Letter in Opposition to Testing Head Start Children

Dear Representative:

As recognized experts in the fields of early childhood development and assessment, we write to express our concerns about plans proposed by the Head Start Bureau to implement a National Reporting System for all 4- and 5-year-olds in Head Start in the Fall of 2003. We agree in principle with the need to conduct ongoing child assessments. However, we are troubled by both the timing and structure of this new proposed effort. In this letter we suggest ways of improving the proposed testing plan and reducing the potential harm that a test of this kind may have for young children.

The plan for the Head Start reporting system calls for each of the 525,000 4-year-olds in Head Start to sit for a standardized, 20 – 30-minute test in literacy and numeracy skills. This would add on to three types of assessments already occurring. First, to improve students’ performance, all Head Start programs are required to assess learning regularly in all domains of development. Second, to foster program quality, every Head Start program is monitored periodically with a system that identifies programs that need to be improved. Third, a longitudinal study (“FACES”) provides national data on the effectiveness of Head Start. In addition, a Congressionally mandated impact study that utilizes random assignment to treatment and control groups is underway. Let there be no doubt; assessment is alive and well in Head Start.

Why, then, is a new and potentially costly assessment being proposed? The rationale given by the Administration is to determine if every Head Start program is meeting expectations in literacy and numeracy, and to use the results to determine if additional training or continued funding are called for.

The assessments being considered are narrow, occur outside of the context of classroom learning, depend heavily on language skills and language learning, and rely on children having had particular opportunities to learn what is on the test in order to perform well on it. Moreover, several of the subtests that have been proposed have only been used with kindergarten-aged children, and the evidence for the validity of several subtests is weak. The use of such assessments is not supported by research, which shows that preschool tests contribute no more than 25% of the variance to kindergarten or first grade academic or cognitive performance (LoParo & Pianta, 2000).

It is widely accepted that learning that occurs in early childhood is episodic and uneven, with great variability among children. The National Research Council, in its report called Eager to Learn: Educating our Preschoolers, warns that due to this episodic learning, and the widespread dissatisfaction with traditional standardized tests – especially those used for accountability – assessments “must be used carefully and appropriately if they are to resolve, and not create educational problems.”

In short, as research with older children suggests, the new reporting system itself can change Head Start by narrowing its focus and altering what is taught and valued. The tremendous diversity of the children in Head Start will be hard-pressed to conform to a single vision of what they should know and be able to do at a particular point in time. Instead of eliminating the failures of the Head Start program, this system may teach young children to view themselves as failures, simply because they see things or represent them differently than the test developers, or because they learn skills in ways that differ from how those skills are represented on the test. Even President Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” Act does not mandate testing until third grade.

We have specific recommendations that will improve the Reporting System and safeguard children from potential harm. First, we believe that any national reporting system must incorporate a matrix sampling plan. This type of design is used in NAEP and other large scale assessments. It involves giving parts of tests to individual children but giving no single child all of the items on a test. Statistically, it is then possible to construct composites that tell us precisely what the Bureau wants to know: how well individual grantees are doing. A matrix sampling plan will lower the risk of teaching to the test, because it will be very difficult to know which items any child will be administered. It is also very efficient and effective for demonstrating program effects.

Second, since a matrix design requires substantial lead time to develop, a field trial should be mounted this fall rather than rushing to put the whole system in place within the next 6 – 8 months. This will not only provide more opportunity to train teachers, figure out the logistics of testing hundreds of thousands of children, and develop the alternate forms of the test required for matrix sampling, it will also make it possible to try out and validate all of the subtests that have been proposed for the test, some of which have never been used with children this young or children enrolled in Head Start, and to deal comprehensively with questions of how English Language Learners will be engaged in this effort. Moreover, it will give Congress an opportunity to provide oversight on this important and potentially policy-changing initiative-something that has not yet occurred-and it will enable the Head Start Bureau to plan for the technical assistance it intends to provide to programs that do not perform well on the Reporting System..

If we can move ahead on adopting a matrix sampling design for the proposed Reporting System; if we can ensure that the System is composed of subtests that are reliable, valid, and fair; and if we can have adequate time to learn how to mount this historically largest-ever effort to test young children without creating chaos and confusion, then we will have created a system that has a chance of assisting young, at-risk children.

