Transitional Kindergarten Implementation Summit Speaker Biographies
Catherine
Atkin serves as the President of Preschool California. Ms.
Atkin leads Preschool California’s day-to-day work and collaborates closely
with senior staff on strategy. She is an attorney with legal and policy
expertise in the area of early care and education. Prior to joining Preschool
California, she was the principal of a consulting firm specializing in
strategic research, a directing attorney at Public Counsel Law Center in Los
Angeles and minority subcommittee counsel for the Banking and Financial
Services Committee of the United States House of Representatives. She holds a
bachelor’s degree from Stanford, a law degree from UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall and
a master's degree in urban planning from UCLA.
Carl A. Cohn is co-director of the Urban
Leadership Program and a clinical professor in the School of Educational
Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Most recently, he served as
superintendent of schools in the San Diego Unified School District. Prior to
that, he worked as clinical professor at the University of Southern California,
and was a federal court monitor for the special education consent decree in the
Los Angeles school system. From 1992 to 2002, he was the superintendent of the
Long Beach Unified School District. His tenure at Long Beach culminated with
him winning the McGraw Prize in 2002, and the district winning the Broad Prize
in 2003.
Gloria Craine has
taught over 20 years in public education as a classroom teacher. She has spent
most of her career teaching in the primary grades, kindergarten, first and up
to third grade. In addition she has worked as a Reading Intervention teacher
(K-5) and as a Literacy Coach at a primary center. Currently Ms. Craine has
been teaching the Transitional Kindergarten program for Dual Language Learners
at Ellen Ochoa Learning Center and her classroom is visited often on Los
Angeles Unified School District transitional kindergarten tours.
Shirley Esau has
been in the field of education for 24 years in California. She has been a
classroom teacher at various elementary grade levels. Currently she is the
principal of the preschool-kindergarten school. Shirley piloted the Transitional
Kindergarten in the 2010-11 school years and is on the Fresno County Office of
Education Transitional Kindergarten Planning Committee and Professional
Learning Committee. In addition she is a member of the Packard Foundation
Transitional Kindergarten Professional Learning and Steering Committees. She
graduated from Fresno Pacific University (1987) with a B.A. in Liberal Arts and
a multiple subject credential. In 2003 she earned her Master Degree in
Administrative Services from Fresno Pacific University and received her
Administrative credential at the same time.
David W. Gordon is the Sacramento County Superintendent of Schools. As superintendent of the Elk Grove Unified School District, (1995-2004) he helped pioneer preschool programs and implemented an early intervention program for children at risk of failure. Mr. Gordon began his career teaching in a sixth grade special guidance class in the South Bronx, New York City, in 1968. He also served the California Department of Education as Deputy State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Mr. Gordon currently serves on numerous boards and commissions, including the National Assessment Governing Board. He and his wife Deborah have two children and six grandchildren.
Wilma Hashimoto earned her Business
Administration degree from the University of Southern California and her Master
of Arts degree in Education Administration from CSU, Fresno. She began her
career as a corporate auditor then discovered her passion in teaching, specifically
with at-risk children. She had a successful journey as a classroom teacher and
a school site and district administrator in Clovis Unified School District. In
her current capacity as the Associate Director for the Fresno County Office of
Education she oversees the Early Care and Education department and serves as
the liaison between the California Department of Education and the more than
250 subsidized childcare programs in Fresno County and is now developing the
implementation of Transitional Kindergarten in the county and statewide.
Nancy Herota is a credentialed
administrator with over twenty years of experience in educational leadership,
elementary education and early childhood education. She works at the Sacramento
County Office of Education and serves as the statewide Director for the
California Preschool Instructional Network (CPIN), which is funded by the Child
Development Division (CDD) of the California Department of Education (CDE). Her
role includes providing leadership to the eleven CPIN regions of the California
County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) and
coordinating statewide CPIN professional development and technical assistance
support to preschool programs. Prior to her current position, Ms. Herota worked
as the Director for the early childhood education programs in the Elk Grove
Unified School District. She also possesses a Master of Social Work degree and
worked directly with preschool children and their families in the Head Start
preschool program.
