2009 Leadership Institute Bios
Presenter Biographies - 2009 NHSA Leadership Institute
Ben Allen
Ben Allen, Ph.D., is the Research and Evaluation Director for the National Head Start Association in Alexandria, Virginia. In this position, Allen has authored journal articles and special reports; managed the NHSA Dialog: A Research-to-Practice Journal for the Early Intervention Field and Dialog Briefs; has testified on appropriate child assessments and outcomes before the National Research Council Committee on Developmental Outcomes and Assessments for Young Children; directed survey research projects on various Head Start-related topics; and educated the Head Start community, media, and congressional staff about Head Start research. Allen serves as an Adjunct Professor at George Mason University where he has taught graduate public administration courses on program evaluation. Allen earned his doctoral degree in Public Policy from George Mason University. He served as an International Trade Analyst/Legal Assistant at Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP, an international law firm, and held a position at the survey research firm Peter D. Hart Research Associates Inc. Allen received a master's degree in International Affairs from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and a bachelor's degree in Political Science with a minor in French from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
Jana Gifford Bays
Jana Bays is the Early Head Start Director and Assistant Executive Director of Child Development, Inc., of Russellville, Arkansas. Jana holds an M.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Arkansas and a B.S. in Child Development and Family Studies from Northeast Louisiana University. In her twenty plus years with CDI, she has helped to develop programs for children from birth to age three and pregnant women through Early Head Start, Arkansas Better Chance Infant and Toddler Child Care, and Developmental Child Care. CDI's infant/toddler programs have been involved in several research initiatives, both locally and nationally since 1995.
Jana teaches Early Childhood Courses as an Adjunct Faculty for Arkansas Tech University. She is also involved on several state workgroup committees. On the Arkansas Early Childhood Professional Development Workgroup, she has worked with other professionals to develop the Arkansas Early Childhood Professional Development System, and to implement a Birth to Five Teaching Credential for teachers of young children. She has also been part of the Early Care and Education Workgroup which is a component of the Arkansas Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Initiative (AECCS). This workgroup has been instrumental in developing a system of quality care in Arkansas for all children that is in process of implementing a statewide voluntary Quality Rating System and incentive program for Early Care and Education settings. Jana was part of the group that developed the Wrapping Up Quality: Infant and Toddler Framework, to supplement the Pre-K Early Childhood Education Framework, both used by child care settings to promote school readiness and quality services for children from birth to age five years.
J. Zoë Beckerman
J. Zoë Beckerman practices in the areas of government grants, corporate and business law, and health care law, with a special emphasis on federally funded programs. She is a policy expert on Head Start, works closely with the National Head Start Association, and helps the Head Start community strategize about government and legislative affairs issues. She also trains Head Start programs across the country and provides legal advice and counsel on corporate, federal grants, and compliance issues. She joined the Washington, DC law firm of Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP in September 2005.
Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Beckerman worked for the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation as a Senior Policy Analyst in women's health policy where she specialized in low-income women's health insurance coverage and access to care. She was also a Presidential Management Intern at the National Institutes of Health and worked on science policy issues. As a part of her PMI, Ms. Beckerman worked for the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Public Health and Safety on women's health, genetic anti-discrimination, and HIV policy.
Ms. Beckerman was born in London, England and is admitted to the bars of Virginia and the District of Columbia. She is a Recent Alumni Trustee of the George Washington University and was just appointed to the Advisory Board of the Griffith Leadership Center at the University of Michigan.
Ms. Beckerman received her J.D. with Honors from the George Washington University Law School, as well as a Certificate in Health Policy from the Hirsh Health Law and Public Policy program in the School of Public Health and Health Services. Ms. Beckerman also holds a Master of Public Health in Health Management and Policy from the University of Michigan, and her Bachelor of Arts with Honors from the University of Wisconsin where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Ms. Beckerman may be contacted at zbeckerman@ftlf.com.
Barbara J. Duffield
Barbara Duffield is Policy Director for the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth ("NAEHCY"). NAEHCY, a national membership association, serves as the voice and the social conscience for the education of children and youth in homeless situations.