Sincerely,

Samuel Meisels, President, Erikson Institute
W. Steven Barnett, National Institute for Early Education Research
S. Lynn Kagan, Columbia University Teachers College Linda M. Espinosa, National Institute for Early Education Research

Adrienne Akers
Senior Researcher, Early Intervention Research Institute
Utah State University – Logan

Sue Allen
Manager, Children’s Center
Brazosport College – Lake Jackson TX

Terry Anderson
Director, Early Childhood Programs
Western New Mexico University – Silver City

Tonya Armstrong
Licencsed Psychologist- Alase Center of Enrichment
Duke University

Jeffrey Arrigo
Coordinator
Project Construct National Center – Columbia MO

Linda Aulgur
Chair, Education Department
Westminster College – Fulton MO

Lynette Aytch
Professor, National Center for Early Development and Learning
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

Mark Bailey
Associate Professor
Pacific University – Forest Grove OR

Marjorie Bakken
President
Wheelock College – Boston

Nancy Balaban
Faculty
Bank Street Graduate School of Education

Sue Ballentine
Director, Bellagio Center
University of California at L.A.

Linda Banks-Santilli
Assistant Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Oscar Barbarin
L. Richardson and Emily Preyer Bicentennial Distinguished Professor for Strengthening Families
University of North Carolina School of Social Work

Gina Barclay-McLaughlin
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Program
University of Tennessee – Knoxville

Marion Barnett
Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education
Buffalo State College

Kathy Bartelmay
Curriculum Director
Duke School for Children – Durham NC

Margaret Bartow
Professor and Chair, Department of Early Childhood Education
Prince George’s Community College – Largo MD

Maria Benejan
Director, Center for Universal Pre-K Division of Continuing Education
Bank Street College of Education

Terry Berkeley
Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Laura Berkowitz
Distinguished Professor of Psychology
Illinois State University – Normal

Nancy Berkowitz
Director, Early Childhood Special Education Programs, Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Victor Bernstein
Research Associate / Associate Professor – Department of Psychiatry
University of Chicago

Jeanette Bineham
Executive Director
Reach-Up, Inc. (Early Head Start/Head Start), St. Cloud MN

Marian Birch
Clinical Coordinator, Certificate Program in Infant Mental Health
University of Washington – Seattle

Linda Black
Lecturer – Department of Early Childhood Education
Towson University – Baltimore

Charles Bloom
Lecturer – Department of Early Childhood Education
Towson University – Baltimore

Christine Boisvert
Director, Lowry Early Childhood Education Center, School of Education and Human Services
Oakland University

Todd Boressoff
Public Policy Chair, National Coalition for Campus Children’s Centers
BMCC Early Childhood Center – New York

Pamela Boulton
Director
University of Wisconsin Children’s Center – Madison

Barbara Bowman
Professor
Erikson Institute

Brenda Boyd
Associate Professor of Human Development
Washington State University – Pullman

Gerald Bracey
Associate, High/Scope Educatinal Research Foundation, Ypsilanti, Michigan andAssociate Professor, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia

Sue Bredekamp
Director of Research
Council for Professional Recognition

Mary Jane Brotherson
Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Studies
Iowa State University

Stephanie Brown
Reach Out and Read, Chicago Citywide Coordinator
Literacy Chicago

Susan Brown
President and CEO
Evergreen Children’s Association

Kimberly Browning
Assistant Professor of Education
University of Michigan – Flint

Erin Brumbaugh
Professor, Early Childhood Program
Marietta College – Marietta OH

Donna Bryant
Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

Melissa Burnham
Assistant Professor, Dept. Human Development & Family Studies
University of Nevada, Reno

Denise Buthion
Director, Oklahoma City Child Development Center
Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma City

Melanie Caldwell
Director, Early Childhood Center
Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights

Susan Campbell
Professor, Chair, Developmental Program, Department of Psychology
University of Pittsburgh

Nancy Cardwell
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Rose Casement
Assistant Professor
University of Michigan – Flint

Amy Casey
Project Coordinator – Center for Child Development and Research
Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital

Virginia Casper
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Graduate School
Bank Street College of Education

Basanti Chakraborty
Assistant Professor of Education
New Jersey City University
Rosalind Charlesworth
Professor and Chair, Department of Child and Family Studies
Weber State University, Ogden UT

Jie-Qi Chen
Associate Professor
Erikson Institute

Kent Chrisman
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education
University of Pennsylvania at Shippensburg

