Our Staff and Consultants
Patricia Lozano
Executive Director
Patricia Lozano
Executive Director
Patricia Lozano is the Executive Director of Early Edge California. Prior to joining Early Edge California, Lozano served as a Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and worked on their national Early Learning strategy.
In California, Lozano has spearheaded projects at UCLA’s Center for Improving Child Care Quality, First 5 LA, and the RAND Corporation, and developed research and evaluation projects to find evidence-based best practices for teachers to work with dual language learners. As a former teacher and associate director at a child development center, Patricia is passionate about supporting the needs of early childhood educators and improving quality for young children. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Los Andes University in Colombia and a Masters in Psychology (M.A.), Child Development Concentration, from California State University, San Bernardino.
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LinkedIn Profile
Email: [email protected]
Stephanie Wayland
Chief Operating Officer
Stephanie Wayland
Chief Operating Officer
Stephanie Wayland is the Chief Operating Officer at Early Edge, where she manages all organizational operations and project management, talent management, and strategic initiatives. She serves as the primary liaison between Early Edge and New Venture Fund and external consultants.
She oversees and leads Early Edge’s annual budgeting and planning process, administers and reviews all financial plans and budgets, and manages grants and contracts. Stephanie has over ten years of experience in project and operations management. She has directed operations and organizational development for several growing companies, primarily in the entertainment industry, overseeing large-scale, high-budget projects and initiatives. Stephanie volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for children in the foster care system in Los Angeles County. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from The College of William and Mary.
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Carolyne Crolotte
Director of Policy
Carolyne Crolotte
Director of Policy
Carolyne Crolotte is the Director of Policy at Early Edge California. She comes to the organization with over ten years of experience in Early Childhood Education, having worked primarily supporting DLL students and teachers in the classroom.
She most recently worked as a Site Supervisor/Academic Coordinator at Maple Bear International School, a Dual Immersion English/Portuguese Canadian school located in the northeast of Brazil serving children ages 1 through grade 5. Prior to this, she served as English Language Learner Specialist for Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP, now Child360). In this position, she worked providing technical assistance and developing and delivering trainings to classroom teachers on how to best serve and meet the needs of children from various home language backgrounds in their classrooms.
Preceding this role, Carolyne was Content Specialist – English Language Learner for Pearson Education. There, she was responsible for developing online and face-to-face trainings targeted for Pre-K through 12th grade teachers on how to support the English Learners in their classrooms using strategies from the SIOP Model (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol).
Carolyne has a passion for early childhood education and for advocating for the rights and needs of DLLs and their families. She is thrilled about being a part of the important work of Early Edge California.
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Joanna Cole
Director of Communications
Joanna Cole
Director of Communications
Joanna Cole is Director of Communications at Early Edge California, overseeing the communications strategies that support the organization’s priorities for Early Learning across the state.
Prior to joining Early Edge, Joanna worked for more than a decade at leading children’s mental health and child welfare agencies in Los Angeles, providing communications support for a variety of programmatic and fundraising efforts including capital campaigns, the production of award-winning publications and videos, fundraisers and conferences, social marketing campaigns, and rebranding efforts. Joanna holds a master’s degree in Communication Studies from California State University, Los Angeles and a bachelor’s degree from Occidental College. She is pleased to apply her expertise to Early Edge’s critical mission of raising the quality of Early Learning for all children in California.
Contact
Email: [email protected]
Trish Morrison
Development & Senior Project Manager
Trish Morrison
Development & Senior Project Manager
Trish Morrison is the Development & Senior Project Manager at Early Edge California, filling a critical role in strategically managing Early Edge’s fundraising efforts along with the organization’s key programmatic activities.
She is a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) and holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Franklin University and a B.A. from Cleveland State University.
Prior to joining the Early Edge team, Trish worked at the American Film Institute and Battelle for Kids, a national nonprofit with a focus on education initiatives. She’s excited to work closely with policy advocates in ensuring all children in California have access to high-quality Early Learning opportunities.
Contact
Email: [email protected]
Kelly Reynolds
Senior Policy Analyst
Kelly Reynolds
Senior Policy Analyst
Kelly is a Senior Policy Analyst for Early Edge California, where she works to strengthen the early childhood education workforce and advance Early Edge’s legislative agenda. She comes to Early Edge with nearly a decade of experience in education policy, and is passionate about building a society that is equitable and supports families and children through accessible quality care and education.
Contact
Email: [email protected]
Edith Esparza
Communications Manager
Edith Esparza
Communications Manager
Edith Esparza is the Communications Manager at Early Edge California, supporting the organization’s communications strategies alongside the Director of Communications.
Prior to joining the team, she was the Marketing Specialist at MIND Research Institute, a nonprofit social impact organization specializing in neuroscience and education research. She focused on bringing awareness to MIND’s mission and work in STEM education by helping promote their different math programs and initiatives, such as ST Math, and growing their online educator communities. In her free time she volunteers at Girls Inc. of Orange County serving on the leadership team for Women For Girls. She holds a B.A. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing and a minor in Educational Studies from the University of California, Irvine. She’s grateful for the opportunity to serve and impact Early Edge California’s work of providing quality Early Learning opportunities to all California children starting at birth.