Ms. Duffield's involvement in homeless issues began in 1990 as a tutor for homeless children in Washington, D.C. She subsequently joined the National Coalition for the Homeless ("NCH") and served as Director of Education for NCH from 1994-2003, working closely with educators, service providers, federal agencies and Congressional offices to strengthen policy and practice on children's issues. Ms. Duffield has conducted hundreds of trainings around the United States for school districts, community organizations, and local, state, and national groups to assist in the implementation of the Act. In addition, she has published several academic articles on policy and advocacy issues relating to the education of homeless children and youth.
In addition to her work with NAEHCY and NCH, Barbara is a founding and continuing Advisory Committee member for the LeTendre Education Fund for Homeless Children, which provides scholarships for homeless and formerly homeless young people who wish to pursue post-secondary education. Barbara also serves on the Board of the National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness.
Ms. Duffield was born and raised in Michigan, and she received her Bachelor's degree summa cum laude in Political Science from the University of Michigan.
Ruth Friedman
Ruth Friedman is a Senior Education Policy Advisor with the Democratic Staff of the House Committee on Education and Labor and Chairman George Miller (D-CA). She covers policies relating to children and families, including early education, welfare, child abuse prevention and treatment, and juvenile delinquency and prevention. She has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and an M.A. in Public Policy. Prior to coming to Washington, she worked as a researcher, focusing on resiliency in children and families, prevention and intervention programs, and children and families in contexts of poverty. She also previously worked as a child and family therapist in low-income communities.
Ronald D. Herndon
Chairman of the Board, National Head Start Association
Ron Herndon has served as chairman of the National Head Start Association since July 1993. As chairman, he serves as an ambassador representing the needs of the Head Start community to members of Congress, the administration, and the general public. He also provides guidance and leadership to the 49-member board that sets policy and determines direction for the association.
Under his leadership, NHSA has progressed immensely. Major accomplishments include: major legislative gains; improvements in technology for Head Start children, parents, and staff; creation of the NHSA Academy; establishment of important business partnerships; and maintenance of a sound financial base.
Since 1975, Ron Herndon has been director of the Albina Head Start program in Portland, Oregon. Under his direction, the program is the recipient of numerous federal grants in support of local Head Start projects. These grants have been used for major building projects and the development of programming for Head Start parents and staff in Portland and surrounding communities. The program Mr. Herndon oversees provides comprehensive full-day service to more than 400 Head Start children from the areas surrounding Portland.
David J. Johns
Senior Education Advisor
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee
United States Senate
David J. Johns graduated with honors from Columbia University in 2004 with a triple major in English, Creative Writing and African American Studies. His research as an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow served as a catalyst to identify, disrupt, and supplant deleterious perceptions of black males both within academia and society. Following graduation, Johns obtained a Masters degree in Sociology and Education Policy at Teachers College, Columbia University, while simultaneously teaching elementary school in New York City. His Master's thesis, "Shadowboxing: Black Male Identity and Independent Schools," examined how Black male adolescents at elite, self-selecting independent schools understand and respond to perceptions and expectations of Black males.
Johns currently serves as Senior Education Policy Advisor to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) under the leadership of Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA). Johns is the lead aide responsible for policy and programs involving early childhood education, women and children, and workforce development. His policy portfolio includes issues affecting low-income and minority students; immigrants and English language learners; native populations; education technology; literacy; parent and community engagement, and neglected youth and foster children. Prior to working for the Senate HELP Committee Johns served as a Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Fellow in the office of Congressman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY).
David J. Johns was recently recognized by the EnVest fund as a "40 Under 40" honoree, a recognition bestowed upon 4 of 40 noteworthy recipients for professional and philanthropic excellence. His essay "If Not For Me, Then For My Children," was recently published in the National Urban League's 2009 State of Black America Report. In 2007, Johns was named one of Ebony Magazines "30 Top Leaders Under 30" and his essay "Re-Imagining Black Masculinity" was published in the National Urban League's State of Black America Report that same year. Johns has presented at and spoken before more than 200 workshops at national education and policy conferences since 2005.
