2025 Special Guests & Facilitators

Dr. Kimberly Krzanowski brings over 20 years of experience in early learning, having served as a former early childhood teacher, administrator, higher education department chair, faculty member at multiple institutions, and a leader in state government policy development. Dr. Krzanowski currently serves as the executive director of the Early Childhood Innovation Center (ECIC) at Delaware State University, where she leads efforts to unapologetically design and implement holistic, comprehensive scholarship, career development programs and supports for the Delaware early childhood community.

Previously, Dr. Krzanowski served as the executive director of the Office of Early Learning at the Delaware Department of Education. In this capacity, she provided leadership and oversight for early childhood policy development across the state, guiding key initiatives aimed at improving access, quality, and equity in early education. Dr. Krzanowski provided critical oversight in the implementation of the state’s Quality Rating and Improvement System, while also overseeing efforts to align professional development platforms with state standards.

Dr. Krzanowski was also instrumental in shaping compensation policies and advocating for sustainable funding strategies to enhance the early childhood workforce. Her work directly influenced state-level decisions that fostered systemic change, supporting the professionalization and growth of the early childhood sector.

Dr. Krzanowski holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Delaware, concentrating on education, human services, and public policy; a master’s degree in education from Wilmington University with an emphasis on teaching and learning; and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Wilmington University, focusing on innovation and leadership in the context of the early childhood workforce.

Dr. Allyson Dean is a seasoned leader in early childhood education with over 15 years of experience shaping national and state-level policy and programming for Head Start, public pre-K, and child care systems. She most recently served as a subject matter expert with the Office of Head Start, specializing in disabilities services, preschool education, and the use of the CLASS® tool in federal monitoring and technical assistance.

Dr. Dean earned her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Maine, where her dissertation focused on Head Start Teacher Efficacy and the Provision of CLASS Pre-K Instructional Support for High-Need Students. She also holds a Master of Science in Early Childhood Education from Wheelock College in Boston, MA, and a Bachelor of Science in Child and Family Studies from the University of New Hampshire.

With a decade of experience in professional development systems, Dr. Dean has been instrumental in designing competency-based credentialing pathways for early childhood educators, coupled with compensation frameworks that support workforce sustainability. For six years, she led the development and dissemination of national training and technical assistance resources through the Office of Head Start’s National Center for Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning. In this role, she oversaw a multidisciplinary team responsible for guidance and materials supporting the Head Start Program Performance Standards, particularly in Education and Child Development and services for children with disabilities.

Dr. Dean is recognized for her commitment to equitable, high-quality early learning opportunities and her leadership in advancing inclusive, evidence-based practices across the early childhood education landscape.