Meylin used to work as a doctor in Nicaragua. After finishing medical school, she served as director of the emergency room at Masaya Regional Hospital, where she gave daily, weekly and monthly reports to the hospital committee, provided updates to the emergency staff, and trained new and current staff. That’s an unusual background for someone in the early learning field, where Meylin works as the early childhood program director at Montgomery College. But Meylin had to reinvent herself when political reasons forced her to leave her country to come to Maryland about 10 years ago.
“My sister was already here and had a family child care business,” Meylin recalls. “I went to work there because I was a single mom with a young daughter. I validated my medical degree. But it would have taken a lot of money and at least eight years to go through the licensing process to practice medicine in the U.S. It was a hard decision to give up my profession, but I have no regrets,” she says. That’s because she now supports people who help young children live happier, healthier lives.
Early childhood education, like medicine, is a special profession, as Meylin likes to point out. “I always tell my Montgomery College students that teachers are in one of the few professions where they can see, touch and build the future. People in most professions don’t have the chance to build better human beings, so we need to get an education to prepare ourselves for this key role.”
Meylin did after she fell in love with early learning and decided to remain in the field. “I took English classes, earned my Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™ and then my master’s degree in early childhood studies—education that allowed her to become an assistant director for Head Start before spending five years teaching early childhood education at Montgomery College. She began on the noncredit side by giving classes in Spanish on health safety and CPR before moving to the credit side as an instructor. And it was a role that gave her more of a chance to draw on her training and background as a doctor, she explains.
“Medicine has remained one of my passions and it can be combined with early learning topics to provide better services for children. So, I would talk to my students a lot about how to model healthy practices in early childhood settings. I would explain the connection between healthy meals and brain development. I would talk to them about the impact of exercise and a good night’s sleep on classroom learning,” Meylin says. “Helping children have healthier lives is an integral part of early care and education, as I pointed out during my time teaching in the college classroom.”
Meylin has missed teaching the college students since assuming her current role as early childhood coordinator. She would like to teach part time, but her job is too demanding. Besides, she’s still making a big impact on children by helping early childhood teachers be better professionals in the field. As an early childhood program coordinator, she oversees the Early Care and Education Initiative (ECEI) Pathway Scholarship, a partnership between Montgomery County, Montgomery College and Montgomery Public Schools. Since 2020, ECEI has provided funding to educators who work in a licensed child care setting in Montgomery County, and it has supported them in earning their associate degree or CDA®.
“We understand that the CDA is an important part of education,” Meylin says, “so we provide 100 percent support for the CDA courses and preparation of the CDA portfolio in both English and Spanish. It’s a feature I like as a native Spanish speaker and an advocate of the immigrant community, whatever the country from which students come. We have early learning students from Ethiopia, Afghanistan and several Asian nations, and I also connect closely with them. I know what it’s like to learn a new language and struggle to start out in a new place.”
Meylin’s sense of empathy is her “superpower,” as she explains. And it’s a big part of her current job. “I’m the students’ first point of contact with the ECIC program, and I have learned the importance of building relationships with them and learning what they need to remain in the program. So, I do everything I can to address any personal issues that might lead them to leave school. I connect them to community resources to help support their family. I tell them about food banks in Montgomery County and I get them Chromebooks for their schoolwork. I encourage them to tell me whatever they need, and this personal touch has led to some success stories,” as Meylin recalls.
“For example, we had a student from Colombia named Alba, a family child care provider who began earning her CDA six years ago. She was very devoted to her school work, and we encouraged her to go on for an associate degree, but the language barrier was a huge issue. So, she was paying for ESL classes until we started the ECEI program and began covering the cost of her English classes. Since then, Alba has earned her associate degree at night while running her child care business during the day. She’s now preparing to start a bachelor’s degree, and her progress is a testament to the power of discipline and determination,” qualities shared by another Montgomery College student who Meylin has served.
“Sarah is from Afghanistan,” Meylin says, “and worked as an assistant teacher. Like Alba, she began by earning her CDA, took English classes at night and went on to earn her associate degree. The goal that drove her was to open her own child care center, and she reached it last year. Now she hires other teachers and serves 70 children. She also advocates for the immigrant community, and I identify with her though we come from different countries and cultures. Watching students like Sarah develop and grow against the odds reminds me of my own struggles and inspires me to do even more to support them.”
Meylin also draws inspiration from something one of her professors said when she was in medical school back in Nicaragua. “He told me you always need to have compassion because you don’t know what another person is going through. When we meet someone for the first time, we should try to understand their behavior instead of judging them, advice that’s always in my mind when I interact with students,” Meylin says. It’s advice that early childhood teachers should also embrace when they confront behavioral issues in the classroom. They should consider health issues, like poor nutrition and lack of sleep, which might affect learning, so they can understand children better and meet them where they are. Empathy, as Meylin has seen, is a superpower that we can use to help all students succeed.
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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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