David J. Johns is also the founder of DJJ Consulting, a boutique consulting firm committed to increasing underserved students' access to and quality of educational opportunities and experiences. An avid volunteer, Johns is a member of the Magic Johnson Taylor Michael's Scholarship Program committee and a Director of Development for IMPACT, an organization founded to increase knowledge in the political and legislative process and to enhance economic empowerment opportunities for young professionals. Johns is also on the board of Plan for Success, a non-profit committed to diversity in the workplace. He is currently working on several projects to improve literacy among adolescent minority males, strengthen resources available to minority students at elite private schools, and a book project designed to help students navigate the college admissions and financial aid process.
David Johns is from Los Angeles, California and is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated.
JACQUELINE JONES
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan named Jacqueline Jones as Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Early Learning. Dr. Jones is the former Assistant Commissioner for the Division of Early Childhood Education in the New Jersey State Department of Education, where oversaw standards, curriculum and assessment for preschool through 3rd grade programs statewide.
Prior to joining the NJ Department of Education, Dr. Jones worked for 15 years in the Research Division at Educational Testing Service in Princeton, NJ. As a Senior Research Scientist and the Director of Early Childhood Research and Development, her work focused on the study of assessment in early childhood, specifically the development of classroom-based strategies to document young children's science and literacy learning. Dr. Jones has written in the area of early childhood assessment and is particularly interested in the development of effective early childhood assessment systems for school districts and states. Her work also explores the role of documentation and assessment in the ongoing professional development of early childhood educators.
Dr. Jones has given presentations across the country and has served on a number of national advisory committees including the National Head Start Research Advisory Committee, the Pew National Early Childhood Accountability Task Force and the National Research Council's Committee on Developmental Outcomes and Assessments for Young Children. She received a BA from Hunter College and MA and Ph.D. from Northwestern University.
Eric Karolak
Dr. Karolak directs the efforts of the Early Care and Education Consortium (ECEC), an alliance of more than 8,000 early learning programs providing care and education for nearly 800,000 children in 49 states and the District of Columbia. ECEC supports sound investments in early childhood education and has focused on assuring that prekindergarten initiatives are designed to meet the wide range of child and family needs from a birth-to-five, whole child perspective. From 2001 to 2006, Dr. Karolak led the National Child Care Information Center, the largest federal clearinghouse and technical assistance center focused on child care and early education for low income families. He has worked closely with states developing the technical aspects of child care assistance programs, quality rating systems, and partnerships across early childhood programs. He has conducted policy research and fiscal analysis in the areas of child welfare, child care, women's labor force participation, and public housing, and has testified before several state legislatures and the U.S. Congress. Dr. Karolak also has served on the boards of a national quality initiative, a non-profit child care center, a local government agency, and a metropolitan United Way. He earned a doctorate in economic history from The Ohio State University.
Carol Keintz
Carol Keintz is the Executive Director of the Next Door Foundation which serves over 1,000 children and central city families at its Metcalfe Park neighborhood campus in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. On Next Door Foundation's campus, she managed the Educare Center of Milwaukee. This center is a cutting-edge early childhood initiative that provides year-round, full-day school preparedness. It is an innovative public-private collaboration among Next Door, the Buffett Early Childhood Fund and others. Next Door's Helwig Family Center contains: Early Head Start; Head Start; a K-4 and K-5 Charter School, a joint effort with Milwaukee Public Schools; Books for Kids; Leaders of Tomorrow; and several other family literacy programs. The Next Door Pediatrics Clinic collaborates with Children's Hospital of Wisconsin and serves the Metcalfe Park community. Before joining Next Door, Keintz served as associate director of the Dane County in the Metcalfe and surrounding neighborhoods of Mil/Next Door Charter School. Keintz is currently a doctoral candidate in Educational Leadership at Edgewood College. Keintz received a master's degree in Human Development from St. Mary's University of Minnesota in Winona, Minnesota, a Montessori Teaching Certificate from Midwest Montessori Institute in St. Paul, Minnesota, and a bachelor's degree in Social Work from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
BRUCE LESLEY
Bruce Lesley is President of First Focus. First Focus is a bipartisan advocacy organization launched by America's Promise Alliance that is committed to making children and their families a priority in federal policy and budget decisions.