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Nicole Barboza
Operations Manager
Nicole Barboza
Operations Manager
Nicole Barboza, Operations Manager at Early Edge California, brings nearly a decade of non-profit operations expertise to her role.
In her capacity, she orchestrates the intricate dance of behind-the-scenes work, ensuring every cog in the organizational machine turns smoothly. Her background in theology and health sciences infuses her approach with empathy and a holistic perspective.
Within the heart of operations, Nicole channels her passion for human connection into crafting seamless systems. She weaves together Project Management and Business Compliance with an empathetic touch, understanding that behind every process lies a person, a story, and a need.
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Andrew Avila
Policy Analyst
Andrew Avila
Policy Analyst
Andrew is a Policy Analyst for Early Edge California, focused on monitoring the implementation of universal Transitional Kindergarten, and advocating for a qualified, well-compensated and professionally-trained Early Learning workforce. He comes to Early Edge with legislative and advocacy experience.
Before joining Early Edge, Andrew was a Policy and Advocacy Manager for Improve Your Tomorrow, a college access and preparation program for young men of color in Sacramento. In this role, Andrew educated and organized young men of color in various K-12 and higher education advocacy campaigns at the local level, including at K-12 school districts, and at the State Legislature. He also led the 1300 Campaign, a coalition of Sacramento K-12 district superintendents and college leaders focused on breaking the school-to-prison pipeline through equitable policy reforms and increasing the number of young men of color who attend local college. Before this, Andrew was a Senior Legislative Aide for State Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez.
Andrew has a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of California, Davis, and is a proud transfer student from Pasadena City College. Originally from the Inland Empire, Andrew remained in Sacramento after being offered a full-time job at the California Assembly, where he interned for almost 2 years. He spends his free time volunteering with SacKidsFirst, a youth-led grassroots coalition that advocates for youth development and enrichment opportunities in the City of Sacramento. He also enjoys being the primary human for Kali, his American shorthair tri-colored female cat.
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Eduardo Gutiérrez
Policy Analyst
Eduardo Gutiérrez
Policy Analyst
Eduardo is a Policy Analyst at Early Edge California, where he promotes the benefits of bilingualism and ensures that California’s early care and education services are effectively designed to support dual language learners (DLLs).
Before this role, Eduardo served as a Legislative Fellow with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute in the Office of U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján, where he supported legislative initiatives within the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee.
Throughout his career, Eduardo has been dedicated to advancing policies that promote equitable opportunities for children, youth, and families. At Aspiranet, he provided crucial services to those affected by the foster care and juvenile justice systems in California’s Central Valley. His work at the Center for the Study of Social Policy involved collaborating with youth across the U.S. to influence participatory policymaking, including his role in the CARES Project, which focused on supporting transition-age youth of color and developing policies for youth exiting the foster care system.
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Jon Youngdahl
Strategic Consultant, Labor
Jon Youngdahl
Strategic Consultant, Labor
Jon Youngdahl is owner and strategic consultant with Youngdahl Strategies, a sole proprietor consulting company located in Sacramento, California.
Youngdahl Strategies has a mission of building partnerships, designing strategies and winning campaigns. Jon consults with organizations, labor unions and businesses in California and nationally on program development and on building campaigns—including issue, legislative, initiative and electoral—that are focused on creating a more just and equitable society. Jon brings over 10 years of work on early childhood education issues, including serving as Fundraising Chair and then 2-year President of the Board of Directors of the Seward Child Care Co-op in South Minneapolis; serving as 2-year Fundraising Chair of the School for Friends child care center in Washington, DC; working on early childhood education issues for six years from February 2007 – January 2013 for SEIU International in Washington, DC, as the National Political Director and Chief of Staff; and advocating on early childhood education policy and coalition building for three and a half years from February 2013 – July 2016 as the Executive Director of the SEIU California State Council in Sacramento, CA.
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Patti Herrera
Consultant
Patti Herrera
Consultant
Patti Herrera is the Director of Governmental Relations at School Services of California Inc. She serves school districts by advocating for public policies that maintain and advance the interests of K-12 public school students, as well as providing timely information to K-12 field practitioners across the disciplines on legislative and regulatory proposals that will affect their daily work.
Prior to joining SSC, Patti led the Governmental Relations Division as the Chief Governmental Relations Officer for the Riverside County Superintendent of Schools. Patti also spent more than a decade on policy development relating to public school facilities at Murdoch, Walrath & Holmes and the Coalition for Adequate School Housing, where she specialized in the State School Facility Program. Through her work in public education policy making and advocacy, Patti has worked and developed relationships with key policymakers and staff in the State Capitol and relevant state agencies. Patti graduated cum laude from the University of California, Davis, with degrees in Political Science with an emphasis on International Political Economy, and History with emphases in Chinese and Russian History. Patti recently earned her Doctorate of Education at the University of California, Davis.