we talk a lot about kindness, loving others, helping others. And the children get it. They’re pretty good at sharing, which is hard for a lot of young children, and they do special things for their little friends,” as Taylor is delighted to see.
She’s good at imparting life lessons to kids, though she’s only 18 and still a senior in high school. “I have a fair amount of practice working with children since I have a lot of younger siblings who are close in age,” she says, “and I helped my mom bring them up. So, I’ve always had a motherly side, and now I’m extending it to nurture other people’s young children.”
The children she serves spend their days at Corry Alliance Childcare in Pennsylvania, where Taylor has worked for the past two years while earning her Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™. “I heard about the CDA® when I attended an assembly at Corry High School Career and Technical Education Center,” she says, “and I was attracted to the program because I’ve always been drawn to the child care field.” And this strong sense of motivation helped her complete the CDA® process, though some of the students who started the CDA® with her dropped out of the program.
“You have to love young children and want to make a difference in their lives to earn a CDA®,” she says, “and I guess some of my fellow high school students lacked that motivation. But my commitment to being in the ECE field for the rest of my life got me though all the steps involved in the CDA® process.”
She’s glad she did because earning a CDA® gave her the confidence she often lacks. “I have a tendency to doubt myself,” she says, “so earning a CDA® helped me a lot. It made me feel that I already knew more than most people my age about how to help young children develop and grow. In addition, I also picked up some new strategies for engaging with children and communicating with them. Everything I learned during the CDA® process just clicked with me,” she says, and that was apparent when Taylor had her CDA® assessment.
“My PD Specialist watched me for two hours,” she says, “and was impressed with my strengths, especially when I read a book to the children. She liked how I entertained the children by using different voices and tones for different characters in the book. She also liked how I engaged the kids by asking them a lot of questions while I was reading. My only major weakness, as my PD Specialist pointed out, is that I tend to be a little quiet.”
That’s because Taylor is a bit shy and often questions herself. So, it’s a good thing she has someone in her corner. “My CTE teacher has been a big source of inspiration and support,” Taylor says. “She’s helped make me a better me by helping me believe in myself when I feel I’m being judged by other folks”—something that she fears. But her strong sense of faith helps her surmount these self-doubts. “Reading the Bible reminds me that God loves me and he’s the only one I should worry about judging me,” Taylor says.
And she also draws a lot of support from other teachers at Corry Alliance Childcare. “I have a good team,” she explains. “They help me if any minor issues come up, such as how to engage with a child who won’t listen to me.” And that happens from time to time as Taylor admits “because “I’m a pushover for the kids, especially the ones who are three to five years old.”
At this age, they’re old enough to know a lot, as Taylor explains. “I like how they talk and respond when we do activities together,” she says. “I enjoy the time we spend doing puzzles, arts and crafts, and painting,” she says. “Most of all, I like working with them one on one so I can get an even better idea of what their abilities are and how they think.”
She’s committed to preparing them well for the future because of a tragedy that she suffered in the past. “My father passed away when I was 13 years old,” Taylor says. “His death took a toll on me and made me grow up fast. It also made me realize I wanted to make him proud. That pushed me into what I’m doing now and increased my commitment to connecting with the children I serve. And I want to continue working with them next year at Corry Alliance Childcare while I attend the PennWest Edinboro campus of Pennsylvania Western University and earn my BA in early childhood education.”
Taylor doesn’t want to leave the children behind when she goes to school because she has formed strong ties with her little students. “One three-year-old boy gives me a hug every time he sees me,” Taylor says. And there’s a four-year-old who hates baked beans and has a special bond with Taylor that touches her heart. “He’s very funny, active, outgoing and good at making his feelings known,” she explains. “Every day when he sees me, he says, ‘Taylor, you’re the best.’” So, Taylor may question herself, but there is no question about her skills in the early childhood classroom.
Recently she was even selected as the Corry Elks Club Student of the Month. This award is given each month to an outstanding Corry student for scholastic and community achievements. It’s an honor that should end her self-doubts and would surely have made her dad very proud.
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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.
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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