Susan Churchill
Assistant Professor, Family and Consumer Sciences
University of Nebraska – Lincoln

Marvin Cohen
Director of Instructional Technology
Bank Street College of Education

Renatta Cooper
Director, Jones/Prescott Institute
Pacific Oaks College

Christy Corbin
Associate Director, Early Childhood Teacher Education
University of Maryland – College Park

Janet Whelan Couch
Executive Director, Campus Center for Young Children
Goshen College – Goshen IN

Donna Couchenour
Professor, Teacher Education
University of Pennsylvania at Shippensburg

Lola Davis
Professor of Early Childhood Education
University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond

Carol Brunson Day
President and CEO
Council for Professional Recognition

Tom Day
Assistant Professor, Child & Family Studies
Weber State University, Ogden UT

Carolyn Denham
President
Pacific Oaks College

Louise Derman-Sparks
Co-Director, Early Childhood Equity Alliance
Pacific Oaks College

Margo Dichtelmiller
Assistant Professor
Eastern Michigan University

Diane Trister Dodge
President
Teaching Strategies, Inc. – Washington, D.C.

Aviva Dorfman
Assistant Professor of Education
University of Michigan – Flint

Barbara Dubitsky
Director – Mathematics Leadership Program
Bank Street College of Education

Kellie Duffy
Assistant Professor, Early Childhood
Brazosport College – Lake Jackson TX

Jennifer Edwards
ECE Program Coordinator
Central Oregon Community College – Bend OR

Lynne Einbender
Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Eileen Eisenberg
Assistant Professor & Training Coordinator
National-Louis University – Chicago – Chicago

Paula Elliott
Assistant Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Kay Emfinger
Project Director – Ready to Learn in School
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Joan Ershler
Director, Waisman Early Childhood Program
University of Wisconsin – Madison

Rebekah Fassler
Associate Professor, Coordinator of Early Childhood Masters Programs
St. John’s University – Jamaica NY

Susan Feingold
Executive Director
Bloomingdale Family Program, Inc. – New York NY

Richard H. Feldman
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Marjorie Fields
Professor of Early Childhood Education
University of Alaska Southeast – Juneau

Roxanne Fillmore
Chair, Curriculum and Instruction, Associate Professor
Northeastern State University – Tahlequah

Nancy Fineberg
Director, UIC Children’s Center
University of Illinois at Chicago

Catherine Finn
Associate Professor
Wheelock College – Boston

Pamela Fleege
Associate Professor and Director
University of South Florida – Tampa

Lisa Fleisher
Associate Professor – Department of Teaching and Learning
New York University

Amy Flynn
Director
Bank Street College of Education

Don Fraser
Adjunct Professor
Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs – University of Minnesota

Helen Freidus
Co-Director, Reading and Literacy Program, Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Ellen Friedland
Assistant Professor, Early Childhood Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Barry Frieman
Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Doris Fromberg
Professor, Chairperson, Department of Curriculum & Teaching
Hofstra University – New York

Brenda Fyfe
Acting Dean, School of Education
Webster University – St. Louis MO

Anastasia Galanopolous
Assistant Professor of Human Development
Wheelock College – Boston

Michael Gamel-McCormick
Director, Center for Disabilities Studies
University of Delaware – Newark

Corinne Garland
Executive Director
Child Development Resources – Norge VA

Celia Genisha
Coordinator, Program in Early Childhood Education
Teachers College, Columbia University

Rita Geovania
Director, UIC Children’s Center
University of Illinois at Chicago

Linda Gilkerson
Professor
Erikson Institute

Artin Goncu
Professor, College of Education
University of Illinois at Chicago

Lourdes Gonzalez
Professor
Inter American University – Guayama PR

Linda Good
Associate Professor
Minnesota State University

William Goodwin
Professor, School of Education
University of Colorado at Denver

Sherri Griffin
Professor of Early Childhood Education
Central Methodist College

Nancy Gropper
Director, Preservice Program in Early Childhood & Elementary Education
Bank Street College of Education

Betsy Grub
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Sydney Gurewitz Clemens
Faculty
UC Davis

Ann Hains
Professor, Department of Exceptional Education
University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee

Melnick Hal
Advisor/Instructor, Leadership In Mathematics Education Graduate Program
Bank Street College of Education

Rena Hallam
Assistant Professor, Department of Family Studies
University of Kentucky – Lexington