Nancy Lynch, an educator for 25 years,
has served as Superintendent of the Placerville Union School District since
February 2007. Her career includes 17 years as a teacher of grades one through
four, assistant principal and principal in the Palm Springs Unified School
District. Appointed principal at Two Bunch Palms Elementary School while still
in its construction phase, Dr. Lynch led a committed staff responsible for
increased student achievement of more than 200 API point growth in its first 5
years of operation. In 2004 she was recruited to become principal of Hawthorne
School in the Beverly Hills Unified School District, where she served for two
years before being promoted to Director of K-12 Curriculum for the District.
Ms.
Lynch received her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Minnesota
State University, a Master of Arts in Educational Administration from CSU, San
Bernardino, and in 2004, a Doctorate of Education in Organizational Leadership
from the University of La Verne.
Janet López, Senior Policy Analyst for
Preschool California, works primarily on state policy recommendations that will
expand access to high-quality early learning programs. Prior to joining
Preschool California, Ms. Lopez served as a Policy Analyst for a variety of
early childhood and K-12 education issues for the Schwarzenegger
administration. She has also served as a Program Officer for a state-funded
afterschool program under the Davis Administration. She holds a bachelor’s
degree in Political Science and History from UC Berkeley.
Camille Maben was appointed by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction as Division Director of the Child
Development Division at the California Department of Education in March 2008.
She
was previously appointed by the Governor to serve as Chief of Staff for the
Office of the Secretary of Education.
Prior to this, Ms. Maben worked at the CDE, where she was the Division
Director of the School and District Accountability Division. Her division
included the No Child Left Behind Office, oversight of the Categorical Program
Monitoring process, the Title I Policy and Partnerships Unit, and the English
Learner Accountability Unit. Ms. Maben also served as Senior Advisor to former
State Superintendent Delaine Eastin and has worked as a consultant to the
Assembly Education Committee. Ms. Maben currently serves as a school board
member for the Rocklin Unified School District. This is her 18th year on the
Rocklin Board. Ms. Maben also worked for
10 years with Bev Bos at the Roseville Community Pre-School where she served as
business manager, teacher, and parent.
Adonai Mack is a legislative advocate
for the Association for California School Administrators (ACSA). Mr. Mack
advocates on behalf of members of ACSA in the areas of the state budget,
special education, transportation, pupil services, preschool and other areas.
Prior to joining ACSA, Mr. Mack was a legislative advocate at the California
School Boards Association, where he focused on the issues of charter schools,
facilities, retirement and professional development. He has also worked as an
advocate for the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Jack O’Connell and for
Governor Gray Davis in his Office of the Secretary for Education. Mr. Mack has served on various nonprofit
boards including organizations that specialize in advocating for children with
mental health needs and the education of African-American children. Mr. Mack
received his B.A. from Morehouse College.
Peter Mangione is Co-Director of WestEd's
Center for Child and Family Studies. An expert on early development and
education, he is one of the lead developers of the Program Infant/Toddler Care
(PITC). Mr. Mangione has led the creation of DVD/video and print resources on
early learning and development foundations, curriculum frameworks, assessment
instruments, and early dual-language development. Mr. Mangione currently serves
on the advisory board of the National Association for Family Child Care, and
has served three terms as a consulting editor for the Early Childhood Research
Quarterly, twelve years on the board of directors of the Child Care Law Center,
and advisory panels for the U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, and ZERO TO THREE. He received a Ph.D. in Education
and Human Development from the University of Rochester in 1980 and completed
postdoctoral study at the Max Planck Institute for Psychiatry in Munich,
Germany.
Jonathan P. Raymond was approved as
Superintendent of the Sacramento City Unified School District on July 23, 2009
and l began serving a four-year contract on August, 21, 2009. Since 2006, Mr.
Raymond has served as chief accountability officer at Charlotte Mecklenburg
Schools in North Carolina. Before joining CMS, Mr. Raymond was president and
chief executive officer at the nonprofit Commonwealth Corporation in Boston
where he focused on innovative education and workforce development programs.
Mr. Raymond has served as legislative counsel to the U.S. Trade and Development
Agency in Washington, D.C. and worked on Capitol Hill for U.S. Rep. Tom Lewis
and Senator Orrin G. Hatch. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Tufts
University, a master’s degree in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School of
Law and Diplomacy and a law degree from George Mason Law School. In addition, Mr. Raymond is a 2006 graduate
of the Broad Superintendents Academy and is a member of the Massachusetts and
Florida bar associations.
