First Look: New Data for Smarter Investments in Young Children

Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton is excited to serve Illinois as the state’s 48^th Lieutenant Governor. Previously, Lt. Governor Stratton represented the 5^th District in the Illinois House of Representatives. Prior to her time in state government, she was the Director of the Center for Public Safety and Justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where she trained law enforcement agencies to build strong relationships with the communities they serve. She also is a professional mediator and operated her own small business for over 20 years.

Lt. Governor Stratton is a lifelong Illinoisan and was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. She is a proud graduate of Kenwood Academy High School, the University of Illinois, and DePaul University College of Law. She has three daughters and enjoys going to concerts and running marathons and triathlons.

Cristina Pacione-Zayas, PhD, directs the vision for policy and leadership initiatives at Erikson Institute. She is charged with articulating and executing Erikson’s policy agenda to generate systemic solutions leading to equitable opportunities and positive outcomes for young children, families, and communities. Dr.Pacione-Zayas is credited with establishing The Early Childhood Leadership Academy for Illinois leaders seeking learning experiences to enhance their capacity to inform early childhood policy. She also directs the Community Data Lab which equips local leaders with precise and accessible data on young children to inform systems coordination, resource allocation, and policy through the Early Development Instrument Pilot Project and Risk and Reach Project. Dr. Pacione-Zayas works closely with scholars to identify opportunities for translating research into policy. Dr. Pacione-Zayas was appointed as co-chair for the Kindergarten Transition Advisory Committee of the P-20 and Early Learning Councils, the Educational Success Committee of Governor-elect J.B. Pritzker's Transition Team, and Title V Needs Assessment Advisory Committee for the State’s federally-mandated Maternal and Child Health Services.

Geoffrey A. Nagle, PhD, MSW, MPH, is president and chief executive officer of Erikson Institute, a leading force in improving the lives of young children and their families through knowledge, research, service, and advocacy, and the nation’s premier graduate school in child development.

At Erikson, Dr. Nagle has championed new strategies that draw from Erikson’s core strengths to broaden the institute’s impact in the complex and ever-changing early childhood arena. He has driven the development and implementation of a new strategic plan that addresses how Erikson will work to transform the early childhood workforce, inform the use of technology in early childhood, improve support for families and communities, and influence leadership and policy to benefit young children, families, and communities.

Phyllis Glink is the executive director of the Irving Harris Foundation. In over two decades with the foundation, she has led, developed and implemented its grantmaking and field leadership work in the areas of early childhood development and child and family welfare, reproductive health and justice, Jewish values and social justice. Glink works closely with the Foundation’s partners in the non-profit, advocacy, philanthropy and government communities to leverage shared investment and maximize the impact of foundation grants in Illinois and across the country.

Ric Estrada is CEO of Metropolitan Family Services. Founded in 1857 Metropolitan is one of Illinois’ largest and best respected human services agencies. Since joining Metropolitan in 2011 Estrada has helped the agency grow by 90 percent in revenue and families served.

Estrada has nearly three decades of leadership experience in human services, philanthropy and government. Prior to joining Metropolitan Estrada served as First Deputy Commissioner of the City of Chicago’s Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS). Before that he served as Executive Director of Erie Neighborhood House in Chicago, where his accomplishments included founding the Erie Elementary Charter School.

Estrada’s educational background is grounded in social services and business, including an MBA from the University of Illinois at Chicago, an M.A. in Social Service Policy and Administration from the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration, and a B.S. in Psychology from Loyola University of Chicago.