Debra J. Ackerman
Assistant Research Professor,
National Institute for Early Education Research

Research Interests: various aspects of early childhood education and the professional development of the early care and education workforce. Specifically, her work focuses on the educational background, experience, and linguistic capacity of teachers working in New Jersey's Abbott preschools and an examination of the professional development provided to caregivers in the U.S. military's child development centers.

Prior to joining NIEER in 2004, Dr. Ackerman worked with Dr. Sharon Ryan at Rutgers' Graduate School of Education on a large-scale study of New Jersey's preschool teachers. She also coordinated professional development efforts for a county child care resource & referral agency, served as an assistant teacher in both public and private early childhood classrooms, and served as the volunteer coordinator for an early childhood social service initiative.

Barbara Alley
Senior Project Administrator, Early Childhood Initiative
Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership
Rutgers University – Camden

Ms. Alley is highly experienced in elementary and ESL education. She is currently leading an Early Childhood Initiative at the Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership. Ms. Alley has contributed great efforts to the planning of the Early Learning Research Academy (ELRA) and will continue supervising ELRA’s academic and administrative components.