About

Swati Adarkar recently served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Early Learning in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education in the Biden Harris Administration. She led the Department’s early learning vision, strategy, and initiatives including the development and execution of the Kindergarten Sturdy Bridge agenda. Prior to her government service, she was the National Policy Director for Start Early.

Swati was the Co-Founder and President & CEO of the Children’s Institute in Oregon for 15 years, an early childhood policy and advocacy organization. She served on statewide advisory committees on early childhood for three Oregon governors. Swati provided the vision and leadership to launch and sustain the Early Works initiative, a nationally recognized model which aligns birth to five services and supports with elementary school.

For more than thirty years she has been a strong leader and advocate for meeting the comprehensive needs of low-income children and families across the local, state and federal level. Swati has a passion for ensuring the health and early school success of young children. She has served on the Advisory Boards of Attendance Works and the National P-3 Center and was a founding trustee of Portland State University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from UCLA and a Master’s in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.

Dr. Andrea J. Berry-Brown began her tenure as Assistant Superintendent for the School District of the City of York on July 6, 2017, and transitioned to the role of Superintendent during the 2018-2019 school year. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Science degree from Western Maryland College, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Argosy University.

Dr. Berry-Brown brings a wealth of experience to the district, having served in various educational roles on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, including elementary school teacher, assistant principal, principal, and district-level supervisor. Her extensive expertise spans equity and diversity in education, with a particular focus on English Learner programs.

A firm believer in the transformative power of education, Dr. Berry-Brown advocates that academic achievement is directly tied to the expectations set by educators. She emphasizes the importance of metacognitive skills, teaching students to “think about their thinking,” which empowers them to overcome challenges and excel. Her work is grounded in the conviction that all children can succeed when given the opportunity to thrive in environments that embrace equitable practices for diverse learners.

Beyond her professional accomplishments, Dr. Berry-Brown is deeply engaged in the community. She is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and serves on the Citizens Advisory Board. In addition, she has taught numerous college-level courses at various institutions and joined the faculty at Wilson College in 2018.

Dr. Berry-Brown’s educational philosophy is heavily influenced by the work of Wiggins and McTighe (2005), particularly the approach of “Beginning With The End In Mind.” She also champions the concept of a “Growth Mindset,” as articulated by Dweck (2008), believing that fostering a culture of continuous learning and leadership development is key to success. As a leader, Dr. Berry-Brown is dedicated to guiding the York community toward providing its students with a premier education and instilling a shared commitment to excellence.

Now in her sixth school year with the School District of the City of York, Dr. Berry-Brown remains steadfast in her dedication to creating equitable learning environments and supporting the success of every student.

As a senior fellow and advisor on early and elementary education with the Education Policy program at New America, Laura focused on transforming kindergarten and promoting policy and practice to strengthen the transition into kindergarten and the early grades of elementary school. Her work can be found here. Laura was director of Early & Elementary Education Policy at New America for nearly seven years.

During that time she wrote Getting in Sync: Revamping Licensing and Preparation for Teachers in Pre-K, Kindergarten, and the Early Grades. and was lead author of A Toolkit for Effective and Supportive Transitions for Children, Families, and Educators, Support Early Learning in America: Policies for a New Decade, From Crawling to Walking: Ranking States on Birth–3rd Grade Policies that Support Strong Readers, and Beyond Subprime Learning: Accelerating Progress in Early Education. Laura’s work was cited in the seminal Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth through Third Grade consensus study from the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council in 2015. Laura has written for, or her work has been referenced in national outlets and education publications, including The Atlantic, Chalkbeat, CNN, Education Week, Hechinger Report, NPR, Pacific Standard, the Washington Monthly, Phi Delta Kappan, Slate, and the Washington Post. 

Before joining New America, Laura worked with several policy organizations in Washington, D.C., including the Institute for Educational Leadership, the Forum for Education and Democracy, and Common Core (now Great Minds). She also worked for the City of Orlando, FL, helping to implement its Parramore Kidz Zone, an initiative modeled on the Harlem Children’s Zone. Laura began her career as a fourth-grade teacher in Orlando and has returned to working on the ground in a Florida school as the Multi-Tiered Systems of Support Coordinator and Coach. She is also working on her Educational Leadership Certificate to work as a school administrator. Finally, Laura consults with several organizations, including the U.S. Department of Education’s Center for Early School Success, a new national content center. Laura graduated from the University of Central Florida and lives with her husband and two daughters in Florida.