John Mockler is one of California’s leading
voices in education policy. He is former California Secretary of Education and
Executive Director of the State Board of Education. Mr. Mockler is a leader in
the creation of the state’s Content Standards for student learning. He was
instrumental in aligning California’s instructional materials, professional
development programs, student testing, and accountability system to California’s
widely praised standards. Mr. Mockler is widely recognized in California as a
leading expert in school finance and was chief architect of Proposition 98,
which sets a minimum funding level for K-12 schools and community colleges, as
well as many of the other laws governing California’s structure for financing
schools. Mr. Mockler was also instrumental in the policy formulation of SB 1381,
which created Transitional Kindergarten. Mr.
Mockler earned his undergraduate degree in Economics at the University of
California at Santa Barbara and completed graduate studies in Economics at
California State University, Sacramento. He is also a graduate of the Coro
Foundation Internship in Public Affairs.
Ernesto Saldaña, State Field
Director for Preschool California, develops and executes preschool advocacy
strategies across the state. Previously he served as executive director for
Public Allies Los Angeles; deputy director of constituency services and
director of communications at the National Association of Latino Elected and
Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund; and he currently serves on the
Liberty Hill Foundation’s Fund for a New Los Angeles Community Funding Board.
Mr. Saldaña earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from California
State University, Fullerton and his law degree from Whittier Law School.
Janis Shinmei is currently a program coordinator supporting Early Childhood Education and the Transitional Kindergarten program for the Los Angeles Unified School District. She has served the school district in numerous positions, bilingual teacher Pre-K - 5, literacy coach, staff developer and trainer in Early Literacy and Los Angeles Universal Preschool program coordinator. Mrs. Shinmei received National Board Certification as an Early Childhood Generalist and worked as the English Learner Lead for the California Preschool Instructional Network (CPIN) in Los Angeles County.
The Honorable Joe Simitian was
elected to the California State Senate in November 2004 to represent the 11th
State Senate District, which includes portions of San Mateo, Santa Clara and
Santa Cruz counties. His public service over the years includes stints as a
State Assemblymember, member of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors,
Mayor of Palo Alto and President of the Palo Alto School Board. He has also
served as an election observer/supervisor in El Salvador and Bosnia, and
participated in refugee relief and resettlement efforts in Albania and Kosovo. Senator
Simitian received his Bachelor of Arts degree, with academic honors, from
Colorado College. He also holds a Master of Arts degree in International Policy
Studies from Stanford University, a Master in City Planning degree from the
University of California at Berkeley, and a Juris Doctor law degree from the
University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall).
David Swart currently serves in the
position of Superintendent for the Rescue Union School District in El Dorado
County. Prior to this position, David served as the district’s Assistant Superintendent
of Curriculum and Instruction for four years and worked for the Pulliam Group
and Educational Testing Services (ETS) for the prior four years as a national
consultant assisting schools in using data to improve academic outcomes for all
students. In this capacity, David consulted with district superintendents and
leadership teams and trained teachers in urban and rural school districts in
fourteen different states. Before working for ETS, David served as Assistant
Superintendent of Education Services for the Auburn Union School District, in
Auburn, Ca. Prior to this time, David served as an elementary and middle school
site principal for ten years and was a classroom teacher at the high school,
middle school and elementary school levels for 14 years.
Kathy
Thompson is the Assistant Superintendent of Early Childhood
Services for the Shasta County Office of Education. She has been an early
childhood educator for 32 years. She is actively involved in local, regional,
and statewide efforts to advocate for quality early care and education programs
and the implementation of transitional kindergarten.
The Honorable Tom Torlakson was
elected to a four-year term as California’s 27th State Superintendent of Public
Instruction on November 2, 2010. As chief of California’s public school system
and leader of the California Department of Education, Superintendent Torlakson
applies his experience as a science teacher, high school coach, and state
policymaker to fight for our students and improve our state’s public education
system. Torlakson’s journey has led him from the classrooms of Contra Costa
County’s Mount Diablo Unified School District (where he remains a
teacher-on-leave), to the Antioch City Council, Contra Costa County Board of
Supervisors, and the California State Senate and State Assembly.Born in San
Francisco, Torlakson served as a fireman in the United States Merchant Marine,
earning the Vietnam Service Medal. He earned a B.A. in History, a Life
Secondary Teaching Credential, and an M.A. in Education from the University of
California, Berkeley.
