Contact info:
Foundation for Early Education
221 E. Ventura Blvd.
Oxnard, CA 93036
(888) 321-6519
Board Members:
President - Sandra Edelbrock Guilizia
Vice President
- Guiliana Halasz
Secretary
- Ruth Nathan
Treasurer - Sara O’Conlon
Member - Heather Harris
Member - Gregory Milken
Member - Carol Okugawa
Member - Jeff Little
Sandra Edelbrock Gulizia is the President of the Foundation for Early Education and a private Child Care Consultant. Sandra’s 30 year career in early care and education has included consultant to Riverside County Child Care Consortium, founder of First Steps Child Development Centers, Inc., Administrator at Riverside County Office of Education, and instructor in early childhood education, leadership, and organization development at several colleges. Sandra has been a statewide leader in the field of early childhood education as President of the California Child Development Administrators Association and as President of the California Alternative Payment Program Association. Sandra has received numerous awards for her work as a legislative advocate and a political strategist for children’s issues.
Giuliana is the president of the Professional Association for Childhood Education Alternative Payment Program (PACEAPP), San Francisco. At the helm of Human Services Management Corporation (HSMC) for nearly 30 years, she currently oversees HSMC’s strategic planning and administers contracts. Giuliana holds a BS in Sociology from Universidad Catolica Andres Bello, Caracas, Venezuela, and a Masters in Social Work from San Diego State University. An active advocate for children, she is California State Leader and a member of the Western Region Steering Committee for the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA). She also serves on CWLA’s National Public Policy Advisory Committee and the Committee on CWLA Standards of Excellence for Child Care, Development, and Education Services.
Giuliana is a partner in Preschool for All, San Mateo County. She serves on the San Mateo Child Care Partnership Council, serves as co-chair of the San Mateo Child Care Partnership Council’s Funding and Advocacy Committee, and is a member of the Council of Latino Executives, the National Association of Social Workers, and the National Network for Social Work Managers.
Ruth Nathan, Ph.D. has been a literacy research specialist at UC Berkeley for the past two years and is currently a consultant and columnist who writes and thinks about early childhood education issues. She is a senior educational contributor to GRAND Magazine, a green-oriented journal for grandparents and blogs on LeapFrog's educational network under "readingwithruth". Dr. Nathan has authored literacy texts, chapters, and journal articles; as well as reading, writing, thinking handbooks for elementary students that are used throughout the country. Dr. Nathan lives in California with her husband, Larry. They have three children, all graduates of the University of Michigan and working in the States and Germany. She has "flex" hours and takes care of her two grandchildren, four years of age and one and a half, two days a week.
As a Certified Public Accountant, Sara, for the past thirteen years, has been the Director of Finance for CDR, Child Development Resources of Ventura County, Inc. Sara received her Bachelor of Arts in Business Economics from the University of California at Santa Barbara. Sara serves the community by working on the Advisory Board to the Martin V. Smith School of Business and Economics at California State University at Channel Islands, the Ventura Charter School of Arts and Global Education, and has volunteered for the First Five Ventura County Commission, and as the Treasurer for the Foundation for Early Education. As a mom, Sara volunteers with her son’s ball teams and school, and in her free time is an avid gardener, enjoys entertaining, and travel.
Heather is a Coordinator for the Early Childhood Education Programs at the Riverside County Office of Education, Division of Children and Family Services. Heather received her M.A. from the California State University, San Bernardino in Psychology with an emphasis in Early Childhood Development. She also received her B.A. from the University of California, Riverside in Human Development. Heather serves as the Chair on the Infant and Toddler Conference Committee for Riverside County, and as a Board Member of the Foundation for Early Education. Heather is blessed to share her life with her husband, three children, family and friends.
Gregory is the senior vice president of strategy, planning and operations of Knowledge Universe Education. He also serves as chief strategy officer of Knowledge Universe Education Digital. A member of the Board of Trustees for the Milken Family Foundation, Gregory Milken is actively involved in Foundation initiatives such as the Milken Scholars program and the Milken Educator Awards. He also serves on the Board of the Milken Institute, and the Board of Overseers for the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania as the Chair of the Board’s Entrepreneurship Committee. In California, he serves as Secretary for the Foundation for Early Education, a Board member for the Child Development Policy Institute and a member of the legislative committee for the Professional Association for Childhood Education.
Gregory received his M.B.A. from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a M.A. in international policy studies from Stanford University. He also received a B.A. in international relations and Asian studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Gregory is happily married with a son.
Carol Okugawa is the Executive Director at First Steps Child Development Center Inc., a nonprofit organization for children ages six weeks through five years. All centers are NAEYC accredited. She has owned and operated a center that served preschool and school age children. In her community she serves on the Legislative Breakfast Committee, member of the Local Child Care Planning Council and on the Advisory Board for ROP. Carol received her Bachelor of Arts from Eastern Washington University and her Masters at the University of Redlands.
Jeff Little is a Bank Manager and Vice President with Bank of America. He currently manages the oldest branch in the Bank of America franchise, one of the original locations in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood. He received his B.A. from Oberlin College and looks forward to returning to graduate school to pursue his M.B.A. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his wife and attending live concerts and sporting events.
Research
Sandra Edelbrock Gulizia
Giuliana M. Halasz, MSW
Ruth Nathan, Ph.D.
Sara O’Conlon, CPA
Heather Harris
Gregory Milken
Carol Okugawa
Jeff Little