Mr. Lesley has more than 20 years of public policy experience at all levels of government and a demonstrated commitment to making children's lives better. Lesley directs all aspects of policy development and internal operations at First Focus.
In 12 years on Capitol Hill, Lesley worked on health care, education, human services, and immigration issues in several capacities. Most recently he served as Senior Health Policy Advisor on the Senate Finance and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committees for U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman. He also worked for U.S. Senator Bob Graham on the Senate Finance Committee, served as minority Chief of Staff for the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and was an aide in the offices of U.S. Representatives Ronald Coleman and Diana DeGette.
Lesley advocated for better healthcare for children as the Director of Congressional Relations for the National Association of Children's Hospitals and as the Director of Government Relations for Thomason General Hospital, a public hospital in El Paso, Texas. Lesley holds a Bachelor's of Arts in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland University College, in College Park, Maryland. He also attended the University of Texas at El Paso and the University of Texas at Austin.
Bruce resides in Maryland with his wife and four children.
Joan Lombardi, Ph.D.
Joan Lombardi, Ph.D. is the Deputy Assistant Secretary and Inter-Departmental Liaison for Early Childhood Development, Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In this role she provides overall policy coordination for the Head Start and Early Head Start Program and the Child Care and Development Fund, as well as serving as the liaison with the U.S. Department of Education and other federal agencies.
Dr. Lombardi has spent almost four decades dedicated to the needs of young children and their families. She has served as an advisor to a number of foundations, national and international organizations, helping to create innovative policies to improve the conditions for children and families. She served as the founding chair of the Birth to Five Policy, a group of national organizations dedicated to shifting the odds for at risk children ages 0-5. Joan served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and External Affairs in the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the Clinton Administration and as the first Director of the Child Care Bureau.
She is the author of numerous publications including : Time to Care: Redesigning Child Care to Promote Education, Support Families and Build Communities (Temple University Press, 2003) and co-editor of A Beacon of Hope: The Promise of Early Head Start for America's Youngest Children (Zero To Three Press, 2004). In 2004, Joan launched the Global Leaders for Young Children program in partnership with The World Forum Foundation which has provided leadership support to early education leaders around the world.
Cindy Mann
Cindy Mann was appointed Director of the Center for Medicaid and State Operations (CMSO) in June 2009, where she is responsible for the development and implementation of national policies governing Medicaid, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Survey and Certification, Medicaid Integrity Program and the Clinical Laboratories Improvement Amendments (CLIA). CMSO also serves as the focal point for all CMS interactions with States and local governments.
Prior to her return to CMS in 2009, Cindy served as a research professor at Georgetown University, Health Policy Institute and the Executive Director of the Center for Children and Families at the Institute. Her work at Georgetown focused on health coverage, financing, and access issues affecting low-income populations. Previously, she served as Director of the Family and Children's Health Programs at CMSO from 1999-2001, where she played a key role in implementing Medicaid and the SCHIP. Before joining CMS (then HCFA) in 1999, Cindy led the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities' federal and State health policy work. She also has extensive State-level experience, having worked on health care, welfare, and public finance issues in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York.
Cindy holds a law degree from New York University School of Law.
Dr. Barry Marx
Dr. Barry Marx is the Senior Medical Advisor to the Office of Head Start. Prior to joining Head Start, Dr. Marx was the Director of the Division of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine of Baltimore Medical System in Baltimore, Maryland. Baltimore Medical System is a large private not-for-profit corporation that is a part of the nation's network of Federally Qualified Health Centers.