Willard W. Hartup
Regents’ Professor Emeritus, Institute of Child Development
University of Minnesota

Robin Hasslen
Professor & Chairperson, Department of Child and Family Studies
St. Cloud State University – St. Cloud MN

J. Amos Hatch
Professor
University of Tennessee – Knoxville

Laura Henderson
Senior Research Associate, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
Georgia State University – Atlanta
Julie Henry
Associate Professor of Education
Canisius College – Buffalo NY

Diane Horm
Professor of Human Development and Family Studies, Associate Dean of College of Human Science
University of Rhode Island – Kingston

Carol Horton
Research Associate
Erikson Institute

Lady June Hubbard
Associate Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Cynthia Hudley
Department of Education
University of California, Santa Barbara

Aletha Huston
Priscilla Pond Flawn Regents Professor of Child Development
University of Texas at Austin

Mark Innocenti
Associate Director, Early Intervention Research Institute
Utah State University – Logan

Linda Jagielo
Early Childhood Education Program Coordinator
Southwest State University – Marshall MN

Sandi Jessen
Director of The Children’s House, College of Education
Minnesota State University – Mankato

Deborah Johnson
Professor, Department of Family & Child Ecology
Michigan State University – East Lansing
Mary Ann Johnson
Associate Professor of English
Wheelock College – Boston

JoAnn Johnson
Director, Research and Educational Planning Center and Nevada University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disablilities
University of Nevada, Reno

Elizabeth Jones
Professor, Human Development
Pacific Oaks College

Paula Jorde Bloom
Professor / Director – The Center for Early Childhood Leadership
National-Louis University – Chicago

Elaine Joseph
Director, Newcomb Children’s Center
Tulane University – New Orleans

Michael Kalinowski
Rand Stearns Associate Professor and Chairperson, Department of Family Studies
University of New Hampshire, Durham

Augusta Souza Kappner
President
Bank Street College of Education

Aphra Katzey
Research Associate, Family Policy
Oregon State University – Corvallis

Judith Kieff
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education
University of New Orleans

Younghee Kim
Associate Professor, Education Department
Southern Oregon University – Ashland

Margaret King
Professor
Ohio University – Athens

Nancy Kipping
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education
University of Missouri – Columbia

Mubina Kirmani
Associate Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Terry Kitchen
Director and Adjunct Faculty, Children’s Learning Center
Hagerstown Community College, Hagerstown PA

Amelia Klein
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Elisa Klein
Associate Professor, Department of Human Development / Institute for Child Study
University of Maryland – College Park

Nancy Klein
Professor
Cleveland State University

Tovah Klein
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
Barnard College – New York

Jon Korfmacher
Assistant Professor
Erikson Institute

Kathleen Kostelny
Senior Research Associate
Erikson Institute

Mary Lammers
Administrator, UCLA Child Care Services
University of California at L.A.

Harriet Lenk
Co Chair, Teacher Education
Bank Street College of Education

Diane Levin
Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Henry Levin
William Heard Kilpatrick Professor of Economics and Education
Teachers College, Columbia University

Linda Levine
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Marva Lewis
Associate Professor
Tulane University School of Social Work – New Orleans

Dan Liston
Professor, School of Education
University of Colorado

Bonnie Lockhart
Instructor, Early Childhood Education
Hayward State University – California

Deborah Lowe Vandell
Professor of Educational Psychology
University of Wisconsin- Madison

Catherine Main
Coordinator of Early Childhood Program, College of Education
University of Illinois at Chicago

Micheline Malow-Iroff
Assistant Professor, Queens College
Queens College, CUNY
Sarah Mangelsdorf
Professor / Associate Provost, Department of Psychology
University of Illinois – Urbana

Karen Marschke
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Nancy Marshall
Associate Director, Center for Research on Women
Wellesley College – MA

Ellie Martin
Director, Anne Arundel Community College Child Development Center – SUNY
Anne Arundel Community College – Arnold MD

Denise Masone
Lecturer, Child Development
SUNY Stony Brook

Michael Mathers
Executive Director
Chapel Hill Training Outreach Project

Marsha Maupin
Assistant Professor of Child and Family Studies, Director of the Burrier Child Development Center
Eastern Kentucky University – Richmond

Kelly Maxwell
Research Scientist, FPG Child Development Institute
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

