Board Candidates Bio and Statement of Interest:

Board Candidates Bio and Statement of
Interest:
Beth Gausman
ECFE Parent Educator, Robbinsdale School District 281, Adjunct Instructor at Concordia St. Paul
Campus
I have been an advocate of Early Childhood Family Education since the mid 1980’s when I joined the
Osseo/Maple Grove ECFE staff as a children’s teacher. In an effort to continue the important work established by
40 years of strengthening parents and families I currently serve on the state ECFE 2.0 team.
It was my honor to serve as 2014 Minnesota Council on Family Relations Board President. This leadership
opportunity allowed me to more intentionally outreach to the numerous professionals who along with ECFE
support the needs of families. Most recently I was co-chair of the MCFR Fall Conference on Mental Health:
Understanding and Supporting Families Through The Lifespan.
I will embrace the opportunity to serve on the MNAFEE board as another avenue to strengthen families through
partnerships with professionals.
Karen Kellar
Early Childhood Manager, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District
As a founding MNAFEE Board member, I am strongly committed to this organization. I am current chair of the
Professional Development Committee and have served as Board Chair and a co-chair of the Advocacy
Committee. I have over 20 years of experience as a parent educator and ECFE/School Readiness administrator
and am eager to work with so many other dedicated professionals on behalf of Minnesota families raising young
children.
Kim Kleven
It is always rewarding to be involved in a professional development group of peers that are passionate about the
same thing you are and I feel it would be very beneficial for me to expand my professional networking group.
Early Childhood and family issues seem to be on the forefront of many minds right now and I believe I have good
knowledge of what is going on out there in our Early Childhood world. I have been fortunate to be able to be
exposed to many of the different programs that are all working together to ensure that our children and families
are healthy and educated and I think this would be a benefit to the board as we look towards to the future. Being
from “outstate rural” Minnesota would provide that voice on the board and I think that it is critical to have that
representation for our Association. I appreciate your consideration and look forward to possibly working with
this team in the future.
Kay Miller
First of all, I feel extremely honored to be nominated, and it would be a privilege to serve and give back to the
early childhood field.
I have close to 30 years in the field of Early Childhood in the state of Minnesota. I have served over 25 years of
that time as Coordinator of Bloomington/Richfield Early Childhood Family Center where I was administrator for
ECFE, School Readiness, Family Literacy and Early Childhood Screening. I have served on numerous state and
local committees focusing on early childhood policies, legislation, standards, partnerships, curriculum and
assessment. I have a wealth of experience and knowledge, which combined with my passion and commitment
would be a great asset to supporting MNAFEE’s vision and goals. I enjoy collaborating with colleagues and
keeping informed.
Kerry Moberg
Consultant ECFE, School Readiness, Screening, Community Early Childhood Programs
As a founding MNAFEE member, I am strongly committed to this organization. I currently serve on the
MNAFEE staff development, and membership committees. I have been involved in early education for the past
29 years as a program coordinator and have seen many exciting changes and challenges in the programming
provided. I have experience working with the Early Childhood Collaborative as well as the Early Childhood
Initiative through the Minnesota Initiative Foundations.
Sally Nault-Maurer
MNAFEE has been an organization I've valued and relied on for many years for a variety of needs: professional
development, program updates, fresh ideas, the opportunity to meet new colleagues and to connect with treasured
peers I don't get to spend nearly enough time with. As with any successful group, many hands make light work,
and I'm at a point in my life where I can offer my hands, head, and heart to advance the work.
As I contemplate serving as a board member I consider it an opportunity to learn and contribute. I'd look forward
to learning from those who I consider strong leaders in the field as well as learning more about needs statewide. I
would contribute my perspective as someone who has worked for years in ECFE, School Readiness, and Early
Childhood Screening programs in both large and small school districts, in rural and urban settings, and in teacher
and administrative roles. I also bring experience working with grant-based, community collaborative initiatives in
several different communities. Lastly, I bring a deep passion and commitment to the work of strengthening
families and encouraging our youngest learners.
Julie Ritter
Lakeville Area Public Schools Community Education, Early Childhood & Family Education Program
Manager
Serving on the MNAFEE Board provides an opportunity for me to give back to the profession. Professional
organizations need members who are willing to give their time, talents and energy to moving the organization and
profession forward and to help navigate challenges.
DaNeil Sirjord
St. Louis County Schools
I am honored to have been nominated for the MNAFEE Board of Directors. I hope through my participation that
I can help shed some light on issues impacting rural schools. Early Childhood is going through many changes in
our state and I feel it is important to have the voices of rural school districts heard. I think this experience will be
very educational and I hope through my participation I am able to help move early childhood a little further down
the road.
Katy Smith
ECFE Parent Educator/Co-Coordinator, Winona Public Schools
It is a good time for me and a great fit for my passion to advocate for parent and early childhood in our state and
beyond.
Sue Stoner
Mounds View Public Schools Early Childhood Programs Coordinator,
I strongly support the mission of MNAFEE and want to be a part of the ongoing work needed to achieve its
vision- that “all families (will) have access to high quality parent education and family support during the early
years and beyond.” MNAFEE has clearly demonstrated its commitment to serving family and early childhood
educators and families by the advocacy work completed, the training programs offered, and the strategic plan
developed over the last three years. I would like to play an active role in supporting the organization’s efforts to
foster networking across professionals; build collaborations with allied organizations; serve as Minnesota’s
information resource for professionals, families, and policymakers; and enhance public awareness for the value of
parent and family education.
