7th Annual Early Childhood Leadership Summit Keynote Biographical Statement Dr. Tammy Mann, The Campagna Center For over 20 years, Dr. Mann has worked in the nonprofit sector in agencies devoted to improving outcomes for minorities and low-income and children and families. At the outset of her career, she worked on the frontlines as a psychologist, providing home visiting services to low-income pregnant women and families with children under three. Throughout much of her career, she has worked at the senior management level in organizations to shape strategic direction and to develop and expand programs. She currently serves as President and CEO of The Campagna Center, in Alexandria, Virginia. The Campagna Center serves over 1,700 children and operates a range of early childhood, school age, youth, and family development programs designed to empower and engage parents as they address their children’s academic and social needs. Prior to joining The Campagna Center, she served as Executive Director of the Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute at UNCF where she was responsible for leading the Institute’s efforts to conduct and disseminate research that informs policymakers and practitioners on how to improve educational opportunities and outcomes for African Americans and other underrepresented minorities from preschool to and through college. Dr. Mann also severed as Deputy Executive Director at ZERO TO THREE, a national nonprofit organization that focused on translating research to practice for policymakers and practitioners to benefit very young children. In addition, she has worked as an adjunct faculty member, teaching courses in human development, at Howard University and been a public policy fellow at the American Psychological Association. Dr. Mann has played an active role in shaping the field of early childhood development through numerous service opportunities. She was recently appointed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services to serve on the Advisory Committee for Head Start Research and Evaluation. She has addressed national and international audiences as a noted speaker and authored books and articles on a wide variety of issues in the field of early childhood education and development. Dr. Mann earned her Bachelor’s degree from Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia and completed her Masters and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Michigan State University. She is married and the mother of two wonderful children, Joshua and Lauryn. She and her family have resided in Virginia since 1994, initially in Alexandria and for the past 8 years in Fairfax.
7th Annual Early Childhood Leadership Summit Break-out Session Presenter Biographical Statements
Jackie Cramer - ELT/Sponsor Development Coordinator, Virginia Council of Churches Refugee Resettlement Program Originally from the West Coast I have worked at the Virginia Council of Churches Refugee Resettlement Program since Fall 2010. As the School Liaison and English Language Training Coordinator for refugee families, I spend a lot of time coordinating volunteers and working with many different organizations. I graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a Bachelor of Arts in Global Development.
Jim Hershberger – Director, Virginia Council of Churches Refugee Resettlement Program I was raised on a farm in Eastern Virginia. My wife and have spent about 10 years in Central America with the Mennonite Church. I am the Program Coordinator in the Virginia of Council of Church's Refugee Resettlement Program. Our 3 children are graduates of area schools. I am also a minister in the Mennonite Church here in Virginia. I enjoy making bread, raising organic beef, reading history and singing classical sacred music.
Dr. Douglas Larsen – Director, Central Shenandoah Health District Dr. Larsen is the Director of the Central Shenandoah Health District. He oversees over 100 staff serving more than 40,000 residents in five counties. The health district offers services including nutritional counseling as well as direct patient care in the areas of maternity, family planning, well child and pre-school visits, home visiting programs, dental care for children, immunizations for children, pregnancy tests, and diagnosis.
Kathryn Litten, School Psychologist, Harrisonburg Pediatrics Kathryn is a licensed school psychologist who joined Harrisonburg Pediatrics in 1997. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary and received her Master’s and Educational Specialist degrees in School Psychology from James Madison University. Prior to joining Harrisonburg Pediatrics, Mrs. Litten worked as a school psychologist for Rockbridge County Schools. At Harrisonburg Pediatrics, Mrs. Litten conducts psychological and educational assessments and classroom observations. She provides children with educational strategies to help them succeed academically. She also serves as a liaison among parents, school personnel, and pediatricians in dealing with children’s educational needs. Mrs. Litten is married and has two children.
Cathryn Lowe – Vice President, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation Cathryn is Vice President of Resource Development for the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation since November 2008, having previously served as Director of Development at the Valentine Richmond History Center for more than five years. Prior to moving to Richmond, VA in 2002, she spent 14 years in Miami, FL where she worked with the United Way of Miami-Dade, and later as a consultant to multiple non-profit organizations. Cathryn brings more than thirty years of experience in the non-profit sector with an extensive background in organizational development and planning, board development, fundraising and training. She currently serves as Immediate Past President of the Board of Directors of VAFRE and is a member of the board of AFP Central VA. She is a 2006 graduate of the flagship program of Leadership Metro Richmond and an Alumni of Lead Virginia, class of 2010.
Dr. Anthony Neri, Pediatrician, Shenandoah Pediatrics Dr. Neri has been a general pediatrician at Shenandoah Pediatrics, in Woodstock VA, for twelve years. Since 2010 he has been employed in that role by Valley Physician Enterprise (a division of VHS). Dr.”Tony” Neri graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1987, Jefferson Medical College in 1991, and residency in Pediatrics at Madigan Army Medical Center in 1994(Ft Lewis, Washington). He served four years in Ft Campbell, KY(101st Airborne) and then returned to Pennsylvania for two years prior to moving to the Shenandoah Valley. He has been married to his wife Carolyn for 21 years, and has 4 wonderful teenagers.
Dr. Beverly Sweeney – Curriculum Specialist, Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning, University of Virginia Beverly Sweeney earned her masters and doctoral degrees in educational psychology at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education. She is now working for UVA’s Center for the Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) as a curriculum specialist for the National Center on Quality Teaching and Learning (NCQTL). Beverly’s research has focused on early childhood education and over the past two years has primarily examined the transition from pre-k to kindergarten. She has given presentations on the transition from pre-k to kindergarten at several national conferences.
Dr. Hilary Whonder-Genus, Pediatrician, Harrisonburg Community Health Center Dr. Whonder-Genus has been a practicing pediatrician for over 12 years, after working as a pediatric anesthesiologist in Illinois for several years. She comes to the Shenandoah Valley with lots of medical experience and a vast love for taking care of children. Her husband and 2 sons enjoy spending quality family time with her, which could include anything from hiking on Skyline Drive and tent camping to entertaining family and friends with good food, music and lots of laughs. Her philosophy: "Life is good, so in all things give thanks!"