Dr. Lori Connors-Tadros has 45+ years of experience as a preschool special education teacher, state early education administrator, researcher, and technical assistance specialist. Lori has deep expertise in comprehensive state early childhood systems, finance and governance for effective policy implementation. She is particularly passionate about the need to build leadership and agency capacity to utilize research to implement policy to improve outcomes for young children. Dr. Connors-Tadros has led numerous federally funded technical assistance centers funded by federal agencies, including the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes, providing technical assistance to state early childhood administrators and other stakeholders across the country on key policy priorities. Lori has been involved with NASLEE for over 20 years. She is most proud of the partnership between NAECS-SDE and CEELO, where we implemented many initiatives to support state early education leaders.  Lori is currently a strategic advisor to NASLEE, serving on the policy committee, overseeing NASLEE Leadership Academy, and other projects as needed. Lori has a Ph.D. in Developmental and Educational Psychology and an MS in early childhood special education.  Lori serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of the National Parents as Teachers Home Visiting Program.

Rolf Grafwallner, Ph.D., is an early education consultant with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), a membership organization representing state education chiefs across the U.S. and its territories. In this role, he supports various early education initiatives, focusing on high-quality instructional materials and the alignment of state, district, and school policies to promote evidence-based classroom practices. He also advises the Council’s Early Childhood Education Collaborative, working with early learning leaders from more than 20 states.

From 2016 to 2021, Dr. Grafwallner served as the Program Director for Early Childhood Education at CCSSO, leading multiple state consortia on education policies related to publicly funded pre-kindergarten, the early childhood education workforce, early learning system transformation, and family engagement.

Before joining CCSSO, Dr. Grafwallner worked at the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) for 22 years, including 11 years as the Assistant State Superintendent for Early Childhood. In this role, he spearheaded numerous early education reform efforts in Maryland.

Dr. Grafwallner holds a master’s degree in political science from the Ludwig Maximilian Universität in Munich, a Master’s in Education from Millersville University in Pennsylvania, and a Ph.D. in Education Policy, Planning, and Administration from the University of Maryland. He is also the author and co-author of several publications and articles.

Isabelle Hau is the inaugural executive director of the Stanford Accelerator for Learning, a Stanford-wide initiative to connect researchers across disciplines, and bridge research, practice, and policy, to bring quality, scalable and equitable learning experiences for all learners and throughout the lifespan.

Prior, she was a founding partner at Imaginable Futures, a venture of the Omidyar Group, the philanthropic investment firm of eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam. She led the U.S. education initiative, portfolio, and team. Her work has directly impacted millions of learners and families.

Isabelle currently serves on the board of EDC and Sonen, and on the steering committee of the EdSAFE AI Alliance and the Brookings Institute Global AI Taskforce. She is the author of the book “Love to Learn: The Transformative Power of Care and Connection in Early Education” to be published in February 2025. She also writes a popular weekly newsletter Small Talks.

Isabelle was awarded the 2024 ASU-GSV Women in AI, the 2021 Global MindED Inclusive Leader Award in Early Childhood Education. She was honored as 100 Inspiring Women at Harvard Business School. She also co-starred with Grover of Sesame Street on early childhood innovation.

Isabelle earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and graduated from ESSEC and Sciences Po Paris.

Dr. Jill Koser currently serves as the Assistant to the Superintendent – Elementary in the Conestoga Valley School District located in Lancaster, PA. In addition, Dr. Koser works closely with the PA Inspired Leadership (PIL) program as a facilitator in various regions across the state. Koser came to CV in 2021 from the School District of the City of York where she served as the Director of Curriculum & Instruction and then the Assistant Superintendent for Special Education. Prior to serving in SDCY, Dr. Koser oversaw the early learning team at Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County.