For the past 24 years Dr. Marx's practice has focused primarily upon caring for low-income children in Baltimore. Recently, the practice has undergone an extraordinary transformation to serve a growing number of resettled refugee children and families from all over the world. These families come to the practice through an arrangement with the International Rescue Committee's Baltimore Resettlement Center.
Dr. Marx holds the faculty position of Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. In addition to his area of sub-specialty training in Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes, his clinical interests include asthma and allergy, childhood overweight and obesity, behavioral pediatrics, and the care of vulnerable populations.
Dr. Marx is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and a member of the Section on Administration and Practice Management. His administrative medicine interests include Managed Care and Continuous Quality Improvement within organizations and systems of care.
Lucía I. Palacios, M.S.W.
Lucía I. Palacios, M.S.W., is Danya's Vice President of Head Start Programs. Ms. Palacios provides strategic leadership and vision for the overall management of the Head Start Monitoring Support contract.
Prior to joining Danya, Ms. Palacios gained extensive experience operating large- and small-scale nonprofit organizations that served children and families. She was the Executive Director of Orange County Head Start, Inc., which provides child development and family services to more than 4,000 children annually with an annual budget of $40 million. She was the Director of the Starting Points Program of Los Angeles Universal Preschool, where she successfully created systems for managing new universal preschool providers. She also led the School for Early Childhood Education at the University of Southern California, where she reorganized and expanded services to children and families in South Los Angeles. For 4 years, she served as the president of the California Head Start Association.
Her academic background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Santa Barbara and a Master of Social Work degree from San Diego State University. In 2004, she participated in a Head Start/Johnson & Johnson Management Institute at the University of California in Los Angeles. In 1998, Palacios was one of 10 individuals selected from across the country to participate in a National Head Start Fellowship in Washington, D.C., where she worked with senior-level officials to create national policies for the Head Start and Early Head Start programs.
Ms. Palacios is recognized in the field of Head Start and early childhood education as a strategic thinker, trainer, and advocate of strong communication channels among staff, parents, and boards of directors. She is a champion for children and lives by the philosophy that social change can only be made by believing in the power of children and families to positively shape their own destinies.
Kris Roberson, RN, BSN, MPA
Child Health Services Director
Guilford Child Development Head Start / Early Head Start
Kris joined Guilford Child Development in June of 2008 as Early Head Start Coordinator giving primary attention to the Nurse Family Partnership and Early Head Start alignment. Kris now serves as the Child Health Services Director focusing on the operation, compliance, and performance of the agency's health services, which include child health and development, health and safety, nutrition, disabilities, and mental health.
In 1998, Kris graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Since then, she has primarily worked in the field of public health concentrating on maternal and child health, and once worked as a Nurse Home Visitor with the Nurse Family Partnership Program. Kris has served on a number of advisory councils that addressed issues specific to children and families, and has volunteered with local non-profit organizations in roles that span from direct service provision to governance. In May of 2009, Kris obtained her Master of Public Administration Degree in Non-Profit Organizations from High Point University.
Kris has come to find fulfillment both as a registered nurse and as an administrator by impacting the lives of children and families through direct service provision, and by shaping the policy and governance of the programs that serve them.
Roberto Rodríguez
Roberto J. Rodríguez serves in the White House Domestic Policy Council as Special Assistant to President Obama for Education. Previously, Roberto was Chief Education Counsel to United States Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. In this capacity, he managed the Democratic education agenda for the Committee and led policy development and strategy for legislation addressing early childhood education, elementary and secondary education, higher education, and adult education.Roberto began his tenure on Capitol Hill working for the Senate HELP Committee on the development of the No Child Left Behind Act. He has worked on various reauthorizations of federal legislation, including the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Head Start, Child Care, Higher Education, and the America COMPETES Act. Prior to working on Capitol Hill, Roberto worked as Senior Education Specialist at the National Council of La Raza, where he conducted research and analysis of federal and state education reform issues, as well as the development and evaluation of community-based education programs. He is a native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a graduate of the University of Michigan and of the Harvard Graduate School of Education in Cambridge, Massachusetts.