Brent McBride
Director, Child Development Laboratory, Professor of Human Development
University of Illinois – Urbana

Rebecca McCathren
Professor, Department of Early Childhood and Elementary Education
University of Missouri – Columbia

Beth McDonald
Project Coordinator – Steinhardt School of Education
New York University

Jennifer McGregor
Assistant Director
The Rockefeller University Child and Family Center

Nancy McKeever
Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Donna McKibbens
Coordinator of Teacher Licensure
Wheelock College – Boston

Jules McLeland
Program Manager, Child Development Center
Western Washington University – Bellingham

Margie McMahan
Professor of Early Childhood Education
Cameron University – Lawton OK

Paula McMurray-Schwarz
Assistant Professor
Ohio University Eastern Campus – St. Clairsville

Margaret McNamara
Director of the Reading and Literacy Program
Bank Street College of Education

Gillian McNamee
Professor
Erikson Institute
R. A. McWilliam
Director, Center for Child Development & Research; Professor of Pediatrics
Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital

Virginia Miller
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Gayle Mindes
Professor and Chair of Teacher Education, School of Education
DePaul University – Chicago

Alex Molnar
Professor and Director-Dept of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
Arizona State University

Mary Montgomery
Executive Director of Brockport Child Care Center
SUNY Brockport

Mary Jane Moran
Assistant Professor, Department of Child & Family Studies
University of Tennessee – Knoxville

Carol Morrison
Adjunct Faculty
Ivy Tech State College – Kokomo IN

Cheryl Mroz
Infant Mental Health Specialist / Developmental Psychologist
Child Study Center – Chicago

Cynthia Murphy
Director, The Children’s Center
College of Staten Island – New York

Nancy Nager
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Virginia Navarro
Assistant Professor – Educational Psychology, Research and Evaluation
University of Missouri – St. Louis

Bonnie Neugebauer
Editor
Child Care Information Exchange Magazine

John Nimmo
Faculty, Human Development & Early Childhood Education
Pacific Oaks College

Lesia Oesterreich
State Early Childhood Extension Specialist
Iowa State University – Ames

Thom O’Mara
Assistant Professor – Early Childhood Programs
Herkimer County Community College – New York

Gary Orfield
Professor of Education and Social Policy, Co-Director, Civil Rights Project
Harvard University

Christine Ormsbee
Associate Dean for Teacher Education / Associate Professor of Special Education
University of Oklahoma – Norman

Lillian Oxtoby
Professor Emeritus, CUNY
City University of New York

Cynthia Paris
Coordinator of Early Childhood Programs
Rider University – Lawrenceville NJ

Deborah Pavur
Associate Director, Newcomb College Nursery School
Tulane University – New Orleans
Candice Percansky
Adjunct Faculty
Erikson Institute

Carla Poole
Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Carolyn Pope Edwards
Professor of Psychology & Family and Consumer Sciences
University of Nebraska – Lincoln

Joan Ports
Lecturer – Department of Early Childhood Education
Towson University – Baltimore

Douglas Powell
Professor, Department of Child Development and Family Studies
Purdue University – Lafayette IN

Beth Price
Director, Child Development Center
NCSC/Ohio State University – Mansfield

Ginger Ramsden
Manager of Family, School & Children’s Programs
University of Southern Indiana, Extension Services

Carol Raupp
Professor of Psychology
California State University – Bakersfield

Aisha Ray
Assistant Professor
Erikson Institute

Julie Ray
Assistant Professor of Education
Southeast Missouri State University – Cape Girardeau MO

Carol Rector
Professor, Early Childhood Education Center
San Francisco State University

Cheryl Render Brown
Associate Professor
Wheelock College – Boston

Ann Riall
Coordinator, Early Childhood Education, Special Education Department
University of Wisconsin – Whitewater

Rena Rice
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Joanne Robertson Bizzaro
Assistant Professor, Literacy Department, School of Education
St. John’s University – Jamaica NY

Nedra Robinson
Professor, College of Education
Concordia University – St. Paul MN

Debbie Rodgers
Associate Professor, Early Childhood Education
University of Oklahoma – Norman

Lori Roggman
Professor, Department of Family and Human Development
Utah State University – Logan

Barbara Rogoff
Professor of Psychology
University of California at Santa Cruz

Jane Rosenberg
Children’s School Director
Pacific Oaks College

Virginia Rosenberg
Graduate Faculty
Pacific Oaks College

Sharon Rosenkoetter
Professor, Human Development & Family Sciences
Oregon State University – Corvallis