For sixteen years, Dr. Koser served in various roles within the School District of Lancaster. She began in the district as an elementary teacher, built connections with families and the community in her role as Coordinator of Parent Involvement, and served as Principal at Robert Fulton Elementary School for seven years.

Koser received her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Special Education from Millersville University and earned her Educational Leadership Master’s degree and Doctorate of Education from Widener University. Koser holds a Superintendent’s Letter of Eligibility certification in addition to certifications in the fields of K-12 principal, middle school mathematics, K-12 special education and K-6 elementary education.

Vance serves as an Associate Partner at Promise Venture Studio, where he has the privilege of co-leading the Early Childhood Leaders of Color Collaborative, coaching equity-driven social entrepreneurs in early childhood, and working to transform early childhood philanthropy alongside funders and practitioners.

Vance has dedicated his career to advancing equitable education opportunities for students and families who have been historically underserved by our country’s institutions. After graduating from Howard University, Vance started his career as an upper elementary and middle school special education teacher in Philadelphia with Teach for America. During his five years teaching in Philadelphia, Vance also served as a special education administrator for an independent K-9 charter school and was a founding member of The Fellowship for Black Male Educators, an organization dedicated to increasing the number of Black men teaching in Philadelphia and beyond.

After teaching, Vance obtained his MBA at Yale School of Management. He then joined McKinsey & Company and was a member of McKinsey’s Education Practice. Vance joined Promise Venture Studio in August 2020. Vance has a Masters in Education from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education and is an avid Philadelphia sports fan.

For more than 50 years, Joan has dedicated her work to assuring the healthy development of young children and support for their families in the US and around the world.  She has served as a public servant in the United States across multiple administrations, as an advisor to international organizations and philanthropy, and as a researcher and academic expert in child development and family support policy. She is a strong believer in the power of communities, dual generation strategies, and the ability of the individual to make a difference.

Currently she serves as a Senior Advisor and Adjunct Professor at the Center on Early Childhood, Graduate School of Education at Stanford University and Senior Scholar and Adjunct Professor at Thive Center on Children, Families and Communities, Georgetown University. She is the Co-founder of the Georgetown Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues.

In addition, since 2011 she has been directing Early Opportunities, serving as an advisor to a range of international organizations including UNICEF, The World Bank, and UNESCO, among others, and to a number of philanthropic organizations including the Buffett Early Childhood Fund and the Bainum Family Foundation, Global Education Fund.

Over the years, Joan has served in several positions in the public sector including as the first Deputy Assistant Secretary for Early Childhood Development (2009-2011) in the Obama Administration, and as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and External Affairs in Administration for Children and Families, USDHHS and the first Commissioner of the Child Care Bureau among other positions (l993-1998) during the Clinton Administration

Outside of public service, she was the founding Chair of the Birth to Five Policy Alliance 2005-2008 (Now the Alliance for Early Success).  She is the author of numerous publications including Time to Care: Redesigning Child Care to Promote Education, Support Families and Build Communities and co-editor of Beacon of Hope: The Promise of Early Head Start. She serves on the governing boards of The National Black Child Development Institute and the Global Fund for Children and on the Leadership Council of the Early Childhood Development Action Network.

Albert Wat is a Senior Policy Director at the Alliance for Early Success, where he supports the organization’s strategy and goals for early education, including increasing access to high-quality pre-k and child care, improving the early learning workforce, and enhancing alignment with K-12 policies. Before joining the Alliance, Albert was a Senior Policy Analyst in the Education Division of the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, where he helped governors’ staff and advisors improve their early care and education policies, from early childhood through third grade. Before NGA, Albert was the Research Manager at Pre-K Now, an advocacy campaign at the Pew Center on the States, where he authored a number of policy reports, managed research activities for the initiative, and provided analysis and information about the latest pre-k and early education research and policy developments to Pre-K Now staff and its network of state partners. Albert has served on two National Academies committees: Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8: A Unifying Foundation and Vibrant and Healthy Kids: Aligning Science, Practice, and Policy to Advance Health Equity. He also serves on the board of the Council for Professional Recognition.

Albert has worked with schools, school reform nonprofits, and community-based organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area, southeastern Michigan, and Washington, DC. He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in education from Stanford University and a master’s in education policy from George Washington University.