Donald Sysyn
Supervisor, St. Paul Early Childhood Family Education
I am a charter member of MNAFEE and have been an advocate of the organization's fine work. As supervisor of
the St. Paul ECFE program and a long time ECFE staff person in Minneapolis, I have come to depend on the
timely information that the organization provides in the areas of early childhood and parenting education
resources, advocacy of early childhood initiatives, and professional development and employment opportunities
in the field. Having spent the past 35 years as an early childhood teacher, parent educator and administrator in
urban settings, I have become familiar with the needs of the diverse populations living in the metro area and the
type of quality and varied programming that better supports families. I am interested in serving on the MNAFEE
Board because it fits with my professional goals to advocate for early education, provide quality educational
experiences that are accessible to all young children and their parents, and to better support the staff who work to
best engage, educate and support families with young children.
Betty Uehling
Director of Early Childhood and Family Education Programs for ISD 88
I have been an ECFE teacher or coordinator for almost 25 years. In the past, I was a member of the ECFE
Evaluation Committee and the ECFE Curriculum Committee. I have also been a member of the Conference
Planning Committee for almost 20 years.
There are many reasons why I feel it is important to serve on statewide committees:
1. As a full time coordinator with no teaching assignments, I recognize that I am in a very different situation
than most rural coordinators. I feel it is my responsibility to use my time to gather information and disperse it
to coordinators in our region who are unable to be involved due to teaching AND coordinating…all with
minimal hours allotted to them.
2. I feel that I can lend a rural voice to MNAFEE. Rural Minnesota ECFE/SR programs can be very different
than metro or large district programs. Their needs are different….from training needs, to budgets, to staffing. I
meet with four different Regional Networking Groups. This gives me the opportunity to hear the concerns and
needs of many area programs.
3. I feel that MNAFEE is a strong voice for our ECFE/SR programs. I respect that MNAFEE sees needs in our
programs and works to meet those needs. Examples include taking over our Coordinator’s Conference,
finishing the PE Core Curriculum, and sponsoring Regional Trainings. I go to the MNAFEE site over and
over to look for trainings and workshops. This one-stop database helps me not only advertise workshops in
our area, but to see what others are offering.
4. I am very involved in other organizations that collaborate with ECFE and SR. I represent ECFE on the
Region 9 HMG Board, sit on the Region 9 Professional Development Council, read CCRR grants, Chair of
the Child Abuse Prevention Committee, Chair of the Brown County Early Childhood Initiative, and am the
contact person for a Regional Networking Group in our area. With budgets as tight as they are, programs
MUST work together to meet the needs of the families in our communities.
I am interested in serving on the MNAFEE Board of Directors because I feel this organization has a strong voice
for our statewide ECFE and SR programs. I hope to lend a strong greater Minnesota voice to the mix.
Sue Underdahl
Director, Community Education/ECFE/School Readiness, Byron Public Schools
I am an advocate for early childhood family education which promotes parents as their first and foremost teacher.
Including parents from birth thru Pre-K and beyond ensures positive beginnings for the child and family. Parents
want to learn and need resources to help them understand their child’s development. In this fast paced world we
need to reach them any way we can by providing a vast array of classes(traditional and on-line), special family
events, one to one conferences, and time for parents to bond with each other.
We need to continue to educate those making decisions about funding for parenting and early childhood
programs, and be a contact for them to not only understand our philosophy, but provide the data that shows what
we are doing is beneficial to parent, child, and the family. We also need to be innovative in our ways we educate,
plan programming, and find new funding sources. We also need to continue to have universal inclusive access for
all families.
Dawn Van Hees
Manager of Community and Family Partnerships for the Lakes and Pines’ Head Start Program
The very core of the vision for MNAFEE is “all families (will) have access to high quality parent education and
family support during the early years and beyond.” My passion and work revolves around this very idea. Having
strong parent involvement in the early years leads to success for families and children in the long run. Supporting
MNAFEE’s vision, mission and work is something I wish to be a part of. I believe that networking, collaborating
and partnering with other Early Childhood Programs state wide can only lead to stronger foundations for those
families we serve regardless of status.
Tresa Washburn
Farmington Area Schools, Family Education Programs Coordinator
I have taught in the Early Childhood field for 20 years, teaching preschool and ECFE Early Childhood and Parent
Education. I have served for the past twelve years as the Coordinator for the Early Childhood Programs in
Farmington. As I have grown into the position and have become more comfortable in leadership I have realized
the desire to expand the areas of where I served. Two years ago I was privileged to be placed on the MNAFEE
Board. I have also been honored to fill the position of Secretary. I have been a member of MNAFEE for several
years and have found the workshops and support to be extremely helpful for myself and my staff. I would be
honored to serve a second term on the MNAFEE Board.
Karen Willers
Director, Luverne Community Education, ECFE and School Readiness,
Luverne School District #2184
MNAFEE has been a very valuable resource to ECFE, School Readiness and other ECFE programs across the
state of MN. When MDE was no longer able to meet our needs, MNAFEE professionals stepped up and did
many things to fill the void! I have been involved with ECFE since Luverne was a CQE Pilot program (1979). I
have been a Parent Educator, Coordinator and Director, Early Childhood Educator, and a Parent Participant, so
now I would like to give back by working with others to keep ECFE vital and alive as needs of ECFE staff and
parents change. ECFE is near and dear to my heart – I participated in ECFE classes and activities as a parent for
the full 5 years with each one of my 4 children – I truly believe ECFE makes a difference for parents, children and
families and I want to make sure it continues to be available for my grandchildren and their children.
Paper Ballots can be requested [email protected]:
MNAFEE
2738 Evergreen Circle
St. Paul, MN 55110
Please return completed ballot by
January 5, 2015
Questions: [email protected]
651-278-4241

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