Shannon Riley Ayers Email & Phone Number

As a leader in early childhood program innovation, I bring 20+ years of experience developing, implementing and evaluating transformative programs and strategies that have improved the health, education, and well-being of young children. I’ve been able to improve outcomes for children and families while at The Nicholson Foundation, the National Institute for Early Education Research and the NJ Department of Education via both the “systems lens” I bring to my work and the strategic partnerships I initiated. I have a track record of success improving outcomes and have developed dozens of successful partnerships:o Co-led a systems approach to addressing adverse childhood experiences in NJ. Succeeded in aligning key stakeholders on an action plan, including eleven state departments, community organizations, and funders.o Adapted innovative program via the development of a strategic partnership that improved outcomes for moms and babies by 94% in just the first six months. o Developed an early childhood intervention in kindergarten through third grade at the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER); demonstrated a statistically significant increase in classroom quality in less than a year.o Collaborated to create the NJ Pediatric Residency Advocacy Collaborative in partnership with American Academy of Pediatrics; successfully changed residency model from clinic-based to community partnership with real doctor/family relationships, improved outcomes with preventative approaches. My expertise stems from over 20 years of diverse experience, e.g. college professor, State Department of Education agency, Academic Research, and experience on systems strategic thought leadership via the Nicholson Foundation. But first and foremost, I consider myself a teacher. My five years of teaching experience grounds the work I do now, ensuring proposals are meaningful, practical and focused on lifting up the workforce to best serve children and their families. I possess a strong network of leading experts in academia, health, state agencies, policy shops/think tanks which fosters thought leadership and innovation.

Listed skills include Program Evaluation, Research, Qualitative Research, Curriculum Development, and 8 others.