Susan True is the Executive Director of
First 5 Santa Cruz County. In her role at First 5, she leads the county’s
investment in children birth to five years old, develops research based
programs, oversees evaluation and administration and plans for future needs of
young children. Prior to her work at First 5, she was director of Court
Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Santa Cruz County, Co-Principal
Investigator of a University of California public health research project and
founder of a grassroots HIV prevention program. She has lived in Santa Cruz
County for 18 years with her family.
Melissa Vernon is a married mother of four.
Her children range from 6, 4, 2, and 1 year old. Her four year old son attends
the transitional kindergarten program at Antonio Del Buono in Gilroy. Mrs.
Vernon currently works part-time for the city of San Jose as a Public Safety
radio dispatcher. Her most important and favorite job is raising her children.
She has also been fortunate enough to study psychology at the University of
Sothern California, where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in 1998.
Natalie Woods Andrews is a credentialed
administrator and teacher with over twenty years of experience in educational
leadership, early education, and public school and university instruction. She
currently serves as the Director of Sacramento County Office of Education’s
School Readiness Department. Prior to her current position, Ms. Woods Andrews
served as a principal for Title I elementary schools in the Fairfield-Suisun
Unified School District; Education Specialist for Napa-Solano Head Start
preschool program; and Program Administrator for Elk Grove Unified School
District’s First 5 school readiness program and Head Start, State, and Title I
preschool programs. Her early professional experience began as a Coordinator of
Title I elementary school services and elementary school teacher. Ms. Woods Andrews earned a Doctor of
Education degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern
California.
Joyce Wright is Sacramento County Office
of Education’s Assistant Superintendent of Instructional Support Services
(early childhood, foster youth, prevention/health/mental wellness,
research/assessment, homeless students, new teacher support, Sly Park Outdoor
Education Center, and AVID). She has over 40 years of experience as an
educator, teacher, school district coordinator, university instructor,
supervisor of student teachers, educational researcher, and administrator of
state and federal projects. Ms. Wright’s interest and involvement with early
education and care began with her initial position as a teacher at a child care
center and continued to include teaching early childhood art at CSULA and CSU
Sacramento; collaborating with higher education, the California Department of
Education, and county offices of education to develop integrated programs for
early childhood educators; spearheading local efforts for preschool expansion;
and participating in various early childhood research and policy initiatives.
Furthermore, as a mother of triplets (now adults), she also understands the
immediate and long-term impact of children’s experiences during their first
five years.
Ruth Yoon is the current
Administrative Coordinator for LAUSD Early Childhood Education Division. Prior
to this role, in 2000 Ms. Yoon founded Families In Schools, a non-profit
organization dedicated to strengthening the capacity of schools, families and
community partners to improve student academic achievement, and served as
Executive Director through June 2006. Under Ms. Yoon’s leadership, Families In
Schools developed three primary program areas: family literacy, college
preparation, and capacity-building in parental involvement. Previously, Ms.
Yoon was the Director of Parental Involvement Initiatives at the Los Angeles
Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP). It was at LAAMP that Ms. Yoon helped to
create Parents as Learning Partners (PLP), a program she continued to direct at
Families In Schools. PLP is a capacity-building initiative designed to
implement systematic, comprehensive approaches to parental involvement in
school districts and individual schools. Ms. Yoon has also spent several years
as a teacher, site administrator, and district administrator in the Los Angeles
Unified School District.
Osnat Zur is a senior program
associate at the Center for Child and Family Studies at WestEd. In this
capacity, she served as the lead researcher and author for the California
preschool foundations in the domain of science, and for the state’s preschool
curriculum framework in the mathematics and science domains. She also developed
assessment measures in cognitive development, math and science, for the Desired
Results Developmental Profile instrument. Ms. Zur is a Developmental
Psychologist, with expertise in children’s cognitive development, focusing
primarily on the development of mathematical and scientific reasoning. Ms. Zur
graduated from UCLA with a BA in Psychology in 1995, and with a Doctorate
degree in Developmental Psychology in 2003. Zur’s dissertation, “Young
children’s understanding of arithmetic principles: The Commutativity and
Inverse principles,” won the UCLA Miller Madsen Dissertation Award in
developmental psychology. Prior to her
current role at WestEd, Ms. Zur served as the director of Research and
Evaluation at Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP).
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