Barbara Rosenquest
Associate Professor
Wheelock College – Boston

Jerrold Ross
Dean, The School of Education
St. John’s University – Jamaica NY

Stefi Rubin
Associate Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

Naomi Samuels
Director, Children’s Program
Jane Addams Hull House – Chicago

Nancy Sayre
Interim Associate Dean, Professor
Clarion University – Clarion PA

Paulette Schreck
Chair, Department of Curriculum and Instruction
University of Central Oklahoma – Edmund

Dorothy Schroeder
Assistant Professor, Early Childhood Education
Suffolk County Community College – New York

Carol Seefeldt
Professor
University of Maryland – College Park

Nancy Segall
Past President
Illinois Association for Infant Mental Health – Chicago

Melissa Shamblott
Work Sampling Coordinator
St. Paul Public Schools

Bonnie Shiller
Instructor, Early Childhood Education
University of Missouri – St. Louis

Patricia Shimm
Associate Director
Barnard College Center for Toddler Development

Rhonda Shult
Family Advocate
Oregon State University Head Start Pre-K Program – Corvallis

M. Trika Smith-Burke
Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning
New York University

Catherine Snow
Henry Lee Shattuck Professor of Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education

Joanne Sorts
Director, Child Development Center
Oregon State University – Corvallis

Susan Spieker
Professor, Family and Child Nursing
University of Washington – Seattle

Julie Spielberger
Senior Researcher, Chapin Hall Center for Children
University of Chicago

Dolores Stegelin
Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education
Clemson University – Clemson SC

Karen Stephens
Director, ISU Child Care Center & Instructor in Child Development
Illinois State University – Normal

Barbara Stern
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Fiona Stewart
Director of Grant Administration & Adjunct Faculty
Pacific Oaks College

Deborah Stipek
Dean, The School of Education
Stanford University

Francis Stott
Dean & VP of Academic Programs
Erikson Institute

Debra Sullivan
President
Praxis Institute for Early Childhood Education – Seattle

Rhonda Swanson
Director, Northern State University Children’s Center
Northern State University – Aberdeen SD

Lou Sweigman
Program Director, Adjunct Lecturer, Department of Education & Human Development
State University College at Brockport

Sharon Syc
Assistant Clinical Professor
Erikson Institute

Catherine Thomas
Coordinator of NICU Follow Up Program & Developmental Specialist
Good Samaritan Hospital – San Jose

Kathy Thornburg
Director, Center for Family Policy and Research
University of Missouri – Columbia

Laurie Todd
Adjunct Faculty
Pacific Oaks College

Julia Torquati
Associate Professor
University of Nebraska – Lincoln

Arlene Uss
Coordinator, Center for Early Care and Education
Bank Street College of Education

Sal Vascellaro
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Sharryn Larsen Walker
Professor
Stephens College – Columbia MO

Patsy Washington
Lecturer, Department of Early Childhood Education
Towson University – Baltimore

Patricia Waters
Assistant Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Ocie Watson-Thompson
Associate Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Bobbie Weber
Professor, Oregon Child Care Research Partnership, Family Policy Program
Oregon State University – Corvallis

Karen Weiss
Graduate Faculty
Bank Street College of Education

Margaret Werner
Director, Elisabeth Amen Nursery School
Wheaton College – Wheaton IL

Donna Weston
Assistant Professor, Family and Child Nursing
University of Washington – Seattle

Edyth Wheeler
Assistant Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Claire White
Assistant Professor of Child Life
Wheelock College – Boston

Leslie Williams
Professor of Education
Teachers College, Columbia University

Connie Williams
Assistant Professor of Reading
Northeastern State University – Tahlequah

Patricia Willott
Associate Professor of Education
Wheelock College – Boston

G. Patricia Wilson
Assistant Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Nancy Wiltz
Assistant Professor
Towson University – Baltimore

Olga Winbush
Early Childhood Educator, Human Development Faculty
Pacific Oaks College

Charmane Wong
Vice President
Graham Windham – New York NY

Eric Worch
Assistant Professor and Chair / Department of Education
University of Michigan – Flint

Karen Worth
Senior Scientist
Education Development Center – Boston

Kay Wright
Professor, Children and Family Studies
Eastern Kentucky University – Richmond